Wanda Commercial raises US$3.7 billion in IPO

[HONG KONG] Chinese shopping mall developer Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co. has raised US$3.7 billion in an initial public offering in Hong Kong, a report said Tuesday, making it the biggest in the world by a real estate firm.

The company, owned by the property arm of Dalian Wanda Group, sold 600 million shares at HK$48 (US$6.19) apiece - near the higher end of its indicative price range, Dow Jones Newswires said, citing people close to the matter.

The sale beats the US$2.9 billion IPO of Singapore's Global Logistic Properties in 2010, the newswire said.

The Beijing-based company, controlled by Chinese billionaire Wang Jianlin, is one of the world's largest developers of shopping malls, owning dozens across China. Its parent group bought US cinema chain AMC Entertainment Holdings two years ago.

The IPO comes at a difficult time for China's property market, where prices have been falling for months and construction rates have been slowing.

Wanda has slashed its IPO fundraising target by about a third from the original goal, possibly to attract investors concerned by the slowing real estate market, while analysts have also pointed to the company's high debt levels.

In September it was reported as seeking to raise about US$5 billion-US$6 billion in the float.

The company is expected to list by December 23.

AFP