Diskon pengeluaran menyerap keuntungan, hasil penjualan properti Hong Kong Cheung Kong tahun lalu turun lebih dari 70%

Hong Kong’s property market has experienced fluctuations and is expected to fully recover by 2025, but the Cheng Yu-tung’s Cheung Kong Group (01113.HK) has not achieved ideal returns in this round of market recovery.

On March 19, Cheung Kong Group released its 2025 financial report, showing revenue of HKD 57.935 billion during the reporting period, an annual increase of 27.25%; the profit before revaluation of investment properties was HKD 11.96 billion, with earnings per share of HKD 3.42, an increase of 2.7% compared to the previous year. After accounting for the impact of the revaluation of investment properties, Cheung Kong’s attributable profit for shareholders in 2025 was HKD 10.847 billion, with earnings per share of HKD 3.1, a decrease of 20.3% compared to the previous year.

Specifically, property sales, as Cheung Kong’s main business, confirmed sales revenue of HKD 20.449 billion in 2025, a significant increase of 105% year-on-year; achieving revenue of HKD 2.733 billion, a year-on-year growth of 23.7%.

Among them, sales revenue in Hong Kong reached HKD 8.957 billion, with mainland contribution of HKD 6.306 billion, and overseas markets such as Singapore and the UK contributed nearly HKD 5.2 billion, all showing an increase of over 50% year-on-year.

However, in terms of revenue, the contribution from the Hong Kong market did not increase but rather decreased, achieving HKD 2.73 billion, a significant reduction of over 70%. Cheung Kong stated that this was mainly due to multiple discounts offered to promote sales amid weak market conditions, as well as provisions made for losses from the sales of Blue Coast and Blue Coast II.

The two projects were properties sold at a discount by Cheung Kong in 2024. At that time, the projects were launched at an average price of approximately HKD 21,900 per square foot, which was about 30% off compared to the surrounding second-hand housing prices, and about 22% lower than the cost of approximately HKD 28,000 per square foot. This sales strategy was referred to as “bottom price,” which quickly made the Blue Coast project the “popularity king” of new developments in Hong Kong at that time, achieving rapid sales.

Currently, Cheung Kong no longer needs to promote through significant discounts. Since 2025, the Hong Kong property market has entered a recovery phase, and housing prices have also been repaired. This trend has continued to this day, with Morgan Stanley releasing a report stating that in the first two months of this year, mainland buyers purchased 2,600 units in Hong Kong, a year-on-year increase of 91%, with a total transaction value of HKD 28.2 billion, an increase of 136% year-on-year. Industry insiders predict that housing prices in Hong Kong will continue to rise this year.

When discussing their views on Hong Kong’s property market this year, Cheung Kong’s management also stated that as Hong Kong’s economy stabilizes, the trading of residential properties in 2025 is gradually regaining momentum. “The reduction of government property stamp duty rates, lower mortgage rates, and developers adjusting prices are all factors that make it more attractive for citizens to enter the market, supporting the overall residential property market.” Based on this, Cheung Kong will also promote a series of new projects to market this year.

However, such market conditions have not made Cheung Kong more active in acquiring land. When asked if there is interest in bidding for the nine residential plots to be launched by the government in the next fiscal year, Li Ka-shing’s eldest son, Li Tzar-kai, Chairman and Managing Director of Cheung Kong, stated that as long as the returns are reasonable, they will participate in land bidding. “In land bidding or any acquisition and merger transactions, the group has always adhered to ‘financial discipline,’ and will not have a ‘must-win’ mentality, absolutely will not blindly chase prices; the return rate always determines everything.”

As of the end of 2025, Cheung Kong has a developable land reserve (including the developer’s rights in cooperative development projects, but excluding agricultural land and completed properties) of approximately 65 million square feet, of which 6 million square feet, 56 million square feet, and 3 million square feet are located in Hong Kong, mainland China, and overseas, respectively.

Cheung Kong’s investment in English pub businesses has become an important source of its performance. During the reporting period, this business achieved revenue of HKD 26.227 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7%; annual profit was HKD 1.933 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9%. However, due to weak consumer sentiment, inflation pressure, and high labor costs, the industry continues to face operational and cost challenges. Cheung Kong made an asset impairment of HKD 1.62 billion for the English pubs, resulting in a profit after deducting the asset impairment of HKD 313 million for this fiscal year.

Despite having highs and lows in business operations, Cheung Kong, adhering to the “buy low and sell high” strategy, was able to cash out at a high position in asset investments. At the end of February this year, including Cheung Kong, three companies under the Cheung Kong Group jointly sold 100% equity of the UK power grid company UKPN, with a total transaction amount exceeding HKD 110 billion. “Compared to our original investment, this sale of UKPN earned nearly six times the return,” disclosed Li Tzar-kai.

As of the end of 2025, Cheung Kong had liquid funds of HKD 41.7 billion. After the completion of the aforementioned transaction, Cheung Kong’s liquidity will be further enhanced. When asked about future development plans, Li Tzar-kai stated that the group will continue to focus on investing in countries that respect the spirit of contracts, have a sound legal system to protect investors, and projects that have long-term stable cash flows. “If there are high-quality projects that meet our IRR requirements, we will basically be interested. The focus remains on the project’s profit returns and the required investment costs.”

(Artikel ini berasal dari Yicai)