Blackstone, GIC Bid for $1B India Real Estate Deal

Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman seems to be taking a closer look at India

The world’s biggest alternative investment manager, and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund look at a $1 billion India real estate deal, while Wanda makes progress on its Hong Kong privatisation plan, while spending some pocket millions on a new web platform. Read on for all these stories and more.

Blackstone, GIC Bid for $1B Stake in Indian Developer

Blackstone, GIC of Singapore and a consortium of sovereign wealth funds from Abu Dhabi and Qatar have advanced in the process to buy a $1-billion stake in the commercial property unit of DLF, people directly familiar with the matter said.

The Gurgaon-based realtor plans to sell 40% stake in DLF Cyber City Developers (DCCDL), which owns the leased commercial assets including office and retail space portfolio in the National Capital Region and in Kolkata, as part of a strategic debt-paring exercise. Read more>>

Wanda Says Kuwaitis Back HK-Delisting Plan

China’s Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co Ltd said on Thursday its joint-largest shareholder Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) intends to approve the developer’s Hong Kong delisting proposal, in line with fellow shareholder China Life Insurance Co Ltd .

KIA and China Life each hold 7.42 percent of outstanding shares in Wanda Commercial, which will seek shareholder approval on Aug. 15 for its plan to delist. Read more>>

Wanda Buys Chinese Film Website for $280M

Billionaire Wang Jianlin’s Wanda Cinema Line Co. will buy a Chinese website that provides news on the film industry and sells movie tickets, as the tycoon expands his entertainment-related business.

The movie-theater operator will buy Mtime.Com and all its operational entities for $280 million in cash, Wanda Cinema said in a statement to the Shenzhen stock exchange on Wednesday. Read more>>

Inside a Failed China Highway Project

A highway project here that is four years behind schedule and hundreds of millions of dollars over budget helps explain why Beijing’s effort to raise infrastructure spending is an increasinglyineffective way to boost the economy.

When construction on the Chang’An Expressway began in 2008 it seemed a sure bet. Its private partners stood to collect decades of lucrative toll revenue. The economy and the environment would benefit by slashing three hours off a four-hour trip. Read more>>

Hang Lung Results Suffer From Weak Mainland Rentals

Hang Lung Properties, one of Hong Kong’s leading developers, delivered first-half profits in line with market expectations, as strong residential sales in Hong Kong were cancelled out by weakened rental income in mainland China.

The company said in its interim filing to Hong Kong stock exchange on Thursday that underlying profit rose 29 per cent year on year to HK$3.17 billion in the six months ended June 30. Read more>>

Macau Property Market Could be Set for Rebound

The worst may be over for Asia’s worst-performing property market. Macau’s housing prices, which have plunged by a third since 2014, may get a boost amid signs that a two-year casino slump in the Chinese gambling mecca is near its end.

A private equity fund managed by Gaw Capital Partners sold almost 90 percent of the units it offered on the first day at a development in early July, with evidence of buoyant demand from local buyers. Read more>>

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