Joy City’s Hong Kong delisting throws mainland China’s property strains into relief
Cofco’s Joy City Property is quitting the Hong Kong bourse after 12 years, joining the wave of mainland developers that have already exited
When the Hong Kong stock market closes at 4pm on Thursday, Joy City Property, the company behind the shopping malls bearing the same name across China, will quietly end its 12-year run as a listed company in the city.
More are expected to follow in the coming years as the sector continues to undergo restructuring.
“This trend may continue over the next two to three years, and the sector will undergo even more thorough reshuffling and restructuring,” said property research firm China Real Estate Information Corporation (CRIC) in a recent report.
Cofco, China’s largest food processor, manufacturer and trader, entered the real estate sector in the 1990s as the country embarked on a decades-long property boom.
It has built residential complexes in some of the most developed cities in China and in 2007, it launched its first Joy City mall in China in Beijing’s Xidan shopping district, a landmark that attracted young professionals eager to spend the fruits of China’s breakneck growth.