China developer pays RM4.5b for Johor land

[SHANGHAI] Guangzhou R&F Properties Co, a landlord in the southern Chinese city's business district, will pay RM4.5 billion (S$1.8 billion) to the Johor royal family for six sites in Malaysia, marking its first acquisition abroad.

The developer plans to build commercial and residential properties on the 116 acres (47 hectares) in the southern Malaysian city of Johor Bahru, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange yesterday. R&F will be able to build up about 3.5 million square metres of floor area including homes, offices and a hotel, on the sites, according to the statement.

Its entry into Malaysia follows Country Garden Holdings Co, the developer controlled by China's richest woman Yang Huiyan, which said last year that it will buy prime waterfront land in the southern part of the South-east Asian nation.