Hong Kong Commercial Daily and Shenzhen New World Group signed a strategic partnership agreement in Hong Kong yesterday.

By way of the agreement, New World acquires 45 percent of the newspaper's shares to become its second largest shareholder.

Both companies said the partnership was mutually beneficial - Commercial Daily could diversify its development and modernize its management, while New World could tap into the Hong Kong and world markets.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Commercial Daily's publisher Huang Yuang-lue said that with the fresh capital injection, the newspaper will be provided the ammunition to go for multi-sector development.

In the future, he stated, the paper will make use of its strategic partner Shenzhen New World Group's prominent position as a leading real estate and logistics enterprise on the mainland to identify a more precise position in the market and look for a greater variety in its editorial and news coverage.

Huang said it was difficult to run a newspaper in Hong Kong without incurring losses. But both the newspaper's circulation and adverting proceeds increased last year, thus turning losses into profits for the first time, and the capital injection will provide capital funding and funds for pursuing a modern management.

He also said the newspaper hoped to get listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to raise more capital for development.

New World chairman Huang Wei said the group's businesses are based in the Pearl River and Yangtze River Deltas, while Hong Kong Commercial Daily is active in covering news in Hong Kong, the Pearl River Delta and other parts of China. The cooperation complements each other's strengths, said Huang, as such cross-region, cross-sector cooperation not only ventures into new economic growth areas but also pushes Shenzhen New World Group to take on the Hong Kong and global markets.

(HK Edition 04/29/2008 page1)