Vanke in talks to buy assets

    CHINA Vanke said it was in talks to buy assets in cash, part of the property developer’s effort to accelerate the development of its new businesses.

    Vanke entered into a non-binding agreement with the potential seller in December to purchase certain assets. Although the initial timeframe to reach a deal has since passed, talks are ongoing, it said in a filing to the Hong Kong exchange Sunday. Vanke has appointed intermediaries to conduct due diligence, it added. It did not identify the potential seller. Vanke, currently embroiled in a high-profile power struggle, has said that its business operations have suffered as a result of the battle for control.

    Sunac China to buy property assets from Legend

    SUNAC China Holdings will buy property assets on the mainland for US$2.1 billion from Legend Holdings, in a deal that will see the parent of computer maker Lenovo exit the real estate development sector.

    The deal is also set to exacerbate Sunac’s debt-to-equity ratio, which stood at 221 percent at the end of last year, the highest among its listed peers, according to Thomson Reuters data. “Sunac’s gearing ratio is already a concern and this transaction will add to the load and we need to watch the impact of this transaction carefully on the company’s financials,” said Samson Man, an equity analyst at CMB International Securities. Sunac will purchase 42 property projects in 16 cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing and Hangzhou, the companies said.

    Fulida to buy 17% of Australian cattle exporter

    TEXTILE maker Fulida Group Holdings Co. agreed to buy 17 percent of Wellard, the Australian livestock exporter that has slumped since listing in December 2015.

    The share purchase, from a company controlled by Wellard Chief Executive Officer Mauro Balzarini, will make Fulida the second-biggest investor in Wellard, according to a stock exchange filing yesterday. While exact terms of the sale weren’t disclosed, Wellard has tumbled 83 percent since the initial public offering, cutting the company’s market value to A$94 million (US$71 million). Profit margins have been squeezed as Wellard struggled to pass on to customers in Southeast Asia record cattle prices in Australia. Balzarini’s company, WGH Holdings, is selling the stock to Fulida at the same time as a refinancing that will also see WGH pay A$15.8 million to bolster Wellard’s balance sheet.

    WGH will remain the largest investor in Fremantle, Western Australia-based Wellard with a 20 percent stake.