China Evergrande is ordered to liquidate, with over $300 billion in debt. Here’s what that means.

By ELAINE KURTENBACH
AP Business Writer

A court in Hong Kong has ordered China Evergrande, the world’s most deeply indebted company with more than $300 billion in liabilities, to be liquidated. The decision Monday came after the company failed to win support from its creditors for a plan to restructure the debt. Evergrande’s own Hong Kong-traded shares plunged 21% before they were suspended from trading, but markets in China appeared to take the news in stride. Looking ahead, it’s unclear whether Chinese courts will fully comply with the Hong Kong court’s decision. Nearly all of Evergrande’s business is in mainland China, where the authorities have focused on getting developers to deliver properties they have promised to build.