On the downgrade, Moody's says that:
"The rating action reflects our expectation that Shimao's liquidity risks will be elevated, driven by its weakening access to funding and large near-term debt maturities.
The review for downgrade reflects the uncertainty over the company's ability to generate new funds, through new borrowing or asset disposals, to address all its near-term debt maturities in the coming 6-12 months amid challenging funding conditions."
The full release can be found here.
Shimao made headlines earlier in the day by putting up all of its property projects up for sale, in a bid to cough up enough liquidity to make payments. I highlighted last week as to why Shimao may very well be a bellwether for things to come in China's property market, so continue to keep an eye on this space.
