April 8 Reuters Chinese developer Shimao Group said on Monday that China Construction Bank Asia had filed a liquidation petition against it in Hong Kong over unpaid debts, a rare case of a stateowned bank taking such legal action in the property downturn.

The petition centres on Shimao39;s failure to repay loans of HK1.58 billion 201.75 million and contrasts with legal processes against rival firms such as China Evergrande Group and Country Garden for defaulting on their debts that were launched by overseasbased creditors.

The loans include direct lending from China Construction Bank CCB to Shimao and the bank39;s participation in syndicated loans from a club of lenders to the developer, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter who could not be named because the information is confidential.

Shimao39;s Hong Konglisted shares fell by as much as 15 to hit an alltime low during trading. The Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index was up 0.2.

CCB did not respond to a request for comment on the petition or the composition of its loans to Shimao.

Shimao said in a stock exchange filing it would vigorously oppose the lawsuit and press on with a plan to restructure about 11.7 billion of offshore debt, with an aim of cutting it by 60.

The company is of the view that the Petition does not represent collective interests of the company39;s offshore creditors and other stakeholders, Shimao said in the filing.

It did not respond immediately to a request for further…