Chinese authorities have directed Ping An Insurance Group to consider taking a controlling stake in Country Garden, the nation's largest private property developer, a Reuters report said on Thursday.

Chinese authorities urge Ping An to take controlling stake in Country Garden: Report  

For weeks, global markets have been watching the struggles of China Evergrande, a teetering real estate giant weighed down by $300 billion or more in obligations that just barely seemed able to make its required payments to global investors.

China's Evergrande defaults on its debt. Now what?

Two major Chinese property firms have defaulted on $1.6 billion worth of bonds to overseas creditors, Fitch rating agency said Thursday, as contagion spreads within the country's debt-ridden real estate sector.

Evergrande defaulted on over $1.2 billion worth bond debt: Fitch