Blackstone Said Aiming for $500M India Mall IPO and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, private equity giant Blackstone reportedly seeks a $500 million IPO of its India mall portfolio, Hong Kong home prices fall as interest rates creep higher, and two high-rise towers near New Delhi are imploded for code violations.

Blackstone Plans to File for IPO of $2.5B India Mall Portfolio

Blackstone plans to file as soon as next month for an IPO of its India mall portfolio that could raise about $500 million, people familiar with the matter said.

The private equity giant has been interviewing advisers about a Mumbai-listed REIT, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing private information. Blackstone’s India retail portfolio, held through its Nexus Malls unit, could be valued at about $2.5 billion, the people said. The REIT could go public as early as 2023, they said. Read more>>

Hong Kong Home Prices Fell 1.6% in July

Hong Kong home prices fell by 1.6 percent in July, sinking to a nearly two-and-a-half-year low amid rising interest rates and COVID-19 rules that continue to weigh on the city’s economy and the property market.

The trend is likely to continue, with one analyst predicting that prices could drop as much as another 10 percent through the rest of the year. The government’s index of overall home prices in the city, released Monday by the Rating and Valuation Department, dropped to 376.1 in July from 382.4 in June. Read more>>

2 High-Rise Towers in India Demolished for Violating Laws

Two high-rise apartment towers in India were levelled in a controlled demolition on Sunday after the country’s top court declared them illegal for violating building norms, officials said. They became India’s tallest structures to be razed to the ground.

More than 1,500 families vacated their apartments in the area more than seven hours before the nearly 100 metre (328 foot) towers crumbled inward by the impact of the implosion. The 32- and 29-storey towers, which were being constructed by a private builder in Noida city on the outskirts of New Delhi, were yet to be occupied. Read more>>

India’s Billionaire Ambani Family Is Mystery Buyer of $80M Dubai Villa

The family behind Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries is reportedly the mystery buyer of an $80 million beachside villa in Dubai.

Anant Ambani, the youngest son of billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani, purchased the luxury property at Palm Jumeirah earlier this year when Belleview Real Estate, the property agency, announced the sale of the luxury estate. Read more>>

Shangri-La Asia Lost $158M in H1 2022

Hotel group Shangri-La Asia reported a net loss of $158.2 million for the first half of 2022, marking two consecutive years of net losses since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the hospitality industry.

In a bourse filing on Friday, the company said its net loss for the six months to June widened by 164.5 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. Read more>>

Hilton Partners With Country Garden Hotels to Expand in China

Hilton has partnered with Chinese developer Country Garden Hotels Group to manage several Country Garden hotel properties, primarily under the DoubleTree by Hilton and Hilton Garden Inn brands.

An initial six hotels owned by Country Garden have either begun operating as Hilton-branded properties or have been added to the hotel group’s pipeline. These are all part of Country Garden’s existing portfolio of more than 120 hotels in operation, under construction and in planning. Read more>>

China Oceanwide Gets Time to Repay Debt on Manhattan Tower Site

China Oceanwide Holdings, the developer struggling to salvage $3.5 billion worth of US real estate investments, reached a forbearance agreement with lenders on a site where it planned to build one of lower Manhattan’s tallest towers.

The deal marks a reversal from May, when Oceanwide said it had lost control of the property at 80 South Street after defaulting on a $165 million loan from DW Partners. Under the agreement, Oceanwide will make “extension payments” through October and has an option to extend the standstill for another month. Read more>>

Kai Tak Projects Hobbled by Infrastructure Delays

When Alvin Ho placed a down payment for a HK$9 million ($1.1 million) one-bedroom flat at the former Kai Tak airport site last year, he bought into the dream of living in a vibrant neighbourhood surrounded by greenery, fronting Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour.

One Victoria, a three-block condo project, was completed this month, but the 36-year-old found his new home in the middle of a massive construction site, with no public transport. Read more>>

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