Fighting Drug addiction

 Here's the story: We sat down with a man who had a harrowing journey with addiction. He began by telling us about his early days in tertiary education, where he would occasionally smoke dagga with friends. However, his focus remained on his studies, and he worked hard to graduate and secure a qualification. After landing a job, he started building a life for himself. He got married, bought a property, and even splurged on a car. Life was good, and he felt like he was on top of the world. But one fateful night, while out with friends, he was introduced to heavier narcotics. At first, the experience was exhilarating. He described it as an elevation from the mild high of dagga to a level 5 high, where he felt invincible and euphoric. The effects would last for days, allowing him to party from Friday to Sunday without sleep. The problem, however, began to manifest on Mondays and Tuesdays every week, when the withdrawal symptoms would kick in, and he'd struggle to function at work....

Chinese property magnate loses $1 billion in Evergrande panic

 ·1-min read

The property sector accounts for more than a quarter of China's GDP (AFP/Johannes EISELE)

The boss of a Shanghai-based property developer lost more than a billion dollars Monday, as fears over the potential collapse of Chinese real estate giant Evergrande sent panic across Hong Kong trading floors.

Zhang Yuanlin, chairman of Sinic Holdings Group, saw his net worth drop from $1.3 billion Monday morning to $250.7 million by the afternoon, according to Forbes, when his firm was forced to halt trading in Hong Kong following an 87 percent slump in its share price.

Zhang was featured on Forbes' Billionaires list of the world's richest people this year and made his fortune in high-rise apartments -- now highly vulnerable as the possible collapse of teetering property giant China Evergrande sparks panic.

Sinic saw a sudden sell-off and massive increase in trading volume on its shares in the hours prior to its suspension, which comes just weeks before it must pay a 9.5 percent $246 million bond due on October 18, according to Bloomberg.

A spokesperson for Sinic did not respond to AFP's request for comment.

The firm is one of many seeing fortunes wiped over investor fears that Evergrande -- one of China's biggest developers -- will default on upcoming interest payments this week as it wallows in debts of more than $300 billion.

With the property sector estimated to account for more than a quarter of China's GDP, there are concerns of a spillover into the domestic and global economy.

The crisis has even triggered rare protests outside the company's offices by investors and suppliers demanding their money -- some of whom claim they are owed as much as $1 million.

bur-oho/lb

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