bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

Citic Pacific Recommendation: Buy Brokerage: OCBC Securities CITIC Pacific is a wide-ranging conglomerate with operations in aviation, property development, trading, infrastructure and utilities.

 We project earnings per share will fall 44.6 per cent this year though only 5.4 per cent on a recurring basis.

 However, the share price is now returning to levels not seen since 1992.

 Bear in mind that the overhang stemming from speculation over the financial difficulties of chairman Larry Yung Chi-kin has been removed after Citic Beijing disclosed earlier this month that it had bailed out Mr Yung.

 The stock has drastically underperformed since the beginning of the year.

Shenzhen Expressway Recommendation: Outperform (high risk) Brokerage: Salomon Smith Barney IN interim results due out on August 20 we expect to see first-half profits rise 56.3 per cent to 135.5 million yuan (about HK$126 million), mainly due to a toll increase for the Meiguan Expressway and for the Shenzhen sections on national highways 107 and 205. Traffic flows for the Shenzhen expressways grew significantly in the first half.

 We expect a cumulative average growth rate of 15 per cent per year from next year to 2001.

 The company's debt to equity ratio is 25 per cent and it has about one billion yuan in cash on hand. At a price of $1.14 it is trading at a 58.4 per cent discount to net asset value per share.

China Food Recommendation: Hold Brokerage: Celestial Holdings CHINA Foods is the listed arm of China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuff Import and Export Corp. Its main businesses include edible oils, flour, food trading and wine production.

 The company has accumulated $800 million in cash for future acquisitions after selling off assets in a restructuring last year that also led to big write-downs.

 After selling non-core businesses its financial position has greatly improved, but the counter is too dependent on new acquisitions for future profit growth.



Strong mainland connections add to Citic Pacific attraction