(Bloomberg) -- China Vanke Co.’s profit tumbled more than analysts expected last year and it vowed to slash debt by almost $14 billion, as the embattled developer tries to stave off default amid a protracted housing crisis. 

Net income attributable to shareholders shrank 46% to 12.2 billion yuan ($1.69 billion) for 2023, the Shenzhen-based company said in an exchange filing late Thursday. The drop dwarfs a 14% slide expected by analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. 

The giant builder said it aims to cut debt by more than 100 billion yuan in the next two years as it “firmly deleverages.” Vanke didn’t propose a cash or stock dividend for 2023, skipping a full-year payout for the first time since its 1991 listing in the China market. 

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The yearslong slump in China’s real estate sector is weighing on some of the largest builders that have avoided default so far. Vanke, whose major shareholder is a state-owned firm in Shenzhen, has been seen as a bellwether for government support of major property developers after rivals including China Evergrande Group defaulted. 

Vanke posted its biggest sales decline in at least six years last month, adding to its liquidity strain. Contracted sales for February plunged 53% from a year ago to 14 billion yuan.

Fitch Ratings last week downgraded Vanke’s credit rating to junk, joining Moody’s Ratings that cut the builder to below investment grade earlier this month and warned of further reductions.

The downgrades are set to “impede the developer’s refinancing as well as contracted sales as lender and buyer confidence dwindles further,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Kristy Hung.

Vanke’s stock has stumbled to record lows in Hong Hong, and some of its longer-dated bonds recently traded near 40 cents, approaching deeply distressed levels. Vanke has a $600 million bond due in June trading above 90 cents, indicating less investor concern about repayment in the short-term. 

--With assistance from Jing Jin.

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