bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Sandy Li

Henderson Land Development will soon announce details of an investment plan to strengthen its non-property earnings.

 Chairman Lee Shau-kee, in an exclusive interview, said Henderson Land was looking around the world for investments that would have a higher return than property development.

 Details would be announced soon.

 However, Mr Lee stressed that he was not worried about the impact of the regional crisis on his firm's property earnings, which account for almost 80 per cent of the company's profits.

 Apart from its core property interests, Henderson Land owns about 56 per cent of mainland property developer Henderson China and about 64 per cent of Henderson Investment.

 Through Henderson Investment, it has stakes in Hong Kong and China Gas, Hong Kong Ferry (Holdings) and Miramar Hotel & Investment Co.

 Henderson Land, the largest supplier of private flats this year, plans to release 13,000 units for sale despite a depressed market.

 Mr Lee said: 'Buyers will come once we lower the flat prices. I am confident we can achieve our sales target.'  He said Henderson Land aimed to raise about $40 billion from property sales this year.

 About $5 billion to $6 billion has already been generated from the sale of La Cite Noble in Tseung Kwan O, and Dawning Views in Fanling.

 In April, Forbes magazine estimated Mr Lee's personal wealth had plunged 31 per cent, to US$10.1 billion from $14.7 billion, in the past nine months as prices of shares in Henderson Land and his other listed companies slumped.

 However, Mr Lee said the property downturn due to the regional financial turmoil was not the worst situation the company had experienced.

 'The market in the 1967 riots and the 1982 confidence crisis about Hong Kong's return to China was more horrible.

 'Our strategy is buying cheap land, so we can also sell cheap flats.'  After raising cash flow from property sales, the company might take advantage of a property correction to replenish its land bank, he said.

 At the end of the first half of this financial year, Henderson Land's property empire had accumulated 25.14 million square feet, and held a portfolio of agricultural land of 24.55 million sq ft.

 Mr Lee said the company would speed up property sales to raise cash flow in view of a conservative lending policy by banks.

 Rising interest expenses would certainly increase its capital costs but should not cause problems, he said.

 Mr Lee said Henderson China was in talks on entering the mainland telecoms market.

 Henderson China was interested in the mobile phone or pager business in the mainland but there were no concrete details at the moment, he said.

 Asked about retirement, Mr Lee, 70, said he never contemplated the idea, adding he liked his work too much.

 Eldest son, Peter Lee Ka-kit is deputy chairman of Henderson China while younger son Martin Lee Ka-shing is executive director of Henderson Land.



Lee eyes shift in profit sources