Investors are on edge in anticipation of a significant announcement from indebted Chinese property developer Evergrande.t follows Evergrande missing a second offshore bond payment late last week, failing to pay some of the interest owed on its roughly $400 billion in debt.

suspension follows Evergrande missing a second offshore bond payment late last week, failing to pay some of the interest owed on its roughly $400 billion in debt.

IG market analyst Kyle Rodda said "a lot of ambiguity" remained around Monday's trading halt, but he had already seen clients reducing their exposure to the Hong Kong market as a result.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell in early trade, to be down 2% by 2:00pm AEDT, with similar falls in Tokyo.

Stock markets in mainland China and South Korea were closed for holidays.

"Nobody's jumping at shadows just yet … but the big fear is that it will be a reasonably grave announcement about the company's health," Mr Rodda told the ABC.

"The extreme situation would be that Evergrande's on the verge of collapse."

As a result of the Evergrande trading suspension, Mr Rodda said some of the steam had come out of a positive start on Asian markets.

"The biggest problem is not a default by Evergrande but the environment that has led to its downfall. Authorities are regulating housing loans and lending to property firms. Markets are looking for a next Evergrande already," Okasan Securities senior economist Kazutaka Kubo told Reuters.

"There is rising risk Evergrande's woes will spread to the entire Chinese property sector."

Story By | Stephanie Chalmers