Ordos, possilby the worst ghost city in the Chinese real estate bubble, can be considered a leading indicator of things to come in other cities. Real estate sales have plummeted and prices appaer to be crashing. The boom-to-bust has exposed the rampant black market lending as debtors feel threatened by creditors.

To avoid facing creditors’ ravage, debtors have taken to deliberatly going to jail for protection. According to The Australian, Chinese debtors are opting for impaired driving charges.

Few would opt willingly for the bleak interior of a Chinese prison but, for a growing number of debtors in Ordos, these are desperate times. A frenzy of black-market lending, speculative property investment, Ponzi schemes and fraud has begun to spray toxicity everywhere.

To read more visit: www.theaustralian.com