HNA is said to plan sales of properties in Beijing, Shanghai

[SHANGHAI] HNA Group Co. is planning to sell properties including office buildings and hotels across China, according to people familiar with the matter, in the embattled conglomerate's latest string of asset disposals to repay its debts.

The buildings include Shanghai HNA Tower, Shanghai Yangtze International Enterprise Plaza and Renaissance Shanghai Pudong Hotel, said the people, asking not to be identified as the deliberations are private. Nine properties HNA has put up for sale in Shanghai and Beijing have a combined book value of about 14 billion yuan (S$2.9 billion), one of the people said.

HNA representatives couldn't immediately comment.

The move would add to about US$13 billion in HNA asset sales that have emerged in recent months after the once little-known airline operator went on a debt-fueled buying spree to snap up everything from Manhattan buildings to a stake in Deutsche Bank AG in the past few years. The group is said to have targeted 100 billion yuan in asset disposals by the first half of the year to ease financial pressures.

BLOOMBERG