ValueBuddies.com : Value Investing Forum - Singapore, Hong Kong, U.S.

Tollway firms may get OK to collect longer

Quote:Tollway operators who have been financially affected by the government's toll-free policy may be allowed to extend their collection periods, according to a draft amendment to the country's tollway management regulation.

"(Highway) operators whose legal revenue is impacted by the toll-free policy can be compensated by properly extending their period of toll collection," the Ministry of Transport said in a draft amendment to the regulation, which took effect in November 2004.

The ministry on Wednesday began soliciting opinions from the public on the draft and has published the amendments on its website. The solicitation will end on June 7.

According to the tollway regulation, the time for non-government-invested highways to collect tolls should not exceed 25 years. Those in central and western regions, which are usually economically underdeveloped, are allowed to extend the period to 30 years.

The amendments also stipulate that investors in highways must sign a franchise agreement with local transport authorities and write down a "reasonable" rate of return in the agreement.

The revenue, expenditures and maintenance information of tollways must be made public for scrutiny, the draft said.

http://www.china.org.cn/china/2013-05/09...771255.htm [Article]

The full article in the URL link includes the public outcry over this proposed move to extend the concession and more details on the loss of income suffered by toll road operators since this move was implemented. Nothing is set in stone - if the Government do approve the extension of the concession lifespan of the toll roads owned by CM Pacific - it will be a small but positive catalyst. However, this may also curb excessive profit making since the IRR is fixed.

(Vested)

Vendor asking price reaches new all-time high
Realestate.co.nz
545 words
1 May 2013
Scoop.co.nz
SCconZ
English
Copyright 2013, scoop.co.nz All Rights Reserved.
Media Release

Vendor asking price reaches new all-time high as inventory drops near record low

Record asking prices in Auckland and Central Lakes/Otago drive new national high

AUCKLAND, 1 May, 2013 - The average asking price of vendors for properties around New Zealand reached a new all time high in April. According to data released today in the New Zealand Property Report - a monthly report of housing marked activity compiled by Realestate.co.nz - the national average asking price extended to $447,275 (seasonally adjusted truncated mean). The previous high, set in November last year was $446, 277.

Paul McKenzie, Marketing Manager for realestate.co.nz says that the new high is part of a continuing growth pattern. "While the asking price did reach a new high, a six per cent increase on the same time last year, it is only a half of a per cent increase on last month. Asking prices are trending upwards and look set to remain high through the winter months."

The new high was caused largely by new all-time high asking prices in Auckland and Central Lakes/Otago. While Auckland's average asking price of $612,167 was a small increase on the previous high of $611,864, the new high in Central Lakes/Otago, $679,987 was up nearly $40,000 on the previous high of $642,251.

The new high in asking price was matched by low inventory, adding pressure to the already tight market. Inventory - the number of equivalent weeks of sales left on the market - fell to 26.8 weeks nationally, a small decrease on March, but close to the all-time low of 26.2 weeks. New lows in inventory were set in Canterbury and Central North Island, while Auckland fell to 14 weeks, just above it's record low of 13.9 and well below the long term average of 30 weeks.

McKenzie says the low inventory figure was caused by a strong month of sales, "what is indicative is that despite numbers of new listings similar to prior year, inventory is down 20% on the same time. For example, Auckland had 3,543 new properties brought to the market in April, 9.3% more than a year ago, yet inventory fell 35%."

Despite the increase in properties in Auckland, 10 of the 19 regions in New Zealand reported listings down on April 2012. "We are still seeing a reluctance to bring new properties to the market, this is creating an ever tightening market as demand is staying high, there simply aren't enough new properties on the market to slow things down," says McKenzie.

Realestate.co.nz is the country's most comprehensive property listing website, profiling listings of licensed real estate agents with more than 110,000 listings covering residential, commercial, business as well as farms for sale.

The May 2013 issue of the NZ Property Report - a monthly report of housing market activity compiled by Realestate.co.nz - can be found along with more analysis of the property market on http://www.unconditional.co.nz, the news and information website for New Zealand real estate.

