China Overseas Land & Investment to buy Citic real estate assets for $4.8bn

State-owned China Overseas Land & Investment has announced it will purchase residential property assets from 25 cities across China from state-run conglomerate Citic for RMB31 billion (US$4.8 billion), Bloomberg reported, citing a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. China Overseas will sell 1.1 billion shares at HK$27.13 (US$3.50) apiece to the Citic companies concerned as part of the transaction. Credit Suisse analysts said in a note Monday that the property restructuring was “a long-awaited move” for investors, but also noted the transaction could be negative for China Overseas, since Citic’s assets reside mainly in low-tier mainland cities where developments are more often unprofitable compared to those in major urban centers.