Hong Kong’s Link REIT has bought the Happy Valley Shopping Mall in Guangzhou, China for RMB3.2bn (€413m).

Link’s chief executive officer, George Hongchoy, said the acquisition aligned with Link’s business strategy of portfolio diversification for long-term stable returns.

The trust has an existing portfolio of five Chinese shopping centres.

“It is part of our pursuit of a yield-accretive strategy, adding to our portfolio quality income-producing properties with capital appreciation potential in Tier 1 cities in China,” Hongchoy said.

Hongchoy said Link REIT would capitalise on the trust’s extensive retail asset management expertise to lease-up and fully unlock the value of the all.

Link REIT will fund the investment from its internal resources and facilities, with the intention of hedging the majority part of currency exchange volatility.

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