HNA unit to buy Carlson Hotels

A unit of China's HNA Group Co agreed to buy closely held Carlson Hotels Inc, gaining brands including Radisson and Park Plaza as the global lodging industry consolidates.

HNA Tourism Group Co will acquire Carlson and its 51.3 percent stake in Rezidor Hotel Group AB, Carlson's Brussels-based master licensee for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and may begin a takeover offer for all of Rezidor, the companies said in a statement on Wednesday. Financial terms of the transaction weren't disclosed. Carlson's hotel group could fetch about $2 billion in a sale, people with knowledge of the matter said in March.

The HNA acquisition is part of a wave of Chinese investment in overseas hotel properties and brands. Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group Co made a surprise $14 billion bid for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc in March before walking away unexpectedly three weeks later, enabling Marriott International Inc to proceed with a takeover. Had Anbang bought Starwood, it would have been the biggest acquisition of a US company by a Chinese buyer. In 2015, HNA acquired a 15 percent stake in Red Lion Hotels Corp, an owner of mid-scale and full-service US hotels.