China Evergrande's shares resume price gains

HONG KONG - China Evergrande Group, the developer targeted by short sellers this year for its high debt levels, resumed a run of share-price gains after reporting a surge in profit and announcing a shift to a low-debt strategy.

The nominal price of the shares rose by 11.84 percent in Hong Kong on Tuesday to HK$25.5 ($3.26).

Evergrande pledged to target net gearing of 70 percent from 2020, compared with about 240 percent now, in an earnings briefing in Hong Kong on Monday, where it disclosed a jump in first-half profit. It also said it plans to raise 30 billion yuan ($4.5 billion) to 50 billion yuan from strategic investors in a third round of fundraising before its backdoor listing.