It was considered the gold standard in China’s increasingly shaky housing market. Now investors are treating Country Garden, the giant developer, like a ticking time bomb.The company, China’s last major real estate giant to avoid default, has hinted at its financial troubles for weeks. On Thursday night, it was more direct: Country Garden said it expected a loss of up to $7.6 billion over the first six months of this year.The company’s shares, which trade in Hong Kong, took a dive on Friday, dragging its value to new depths. The stock is trading around one Hong Kong dollar, or about 13 cents U.S.The pessimism was not limited to the markets.Commenters on Chinese social media expressed their shock — and anger — at the drumbeat of bad news about China’s housing market. Many invoked the memory of another real estate giant, China Evergrande, that landed in default two years ago, setting off a wave chain of real estate flameouts.“Another real estate giant i …
