CITIC dips on possible HK$15.5b forex loss

HONG KONG: Shares in China's leading investment firm Citic Pacific plunged to a nearly 18-year low yesterday after it said an executive had made improper currency bets that could lose the firm up to HK$15.5 billion.

Citic Pacific, the Hong Kong-listed arm of China International Trust and Investment Corp, indicated the possible losses in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Monday.

Although executives at the group stressed the company had no cash-flow problems and its parent company would help to arrange a standby loan for the company, investors reacted aggressively by dumping their holdings in the red-chip conglomerate.