Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd has become the new owner of land that is above the high-speed railway station in Kowloon, connecting to the urban hubs of mainland China.

The area has the potential to yield 294,000 square metres of floor area with offices, a luxury hotel as well as retail space.

It’s adjacent to Hong Kong’s tallest building, the International Commerce Centre, also owned by Sun Hung Kai, a firm controlled by the billionaire Kwok family.

At a glance:

• Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd paid US$5 billion for land, breaking previous records for sales.
• The area will yield 294,000 square metres of offices, luxury hotel and retail space.
• Previous record sale was for a residential site at US$3.2 billion.

The purchase has broken the previous record of US$3.2 billion which was paid for a residential site in Kai Tak in 2018.

“The site will house offices, a hotel and a mall, which will be highly exposed to social movements and the city’s economy in the future,” said Thomas Lam, an executive director at Knight Frank LLP to Bloomberg.

“Developers had to consider this when making their offers.”

Long term investors are to be invited to be part of the development of the site, according to Chairman Raymond Kwok in a statement.

The record-breaking Kowloon property. Photo: Bloomberg.

"The completion of the project will provide the company with stable and promising rental income," said Mr Kwok.

The sale has been a welcome breath of fresh air in an investment hub that has been crippled by the recent turmoil.

Demonstrations have crippled the financial hub, driving tourists away, damaging retail trade and hotel occupancy and hurtling the economy into a recession.

The city’s office market suffered its worst decline in more than a decade last month.

But turmoil subsided in the days up to Wednesday’s announcement, which also follows a district election over the weekend where pro-democracy candidates scored a landslide victory.

CK Asset Holdings Ltd. and a group formed by Chinese Estates Holdings Ltd., Henderson Land Development Co., Lifestyle International Holdings Ltd., Sino Land Co. Ltd. and Wharf Estates Ltd. also submitted bids for the site.

You can find out more from Knight Frank here.

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