Singapore Corporate News - 23 Nov 2007

CapitaLand sets up $880m India property fund

CAPITALAND, South-east Asia's biggest developer, yesterday said that it has successfully established its first India private property fund with a fund size of $880 million.

The company first announced the fund - CapitaRetail India Development Fund - in July.

The closed-end private fund has the mandate to invest in retail mall developments in India. CapitaLand holds a stake of about 45 per cent stake in it, with the remaining held by insurance companies, pension funds and corporations.

WBL in the red with full-year loss of $20.2m

ASSET impairment and losses relating to its Thai operations dragged WBL Corporation into the red for the year ended Sept 30, 2007.

WBL, whose key businesses are technology manufacturing, automotive distribution and technology solutions, reported a full-year net loss of $20.2 million, against a net profit of $58.9 million for the preceding year.

Its full-year sales dipped 1.9 per cent to $2 billion, while its net loss per share was 9.6 cents - from an earnings per share of 28.3 cents previously. Its net asset value dipped to $3.22 from $3.24.

Yongnam aims to raise $100m from warrants

YONGNAM Holdings is aiming to raise up to about $100 million in a warrants issue.
The structural steel fabricator and specialist engineering solutions provider announced yesterday that it will be making a renounceable and partially underwritten rights issue of up to about 366.6 million warrants at a price of $0.03 each.

Each warrant will carry the right to subscribe for one new share in the company at an exercise price of $0.25. The issue will be made on the basis of three warrants for every 10 existing shares held in Yongnam.

The net proceeds of the warrants issue will amount to up to about $10.8 million. Assuming all the warrants issued are exercised, Yongnam will receive further gross proceeds of up to about $91.6 million.

Yongnam said the warrants issue is undertaken in conjunction with the proposed fund-raising of up to $100 million by wholly owned Yongnam Engineering & Construction (Pte) Ltd through a transferable term-loan facility and/or the issue of floating rate notes.

Yongnam said it intends to use the funds raised to purchase steel struts, refinance the group's existing term-loan facilities and for general corporate purposes.