Some recent data has raised hopes that China's economy is stabilising, but growth has slowed for nine straight quarters, piling pressure on these sprawling sectors, just as China has pushed banks to tighten credit to companies. (more below)
...The median debt-to-equity ratio of listed coal firms jumped 15 percentage points from a year ago to 55 percent, compared to 13 percent for Australian counterparts, according to Thomson Reuters data. Nine coal miners have raised a total of around 13 billion yuan from the domestic bond market this year, with six saying they would use more than half of the proceeds to pay down debt. ...In addition, aluminium and coal firms have raised huge sums via mining-related trust products since 2011.Trust funds, a lightly regulated market where money is channelled to a wide variety of investments, are an increasingly popular option for smaller firms struggling to get bank loans. But an extended slump could also lead to defaults in the trust sector. Chinese trust firms have set up nearly 100 mining-related trust funds, issuing a combined 27.3 billion yuan, according to data by industry portal www.Use-Trust.com. At least 70 mining trusts, which offer average returns of around 10 percent, are due to pay up by the end of 2013 and any defaults could send waves through the financial sector since many banks also have exposure to such assets. Huarong International Trust, which offers coal-related products, said it did thorough due diligence before issuing loans and require assets, such as mines, for collateral. But there have been problems and China Credit Trust Co, one of the biggest trust companies, has said its trust product was at risk of default after coal company Zhenfu Energy Group defaulted on a loan.