Regulator says Goldman fallout in HK 'limited'

Hong Kong's securities regulator said the collateralized debt obligations at the heart of a US Securities and Exchange Commission suit against Goldman Sachs Group Inc weren't sold or marketed in the city.

"There wasn't the appetite for those types of securities here," Martin Wheatley, chief executive officer of the Securities and Futures Commission, said Wednesday after speaking at a fund managers' conference in Hong Kong. "I think the impact for Hong Kong would be quite limited, but a lot remains to be seen," he said. The SFC hasn't discussed the Goldman Sachs suit with the SEC, Wheatley said.

Stocks drop as developers fall

Hong Kong stocks dropped as the city's developers fell after the government said it may raise taxes on some property transactions and increase the land supply to rein in home prices.

The Hang Seng Index fell 0.5 percent to 21,510.93 at the close. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which tracks the so-called H-shares of Hong Kong-listed mainland companies, declined 0.5 percent, to 12,370.98.

Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd, the world's biggest developer by market value, slipped 1 percent. Bank of China Ltd, the nation's third-biggest lender, fell 1.2 percent after the country's banking regulator ordered the bank to conduct quarterly stress tests on property loans. China Mobile Ltd, the largest phone carrier by market value, declined 1.6 percent after posting worse-than-estimated profit.

Agile Property to sell bonds at 8.875-9%

Chinese developer Agile Property plans to sell $500 million in dollar bonds at 8.875-9 percent, a source close to the deal said Wednesday. The final guidance is tighter than its earlier target of around 9 percent, plus or minus 12.5 basis points. The seven-year bonds are not callable in the first four years, the source added. The bonds may be priced as early as today in New York. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered Bank were hired to help manage the issue.

UC RUSAL to limit capacity

UC RUSAL has no plans to bring more aluminum capacity on stream than the previously announced 100,000 tons in the first half of this year and the 332,000 tons set for 2011, the company's chief executive said. Oleg Deripaska, the largest shareholder in the world's biggest aluminum producer, also told reporters Wednesday that he plans to remain as chief executive for the foreseeable future after guiding UC RUSAL through debt restructuring and an IPO.

Wynn plans to move global HQ to Macao

US gambling tycoon Steve Wynn said he may move his company's headquarters to Macao as it embarks on a major expansion there. "I'm going to bring it (the potential relocation of Wynn Resorts' headquarters) up at our board meeting in May. But I have to persuade my staff first," Wynn said in an interview Wednesday in Macao.

Wynn has one of the strongest balance sheets among its peers, having raised nearly $1.9 billion in a Hong Kong IPO of its Macao unit last year. But further expansion plans in Asia will have to wait, as the firm plans to concentrate on its project on Macao's Cotai Strip, billed as the next Las Vegas Strip, for about the next five years, Wynn said.

Agencies - China Daily

(HK Edition 04/22/2010 page2)