New World China buys US$310m mixed-use land parcel in Guangzhou, reinforcing its mainland commitment
35,245 square metre land parcel on Yongning Street in Zengcheng District on the eastern outskirts of the Guangdong provincial capital
Hong Kong property giant New World Development’s China arm has acquired a sizeable commercial and residential land parcel in Guangzhou for 2.09 billion yuan (US$310 million), emphasising its expansion plans in the mainland.
New World China Land, which delisted from Hong Kong in 2016, said on Monday it had won the 35,245 square metre land parcel on Yongning Street in Zengcheng District, on the eastern outskirts of the Guangdong provincial capital.
The parcel will be developed into a complex comprising offices, shopping malls, residential units and hotel facilities, including two 240-metre-high “Twin Towers”. The whole complex has a total gross floor area covering 250,000 square metres, the company said.
The project also chimes with the Guangzhou government’s ongoing initiative to strengthen development of the city’s eastern hub, the company added.
New World China has been restructuring its mainland China business over the past few years, after almost suspending its land buying there and disposing of a large amount of property assets, including the sale of residential projects in five cities to China Evergrande Group in 2015, for over 20 billion yuan.
We will move forward with our mainland and Hong Kong business projects with the new Zengcheng project representing a strong symbol of New World’s continuing expansion throughout the southern China region
Its parent New World Development took the China unit private in 2016 for HK$21.4 billion, raising concerns the property giant – owned by chairman Henry Cheng Kar-shun and his family, one of the wealthiest in Hong Kong – planned to exit the mainland market altogether.
But the chairman has now underlined the company remains optimistic about China’s economic prospects, and remains fully committed to mainland expansion.
“We attach great importance to the mainland market, ” Cheng said on Monday. “For this reason, we will move forward with our mainland and Hong Kong business projects with the new Zengcheng project representing a strong symbol of New World’s continuing expansion throughout the southern China region.”
Echo Huang Shao-Mei, New World China’s director and deputy chief executive officer, said in Foshan last week the company has already set aside 20 billion yuan for land buying in China, and will speed up replenishment of its land bank across the country, especially in Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
