Singapore's PSA International, thwarted in a bid last year to gain a toehold in Hong Kong, has reached a deal to buy the Hong Kong port assets of NWS Holdings for about HK $3 billion (US $384.6 million), sources familiar with the situation said on Friday. The deal would be the latest in a spate of mergers in the regional ports sector as operators clamour for access to China's booming export trade. Hong Kong is the world's busiest container port.
In November, Singapore's state-owned PSA, the world's second-largest container port operator, struck a deal to buy 57 percent of Hong Kong's Asia Container Terminals (ACT) from Sun Hung Kai Properties for an undisclosed sum, which the market estimated at US $333 million.
A month later, the other two shareholders in ACT, including NWS, exercised their pre-emption rights and blocked that deal. Friday's agreement would give PSA the 31.4 percent of ACT that was held by NWS after it exercised its pre-emption right.
No other details were immediately available.
The remainder of ACT, which operates in Hong Kong's main Kwai Chung container terminal, is held by CSX World Terminals, which CSX Corp recently sold to Dubai Ports International.
In December, CSX World boosted its stake in ACT after exercising its pre-emption right and now holds 68.6 percent.
NWS also holds a stake in CSX World's Hong Kong operations.
Shares in NWS and its parent firm, property developer New World Development Co Ltd, were suspended before the start of trade on Friday pending the announcement of a transaction.
NWS declined comment, and a PSA spokesman did not have immediate comment late on Friday.
Soaring global trade, driven by China's rise as a manufacturing powerhouse, has created boom times for the shipping industry. Freight rates have recently hit record highs, and many of the world's container ports are heavily congested.
NWS shares have risen by 52 percent over the past year.
In early December, Dubai struck a deal to pay $1.15 billion for the global port assets of US-based CSX, including holdings in Hong Kong and China, outbidding PSA and Hong Kong's Hutchison Whampoa Ltd, the world's biggest container port operator.
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