JAPAN’S Aeon Co. and State-owned China Resources Enterprise Ltd. are among the suitors considering bids for the Hong Kong supermarket business being sold by billionaire Li Ka-shing, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

    Li’s Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. conglomerate has set an Aug. 16 deadline for initial bids for its ParknShop supermarket chain, with an asking price of up to US$4 billion, said the people, who declined to be identified because the sale process is confidential.

    The auction is generating interest from companies and private equity firms, lured by the opportunity to operate in a market that is dominated by two large players. Octogenarian Li is planning to sell the business to focus more on Hutchison’s health and beauty retail operations, which have a bigger global footprint and offer higher margins compared with the supermarket business, the people said.

    Australian retailers Woolworths Ltd. and Wesfarmers Ltd. and China’s Sun Art Retail Group are among the other suitors evaluating bids, the people added.

    “Hong Kong is a saturated market and we can only expect very stable or even flat growth in the supermarket business, which may not be attractive to investors seeking speedy returns,” said Linus Yip, chief strategist at First Shanghai Securities.

    “But foreign operators may find it appealing if they want to tap the China market through ParknShop as a stepping stone.”(SD-Agencies)