Country Garden, the largest property developer in China, is attempting to the payment on one of its bonds.

Mass media reports alleged that several Chinese companies are struggling to fulfill their debt obligations. As a result, market sentiment worsened, and traders shifted to safe-haven assets. This situation briefly pushed the US Dollar Index (DXY) to touch its highest level at 103.45, although it quickly moderated to the range of 103.00 in the New York session on Monday, August 14th.

us dollar index

Reuters reported that Country Garden, the largest property developer in China, is attempting to pay on one of its onshore bonds for the first time. Additionally, two publicly traded Chinese companies have stated that they have not received payments from investment products managed by Zhongrong International Trust Co that have matured.

Country Garden's stock price immediately plummeted by 18%. Meanwhile, market participants panicked, worrying about broader repercussions that could drag down the entire property sector in China if the developer were to go under.

"A lot of traders are focusing again on China," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.

"I think there's so much concern with just their growth outlook, with their current property crisis, and one of the biggest wealth managers not being able to make [their] debt obligations is a big red flag," he said.

The safe-haven-seeking action suddenly pressed down on AUD/USD, NZD/USD, EUR/USD, GBP/USD, and various other currency pairs. Meanwhile, USD/JPY boldly breached the 145.00 threshold and now stands around 145.25. Analysts continue to caution about the high risk of Japanese intervention, around 145.00 and 150.00 levels.

"Lack of verbal intervention so far suggests that the patience level of Japanese authorities may have gone up after the latest tweak to monetary policy and the disinflation trends in the United States," said Charu Chanana, a market strategist at Saxo Markets.

"Still, traders are potentially cautious of that 145 handles," he added.