Pacific Century Premium Developments (PCPD) has regained the right to buy and sell land in Beijing after a ban imposed by the city government seven months ago.
In an announcement on Thursday on its official website, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Land and Resources said PCPD - chaired by Richard Li Tzar-kai - and its subsidiaries were allowed to take part in land sales, but no reason was given.
In March, Beijing, Shanghai and seven provinces - Zhejiang, Shandong, Fujian, Hunan, Guangxi, Jilin and Ningxia - identified developers who had delayed construction work on 18 sites as part of the central government's plan to cool off the market.
The government is concerned that developers are using the delays to profit from short-term speculation and do not even intend legitimate development. PCPD was the only developer prohibited from land deals at the time.
PCPD, through a subsidiary, acquired a high-end residential site at Gongti Beilu in Beijing for 510 million yuan (HK$590.45 million) in 2006, and was required to start construction work by September 2007.
However, in October last year, the subsidiary was sold to Shui On Construction and Materials for US$118 million, generating a profit of HK$235 million for PCPD.
