HU Jinguang, chairman of Hongkong Macau (Holdings), says it is pure speculation that his company and a mainland firm were joining to take over Miramar Hotel & Investment Co. He says his group does not own any Miramar shares and is not intending to contactMiramar shareholders. Mr Hu also denies that his company will pay $3 billion for the second stage of the Park Lane Plaza owned by Hongkong Land.
Meanwhile, Cheng Yu-tung, chairman of New World Development, has denied being a shareholder of Miramar. There were rumours that Mr Cheng owns a 10 per cent stake in Miramar and that he wants to sell it. Mr Cheng says Miramar is a good company but he will not join the takeover fray, adding that he has a good relationship with Li Ka-shing of Cheung Kong (Holdings), Larry Yung of CITIC Pacific and the Yeung family. - HK ECONOMIC TIMES WONG Chung-ah, chairman of Wong's International, says his company will co-operate with mainland institutions and WKK to operate a finance business in China. He estimates the licences could be approved by August. He refused to give further details. - HK ECONOMIC TIMES NG Hung-sun, chairman of South China Holdings, says subsidiary South China Securities will be spun off for a separate listing at the end of this month. The company will sell 100 million new shares at $2.20 each to raise $220 million. The new shares accountfor 25 per cent of the expanded issued share capital. There will also be one covered warrant for every five shares. - HK ECONOMIC TIMES CHEUNG Shue-shing, chairman of Varitronix International, says the company's factory in Huizhou, Guangdong province, will begin production in the fourth quarter. He also says the company will aim to expand its market share in China and will strengthen co-operation with companies in related businesses. - HK ECONOMIC TIMES IT is understood the Evergo Group has reached an agreement with a consortium to sell the Far East Exchange Building for $500 million. It is said the consortium, which has not been identified, has put the building up for immediate resale. - HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL SUN Hung Kai Properties is to sign four joint-venture projects worth 200 million yuan (about HK$270.56 million) with Shaoxing. The projects are in the construction materials business. - SING TAO NEW World Development has reached an agreement with Australian company Leighton Holdings to join two other American firms to operate the first legalised casino in Sydney. The construction of the casino will cost A$600 million (about HK$3.13 billion) to $700 million. - SING TAO HENRY Cheng, managing director of New World Development, says the group has invested $2 billion in property in China, representing 10 per cent of total group assets. He says the group is in the final stage of talks to sell 15 per cent of its Wuhan hotel project to Cathay Pacific. The deal should be ready in a month. New World chairman Cheng Yu-tung says the group's total investment in China will ultimately be about $10 billion, with property and infrastructure developments each accounting for 50 per cent. -SING TAO JOHN Gray, chairman of the Hongkong Bank, says the bank has contacted the deputy mayor of Shanghai regarding the purchase of the bank's former headquarters building in the city. It is hoped Shanghai could become the headquarters for the bank's operations on the mainland. Mr Gray says the bank is interested in Shanghai because it is part of the bank's roots, and activities in the city will add to the bank's credibility. - MING PAO NEW World has invested $200 million to buy five million shares in Thai property developer Krisda Mahanakorn. This represents 4.76 per cent of the total issued shares of the Thai company. According to a spokesman for Krisda, the purchase by New World is a long-term investment and both companies may co-operate in development projects in Thailand. - MING PAO WONG Ying-wah, deputy chief executive of K. Wah International, says his company is planning to develop property projects in Shanghai including hotels, shopping space and deluxe residential properties. He says the site covers more than 10,000 sq metres and is a joint venture with an investment of several hundred million dollars. Mr Wong also says the company has four four-star hotels in China - in Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Huizhou and Nanjing. - Sing Tao HENDERSON Land recently gained development rights for one of Shanghai's busiest areas. The site is about 20,000 sq metres and is worth more than US$100 million. Ha Dik-lung, deputy chairman of Henderson (China) Investment, says the company plans to develop a floor area of 140,000 sq metres on the site. - WAH KIU YAT PO SHARES of Tse Sui Luen Jewellery (Holdings) hit a record high yesterday and at one point they were trading at $6.05. There is speculation that the company has reached agreement with a Chinese corporation to sell its holdings but the details have not been finalised. - SING PAO SO Cheung-shing, chairman of E & E Bermuda, says although the company has set up printed circuit board factories in China and is considering buying other factories, it will not put pressure on the company for a rights issue or other fund-raising exercise. He says the group has cash of $100 million to $200 million. - EXPRESS NEWS A SPOKESMAN for Hongkong Worsted Mills, says Beijing's CITIC has not finalised the takeover price for the company but he believes there should be a decision in the next few days. It is speculated in the market that the price will be $8.90 to $9. - HK ECONOMIC TIMES STANDARD Chartered Asia, which is representing minority shareholders of Paragon Holdings, says that although the takeover offer of China's Natural Gas Corp is fair and reasonable, it does not recommend accepting the bid because of insufficient information and the rapid rise in Paragon's share price of late. - HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL THE 20th floor of Peregrine Tower recently changed hands again for $109 million, or $8,050 a square foot. The property has changed hands twice in one month, with the price of the last transaction up by 12 per cent. It is also reported that a computer company, which is leasing the 22nd to 28th floors of the tower, has decided to move to Times Square. This may encourage the owner, the Lippo Group, to sell these floors. - HK ECONOMIC JOURNAL Chinese Press Digest is produced by Corporate Information Services. 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