Evergrande's outlook revised to negative; rating affirmed

    S&P Global Ratings revised the outlooks on China Evergrande Group (03333), the company's property arm Hengda Real Estate Group Co. Ltd., and offshore financial platform Tianji Holding Ltd. to negative from stable.
  At the same time, the credit rating agency affirmed its'B+' long-term issuer credit ratings on the three companies and its 'B' long-term issue rating on the U.S. dollar notes issued by Evergrande and guaranteed by Tianji.
  S&P believes Evergrande's liquidity is weakening amid the continual increase in short-term debt obligations and potential repayment of a portion of its China domestic "A-share" strategic investments in January 2021.
  The deterioration is partly mitigated by the China-based property developer's good contracted sales and active capital-raising plans, as well as management's focus on improving leverage and liquidity amid regulatory tightening.
  The negative outlook on Evergrande reflects S&P's view of the increasing liquidity pressure on the company over the next six months, partly due to the imbalance in the capital structure. It also reflects S&P's expectation that Evergrande's margin will decline, weighing on its leverage.