HSBC sells Ping An stake to Thai conglomerate

[December 05, 2012]  HONG KONG (AP) -- HBSC says it is selling its 15.6 percent stake in China's Ping An Insurance to a Thai conglomerate for about $9.4 billion.

HSBC said Wednesday in a statement to Hong Kong's stock exchange that Thailand's Charoen Pokphand Group will pay 59 Hong Kong dollars ($7.61) a share.

The sale is part of a broader push by Europe's biggest bank to improve its profitability as lenders worldwide struggle with weak economic growth and stricter regulation following the global financial crisis. Its three-year restructuring plan involves selling or closing weak businesses.

For Charoen Pokphand, the acquisition is a big expansion into financial services. Its businesses include agriculture, ready-to-heat meals, motorcycle manufacturing and property development.

Ping An is based in the southern Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen, which neighbors Hong Kong.

[Associated Press]

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