Press Digest: Hong Kong - March 15

Kerry Properties

15/03/2013 02:17

HONG KONG, March 15 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in Hong Kong newspapers on Friday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST

-- Hang Seng Bank  0011.HK  raised the rate for new applicants by 0.25 percentage point, taking a cue from HSBC

0005.HK  HSBA.L  and Standard Chartered Bank  2888.HK  STAN.L , which did the same the day before. Bank of China (Hong Kong), the biggest mortgage player, was also likely to increase the rate by next week, said a person familiar with the situation. ((http://link.reuters.com/tav66t))

-- China Shipping Terminal Development, wholly owned by China Shipping Container Lines  2866.HK  601866.SS , will make its first terminal investment in Europe after agreeing to buy a 24 percent stake in APM Terminals Zeebrugge in Belgium. ((http://link.reuters.com/vav66t))

-- Businessman Carson Yeung, the owner of the English football club Birmingham City, is trying to mount a judicial challenge against prosecutors' refusal to apply for his HK$721 million money laundering trial to be transferred to the high court. ((http://link.reuters.com/wav66t))

HONG KONG ECONOMIC

-- China Investment Corporation (CIC), the country's sovereign wealth fund, reduced its long position in the H shares of China Longyuan Power Group  0916.HK  to 7.29 percent from 11.78 percent on March 8 by disposing of 150 million H shares at an average of HK$6.96 ($0.90) each, according to an exchange disposal.

THE STANDARD

-- Kerry Properties Ltd  0683.HK  said government's cooling measures and the hike in mortgage rates may slow the launch of new projects and it will adjust prices according to the market. The company set its full-year sales target at HK$11 billion for 2013, up 10 percent from a year earlier, including HK$6 billion from Hong Kong flat sales. ((http://link.reuters.com/xav66t))

APPLE DAILY

-- GCL-Poly Energy Holdings  3800.HK  posted a net loss of HK$3.52 billion last year as market prices of polysilicon and wafer continued to decline in 2012, due to the cyclical oversupply in the industry, the European debt crisis, changes in the European subsidy policy and dumping of imported polysilicon into China.

TA KUNG PAO

-- China Life Insurance Co Ltd  2628.HK  601628.SS  said premium income for the first two months totalled 72.9 billion yuan ($11.73 billion), down 8.2 percent on year, compared with 79.4 billion yuan in the same period of 2012.

For Chinese newspapers, see............... PRESS/CN    ($1 = 7.7588 Hong Kong dollars) ($1 = 6.2155 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Twinnie Siu; Editing by Sunil Nair)

((twinnie.siu@thomsonreuters.com)(852-2841 5763)(Reuters Messaging: twinnie.siu.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: PRESS DIGEST HONGKONG/