- ENDS -

NZ_Property_Report__1st_May_2013_Realestate.co.nz.pdf

(21-04-2013, 02:01 AM)Nick Wrote: [ -> ]AR 2012

Loan A:
Principal: HK$0
Interest: 5.28%
Maturity: Oct 2012
Secured by NZ properties

Loan B:
Principal: HK$741.9 mil
Interest: 2.94 - 4.01% for USD and 2.88 - 3.94% for HKD Facilities
Maturity: Amortizing and to be paid fully by July 2015
This debt was raised at Group level to partially finance the YTW acquisition of RMB 2.3 billion in Aug 2011.

Loan C:
Principal: HK$1,208.5 mil
Interest: 5.92 - 7.32%
Maturity: Feb 2014 and Aug 2015
This debt is held by its 51% owned YTW at its asset level.

Loan D:
Principal: HK$137.9 mil
Interest: 3.87%
Maturity: June 2017
Held by its subsidiary in China.

Loan E:
Principal: HK$1,212.5 mil
Interest: 5.90%
Maturity: Payable quarterly till Dec 2018
Held by Beilun Expressway at its asset level.

Loan F:
Principal: HK$49.3 mil
Interest: 7.04%
Maturity: Oct 2013
Held by Beilun Expressway at its asset level.

Convertible Bonds:
Principal: HK$1,064.2 mil
Interest: 1.25%
Maturity: Put Option Nov 2015. Conversion Price: $0.84
Used to partially finance the acquisition of Beilun Expressway in Nov 2012.

CM Pacific has entered into a five year US$150 million (or HK$1.16 billion) Term Loan facility to replace the 3 month US$150 million bridging loan facility undertaken in March 2013. I suspect that the proceeds will be used to refinance the debt held by Beilun Port Expressway and if so, the interest savings will boost the profitability of the newly acquired toll road substantially. Alternatively, they could be building up a war chest for acquisitions this year. We will find out in the upcoming 2Q results.

http://info.sgx.com/webcoranncatth.nsf/V...C0032A81D/$file/TermLoan_Facility_Announcement.pdf?openelement [5 Year Term Loan]

(Vested)

China Merchants Group and Sri Lanka Government Sign a Bilateral Framework Agreement

http://www.4-traders.com/CHINA-MERCHANTS...-16916242/ [Full Article]

Quote:Prior to the signing ceremony, Mr. Luo Huilai, General Manager of China Merchants Huajian Highway Investment Co., Ltd. (¡°CMHHI¡±), Mr. Liu Yunhu, Overseas Operation Officer of CMHI and CEO of Colombo International Container Terminals, Mr.Jiang Yanfei and Mr.Wu Xinhua, Deputy General Manager of CMHHI met with Mr. Jayasundara, Standing Secretary of Sri Lankan Ministry of Finance and Planning, and Mr. Pemasiri and discussed the cooperation between both sides. During the meeting, Mr. Luo Huiai introduced the current status and main investment projects of CMHHI, the leading highway investment operator in China to the guests. Sri Lankan guests fully acknowledged the capability of CMHHI and warmly welcomed CMHHI to invest and operate expressways in Sri Lanka. Meantime, they expressed their satisfaction for the development of Colombo International Container Terminals which is invested and constructed by CMG.

While I think it is highly unlikely CM Pacific will evolve from a domestic toll road player into a regional giant in the near future, I think it is impressive the Parent company is stepping outside China to source for new infrastructure deals. Again, this is just my musings.

(Vested)

NZ house prices skyrocket
Samantha Hutchinson
362 words
13 Jun 2013
The Australian Financial Review
AFNR
English
Copyright 2013. Fairfax Media Management Pty Limited.
Residential property prices in New Zealand are accelerating at a pace not seen in Australia since 2002, as more residents stay put and development controls curb new housing growth.

Median house prices in hotspots including Auckland and the Central Otago Lakes, which includes popular resort towns Queenstown and Wanaka, have appreciated by more than 11.5 per cent in the 12 months to May 31.

Prices in the Canterbury district, whose biggest city Christchurch was devastated by a major earthquake in February 2011, have grown 7.5 per cent in the same period.

