AXA buys Paris shopping centres from Hammerson and Eurocommercial for $752 mln

Eurocommercial Properties NV

29/07/2019 07:55

PARIS, July 29 (Reuters) - AXA Investment Managers  AXAF.PA 
has agreed to buy two Paris shopping and leisure centres for 676
million euros ($752 million) from Hammerson  HMSO.L  and
Eurocommercial Properties  SIPFc.AS , adding potentially
lucrative retail assets to AXA's   portfolio.
    AXA's investment arm said on Monday that it was buying a 75%
stake in Paris' Italie Deux retail and leisure centre from
British property group Hammerson for 473 million euros.
    AXA also announced the acquisition of a 50% stake in the
'Passage du Havre' complex near Paris' St Lazare station from
Eurocommercial Properties for 203 million euros.
    "These transactions provide us with an almost unique
opportunity to secure access to two prime central Paris retail
destinations, on behalf of clients, both of which would
otherwise rarely come to market," said Antoine Mesnage at AXA
IM.
    The sales came as Hammerson announced a dip in interim
rental income.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N24U1HQ
    ($1 = 0.8989 euros)

 (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
 ((sudip.kargupta@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 53 84;))