Lotte gets Singapore nod for mall Reit: report

THE Singapore initial public offering (IPO) of some shopping malls of South Korea's largest mall owner Lotte Shopping has gained regulatory approval, said The Wall Street Journal late Monday night.

Quoting people with knowledge of the deal, the newspaper added that Lotte is testing investors' appetite for a trust containing some of its shopping malls in the coming fortnight, and will aim to list by the end of the first quarter.

The IPO could raise up to US$1 billion, reports have said. Lawrence Wong, Singapore Exchange (SGX) head of listings, said in a statement yesterday: "We constantly receive interest from international companies with an Asian focus to list on SGX given our positioning as the gateway to the region."