Roaring house price growth has been attributed to a chronic undersupply of housing in areas including Auckland and Christchurch, that started during the global financial ­crisis. A shift in net migration from China, India and returning expats has also played a role.

Net migration flows swung back into positive territory over the 12 months leading up to March 31, after years of losses. Inflows for the month of March were the highest since ­January 2010, and outflows shrank to their lowest level since September 2010.

The result has been steep jumps in house prices in commercial centres, and moderate price growth across most provinces.

The phenomenon has caused ­consternation among policymakers.

New Zealand's Reserve Bank ­governor Graeme Wheeler has labelled the residential sector the country's ­biggest threat to inflation and financial stability.

But local property observers are not predicting momentum in residential prices to let up any time soon.

"Auckland's commercial centre is finally rebounding, and we're ­expecting more movement from the provinces to the centre for jobs," Knight Frank managing director Layne Harwood said.

Alan McMahon, research director at Colliers, said that while residential development was on the boil, a ­"complex and developer unfriendly" development approvals system meant it wasn't moving fast enough.

"We're only building half of what is needed," he said, adding that about 13,000 homes a year are needed to keep up with population growth.

Housing Minister Nick Smith this week defended legislation that enabled the government to override local councils and release land for development where new homes are needed.


Fairfax Media Management Pty Limited

Document AFNR000020130612e96d0003w

Massive road construction plan unveiled

Quote:China will invest around 4.7 trillion yuan ($762 billion) in building its national road network between 2013 and 2030, the country's transportation ministry said Thursday, in a move to ease the country's traffic pressure and aid its slowing economy.

The State Council, the country's cabinet, has approved a plan to expand the national road network to 401,000 kilometers by 2030 from 173,000 kilometers at the end of 2012, Dai Dongchang, chief planner at the Ministry of Transport (MOT), said at a press conference Thursday.

Ordinary national non-toll roads will be extended to 265,000 kilometers while national toll-based highways will increase to 118,000 kilometers by 2030, Dai said.

Ordinary national non-toll roads will require an investment of 2.2 trillion yuan and another 2.5 trillion yuan will be invested to build national toll-based highways, he said.

http://www.ecns.cn/business/2013/06-21/69537.shtml [Full Article]

Taking a toll

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/790438...cRAL5xmOc8 [Article]

The first article highlights opportunities for expansion into BOT projects in the future to extend its overall portfolio concession lifespan.

The second article gives a good account on the pros and cons of the Chinese toll road system.

(Vested)

China Merchants Holdings (Pacific) Limited wishes to announce that it will release its financial results for the half year ended 30 June 2013 on Wednesday, 7 August 2013, after trading hours.

(Vested)

(22-07-2013, 04:02 PM)Nick Wrote: [ -> ]China Merchants Holdings (Pacific) Limited wishes to announce that it will release its financial results for the half year ended 30 June 2013 on Wednesday, 7 August 2013, after trading hours.

(Vested)

Awaiting your anaylsis!!!

NZ property might surprise us to the upside!
Some selldown today, collected somemore today.

seems folks are not afraid of the china situation and any china merchant bank counterparty risks

Agree with Drizzt. We must be mindful of the macro environment in China. If there is a decline in industrial output, we could see reduction in heavy vehicle traffic on the toll roads. Moreover, the inherent organic growth from traffic volume due to increasing car ownership among the Chinese populace will be threatened. I was also considering - if there is a truly a credit crunch in China and China Merchants Bank gets infected, what will happen to us ? Buddies here should recall what happened to the listed funds when the sponsors Allco, Babcock & Brown and Macquarie fell into trouble in 2008. I am just throwing some negative points to remind fellow investors of potential downside. Moreover, the failed Jiurui Expressway M&A suddenly looks a little more positive as it won't be healthy to have piled on substantial debt to acquire a loss making toll road in light of the credit risk in China currently. Personally, I have not sold a single CM Pacific share over the past 2+ years as I remain confident in the infrastructure growth story in China coupled with the much stronger balance sheet as compared to its Australia peers. I wish to add a caveat that I am not saying the above events will happen or that China Merchants Bank is (or will be) in trouble. Who knows - maybe with rising rates - weaker privately owned toll roads may be more willing to divest haha !

(Vested)