"China to Merge Bad Debt Asset Managers with Sovereign Wealth Fund"

China plans to merge three state-owned bad debt asset managers with its sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corp, as part of market reform efforts to strengthen capital markets and improve confidence. This move comes amid a stock market rout and financial risks stemming from a real estate debt crisis, prompting Beijing to take actions such as suspending the lending of restricted shares and implementing policies to ease the cash crunch for Chinese developers. The real estate troubles are impacting consumer and broader economic growth in the world's second-largest economy.