Swire Pacific rises to 20-mth high on spinoff

Published: 02 Nov 2009 18:17:04 PST

HONG KONG, Nov 3 - Shares of Swire Pacific <0019.HK> rose 6.3 percent to a 20-month high on Tuesday after the conglomerate said it was considering spinning off its property unit.

The shares rose to as high as HK$101, its highest since Feb. 5, 2008, before steadying at HK$99.80.

Swire Pacific, which also holds a stake in Asia's No.4 air carrier Cathay Pacific <0293.HK>, said on Monday that it was considering a separate main-board listing for Swire Properties Ltd, a property company that also holds hotel interests in Hong Kong, the UK, and the U.S., but that no final decision had been made. [ID:nHKG129751]

Bank of America Merrill Lynch said in a research note on Tuesday that it upgraded Swire to "buy" from "underperform" because of the possible unlocking of value through a spinoff of the property division and a renewed focus on property development. (US$1=HK$7.75)