Hong Kong-based Media Chinese International Ltd on Monday announced that it has entered a conditional agreement with State-controlled Qingdao West Coast Holdings (International) to sell a 73.01 percent stake in its subsidiary One Media Group Ltd, which publishes the popular Ming Pao Weekly in Hong Kong.
Under the agreement, Media Chinese International's subsidiary Comwell Investment will sell 292.7 million shares of One Media Group for HK$498.06 million ($64.21 million) to Qingdao West Coast Holdings (International), Media Chinese International said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.
The deal is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2016, according to the statement. After completion, One Media Group will operate the remaining businesses, which involve primarily the publication of the weekly edition of Ming Pao in Hong Kong and its relevant digital businesses, the statement said.
One Media Group has been posting losses since 2014, according to the statement. For the fiscal year ended on March 31, 2016, it reported a loss of about HK$15.61 million, following a loss of about HK$11.07 million in the previous fiscal year, the statement said.
Qingdao West Coast Holdings (International) is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands and controlled by State-owned enterprise Qingdao West Coast Development (Group) Ltd, according to the statement.
Earlier media reports said that e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding was in talks with Media Chinese International to acquire the company's Ming Pao newspaper.
