HONG KONG: A landmark skyscraper owned by Hong Kong’s richest man Li Ka-shing has sold for a record price of more than $5 billion, the company confirmed on Wednesday, indicating the city’s booming property sector shows no sign of slowing down.
The rumoured sale of The Centre, the city’s fifth-tallest building, was first reported last month.
Li’s CK Asset Holdings confirmed in a statement to the Hong Kong exchange that the sale of its stake in the building had gone through for HK$40.2bn ($5.1bn) — a record for a Hong Kong office tower according to Bloomberg.
The statement named the buyer as C.H.M.T. Peaceful Development Asia Property Limited, incorporated under the British Virgin Islands.
The company is a “special purpose vehicle” set up specifically to undertake the acquisition, the CK Assets statement added.
The consortium’s largest shareholder is Beijing-based China Energy Reserve and Chemicals Group, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources familiar with the transaction.
Commercial and residential property prices in Hong Kong have been fuelled by an influx of money from wealthy mainland Chinese investors and developers.
