Most Asia markets up but Hong Kong hit as Evergrande trade suspended

HONG KONG, China — Hong Kong stocks plunged Monday on concerns about troubled property giant China Evergrande, though most other markets in Asia rose after a strong lead from Wall Street.

The crisis at Evergrande, which is drowning in a sea of debt worth more than $300 billion, has roiled markets in recent weeks on fears that its failure could spill over into the wider Chinese economy and possibly further.

The firm said in a statement that the trading halt was called "pending the release by the Company of an announcement containing inside information about a major transaction". 

The news came as reports said Hopson Development Holdings planned to buy a 51% stake in its property services arm.

However, traders remain concerned Evergrande will miss payments on bond obligations, putting it in default.

"There still remains very little visibility from the Chinese Government over Evergrande's fate, although a slow and steady dismantling of the company appears to be the favoured course right now," said OANDA's Jeffrey Halley.

Hong Kong stocks, already under pressure owing to concerns about China's crackdown on a range of industries including tech firms and casinos, sank more than 2%.

Tokyo fell 1.1% -- a sixth straight loss -- while Taipei was also in negative territory.

Still, there were gains in Sydney, Singapore, Wellington, Bangkok, Mumbai, Manila and Jakarta. Shanghai and Seoul were closed for public holidays.

London, Paris and Frankfurt opened lower.

Global markets endured a torrid September owing to growing concerns about inflation, spiking virus infections that are hobbling the economic recovery, and political gridlock in Washington that is pushing the United States towards a financially catastrophic debt default.

Meanwhile, Democrats continue to bicker among themselves over Joe Biden's multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure and social care spending bill, leaving it in limbo.

The Federal Reserve's plan to wind down its ultra-loose monetary policy and indications that it could hike interest rates as soon as next year have added to the gloom.

The release of US jobs data on Friday will be closely watched for a fresh idea about the health of the world's biggest economy, with a strong reading likely putting pressure on the Fed to act sooner than later.

"Markets enter the fourth quarter navigating what is perhaps the most uncertain environment of the year," said Julian Emanuel, a strategist at brokerage BTIG. "The end of 2021 is shaping up to be interesting indeed."

Oil dipped ahead of a meeting between OPEC and its key allies to decide whether to ramp up oil production in a bid to calm overheated global energy prices.