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SCMP Reporter

cheung kong slashes prices of apex homes

Cheung Kong (Holdings) has slashed prices at its Apex development in Kwai Chung by 20 per cent, according to  property agents. The developer launched the project in March and relaunched the units last week.

'With the new financing packages, the average price of the units ranged between HK$3,600 and HK$3,700 per square foot,' said a property agent. 'The first batch of units was sold for HK$4,100 per square foot in March.'

Cheung Kong sales department deputy chief manager Francis Wong said: 'We didn't cut the flat prices. The difference in prices is  for different floors.'Yvonne Liu

investment-linked insurance sales leap

Sales of investment-linked insurance policies grew at a 73 per cent annual rate in the first six months of the year as revenue from almost all other life and general insurance policies declined, according to the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance.

Sales of the new life insurance grew 30 per cent annually to HK$26.87 billion in the period driven mainly by new investment-linked products which increased 72 per cent to HK$16.47 billion. Traditional life insurance policies sales dropped 6.3 per cent to HK$10.22 billion.

Gross premiums of general insurance business dropped 4.3 per cent year on year to HK$12.13 billion. New policies purchased by mainland visitors amounted to HK$1.5 billion in the first half, representing 5.6 per cent of all new life policies sold.Enoch Yiu

associates drive profit surge at Petrochina UNIT

CNPC (Hong Kong), a unit of PetroChina's parent China National Petroleum Corp focusing on overseas oil exploration and production, said first-half profit grew 59.3 per cent to HK$1.15 billion from HK$726.07 million a year earlier, as sales rose 87.14 per cent to HK$1.96 billion. No dividend was proposed.

The main contributor to profit growth at the Hong Kong-listed unit was a 366 per cent jump in profits of associate companies, in which it has minority stakes and hence no management control, to HK$820.37 million.

The shares fell 1.71 per cent to HK$4.58 yesterday before the results.Eric Ng

ming pao blames property slowdown for flat ads

Ming Pao Enterprise Corp, the publisher of Chinese language newspaper Ming Pao Daily News, said the publication's advertising revenue for the five months ended August recorded no growth over the same period last year.

'The lack of new property projects  and the increasing market share of free dailies in print advertising market limited our growth,' chief executive Tiong Kiew-chiong said.

Property advertisements, which contributed 11 per cent of daily advertising revenue, accounted for about 30 per cent at peak periods. The advertising market  will pick up in the next three months, Mr Tiong said.Frederick Yeung

PYI expects quick profits from WUHAN acquisitions

PYI Corp, a property-to-logistics company, expects its newly acquired Wuhan logistics companies will contribute 100 million yuan profit in the first year.

PYI  agreed to acquire Wuhan Minseng and Wuhan Jinwei at a consideration of 470 million yuan in May. The firms are  in the liquid bulk logistics business, including LPG storage facilities, terminals and filling stations and equipment.

The company has HK$1.3 billion cash after disposal of its property assets earlier this year,  PYI vice chairman John Lau said yesterday.

The company may invest HK$2.2 billion on port projects, mainly along the Yangtze River, and upgrading existing ports facilities in the three years through 2009, he said.Charlotte So



Business Digest