HKT shares slip after Richard Li sell-off

HKT Trust saw its share price decline after PCCW chairman Richard Li Tzar-kai sold some of his personal stake in Hong Kong's first listed business trust.

Shares of HKT Trust, which runs the city's biggest fixed-line telecommunications network, were down 2.53 per cent to close at HK$7.70 in trading yesterday.

HKT Trust and operating arm HKT represent the telecommunications assets spun off by PCCW in November 2011. PCCW holds about 63 per cent of HKT Trust and HKT's total issued share stapled units.

Li raised about HK$1.28 billion from selling about 2.5 per cent of the total outstanding units he owned, which were held by his companies Pacific Century Group, Eisner Investment and Pacific Century Diversified.

The transaction was made at a time when HKT Trust's share price hovered near its record high of HK$7.94 on April 10. Li currently holds about 2.9 per cent direct interest in the trust.

There was strong appetite for the HKT share stapled units Li sold. Its buyers were funds and blue-chip financial institutions, including AIA, ING Life HK, Jardine Fleming, Henderson Global investors and DBS.