Fosun International Ltd (復星國際) is considering strategic options for its French luxury resort chain Club Med SAS as the Chinese conglomerate explores ways to cut debt, people with knowledge of the matter said.
The Shanghai-based group has been informally fielding interest from potential buyers of Club Med, the people said on the condition of anonymity.
It could seek to value the business at about US$1.5 billion in any transaction, the people added.
Photo: Reuters
Fosun owns Club Med through its listed leisure arm Fosun Tourism Group (復星旅遊文化集團). Fosun Tourism shares have fallen 19 percent in Hong Kong trading this year, giving it a market value of about HK$10.5 billion (US$1.3 billion).
Club Med is among a number of assets being reviewed by Fosun and there is no certainty it would decide to proceed with any transaction, the people said.
A representative for Fosun said the group has “no plans” to sell Club Med.
Club Med is known for its all-inclusive resorts offering a range of leisure activities from fine dining to yoga, scuba diving and baby gym classes. It operates nearly 80 resorts globally in destinations including the French Alps and the Maldives, according to its Web site.
A consortium led by Fosun bought Paris-based Club Med in a 2015 deal valued at about 939 million euros (US$969 million), beating out Italian investor Andrea Bonomi in a bidding war that lasted for more than a year.
The group expanded Club Med’s business in China before folding it into Fosun Tourism with other business assets.
Fosun, which also owns French fashion house Lanvin, told analysts last month that it is targeting selling as much as US$11 billion of assets in the next 12 months.
It recently agreed to sell a stake in the parent company of Nanjing Iron & Steel Co (南京鋼鐵) for 15 billion yuan (US$2.1 billion) as well as a HK$4.4 billion disposal of its holdings in Zhaojin Mining Industry Co (招金礦業).
The Chinese group has told advisers that its domestic food and beverage business is also for sale. It is also weighing strategic options for British baby stroller brand Silver Cross, as well as its investment in electric vehicle battery maker JEVE, other sources said.
Fosun has separately been exploring a transaction involving the Bund Finance Center (外灘金融中心) in Shanghai, the people said.
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
Merida Industry Co (美利達) has seen signs of recovery in the US and European markets this year, as customers are gradually depleting their inventories, the bicycle maker told shareholders yesterday. Given robust growth in new orders at its Taiwanese factory, coupled with its subsidiaries’ improving performance, Merida said it remains confident about the bicycle market’s prospects and expects steady growth in its core business this year. CAUTION ON CHINA However, the company must handle the Chinese market with great caution, as sales of road bikes there have declined significantly, affecting its revenue and profitability, Merida said in a statement, adding that it would
UNCERTAINTIES: The world’s biggest chip packager and tester is closely monitoring the US’ tariff policy before making any capacity adjustments, a company official said ASE Technology Holding Inc (日月光投控), the world’s biggest chip packager and tester, yesterday said it is cautiously evaluating new advanced packaging capacity expansion in the US in response to customers’ requests amid uncertainties about the US’ tariff policy. Compared with its semiconductor peers, ASE has been relatively prudent about building new capacity in the US. However, the company is adjusting its global manufacturing footprint expansion after US President Donald Trump announced “reciprocal” tariffs in April, and new import duties targeting semiconductors and other items that are vital to national security. ASE subsidiary Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密) is participating in Nvidia