April 15,2015
Source: Manila Standard Today By Jenniffer B. Austria

SM Prime Holdings Inc., the country’s largest property developer owned by billionaire Henry Sy, said it will spend P20 billion annually in China to expand its shopping malls, acquire lots for future development.

SM Prime Holdings Inc., the property unit of tycoon Henry Sy, is spending P80 billion in 2015 to support its expansion.  Shown during the company’s annual stockholders meeting at SM Aura in Taguig City are (from left) SM Prime president Hans Sy, chairman of the board Henry Sy Jr. and vice chairman Jose Cuisia Jr. BOBBY CABRERA 

SM Prime executive vice president Jeffrey Lim said in a news briefing following the annual stockholders’ meeting the bulk of the investments in China would be used to build new malls and acquire new properties.

The P20-billion annual spending in China would form part of the company’s P400-billion programmed capital spending in 2014 to 2018, which includes P80 billion in 2015.

The total number of SM malls in China will achieve 9, with 5 currently in operation in Xiamen, Jinjiang, Chengdu, Suzhou and Chongqing.

Two of the new malls are expected to open in the near future, namely SM Zibo and SM Tainjin. The company has also secured the sites of the other two new malls in Changzhou and Yangzhou of Jiangsu Province.

Meanwhile, Lim said the group planned to borrow at least 40 percent of the P400 billion programmed spending from the debt market while the remaining 60 percent would come from internally generated funds.

SM Prime will spend P80 billion in 2015 to support its aggressive expansion. The company said it would increase by 12 percent its mall space in the Philippines and would launch five high rise residential projects with at least 11,000 units.