HONG KONG, Nov 6 (Reuters) – In Asia lately, it pays to be
a seller — even if you’re a company under pressure to offload
an asset or two.

That’s not normally the case. Sellers under pressure
typically command lower prices. But a few factors, including
the strong economic environment holding up across Asia, is
turning that rule upside down.

HONG KONG, Nov 6 (Reuters) – Korea Life Insurance Co., the
country’s No. 2 life insurer, may raise around $2 billion through
its public offering, sources with direct knowledge of the matter
said, in what would be Korea’s largest IPO since 2006.

Korea Life joins a rash of planned insurance offerings in
Asia, as the industry seeks to expand and as rising stock markets
lift earnings for life insurers, for whom investment returns are
a key source of income.

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs <GS.N> has agreed to sell half of its holding in Shineway Group, China’s top meat processor, to a Chinese fund for about $150 million, earning roughly five times its investment from the landmark 2006 deal, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday.

The acquisition attracted wide public interest in 2006, in part because it involved foreign investors taking a stake in a national brand and industry leader. It was also among the first leveraged buyouts in China by a group of foreign investors, which included Singapore’s state investor Temasek Holdings <TEM.UL>.

HONG KONG, Nov 3 (Reuters) – Private equity firms Bain
Capital and General Atlantic are among those eyeing Morgan
Stanley’s <MS.N> stake in China International Capital Corp
(CICC), the country’s largest investment bank, in a deal that
could fetch more than $1.2 billion.

Morgan Stanley paid just $37 million for its piece of CICC
when the Chinese bank was founded 13 years ago.

HONG KONG, Nov 2 (Reuters) – Singapore’s state investor
Temasek [TEM.UL], Blackstone Group <BX.N> and KKR are among the
firms expected to submit bids soon for AXA’s <AXAF.PA> stake in
China’s No.4 life insurer Taikang, sources said, an investment
AXA values at $1.05 billion.

First-round bidding for Beijing-based Taikang Life is due
on Friday, with AXA expecting to close the deal before the end
of this year, the sources, who are directly involved in the
auction, told Reuters on Monday.

HONG KONG, Oct 29, (Reuters) – China Investment Corp (CIC),
a near-$300 billion sovereign wealth fund, plans to invest $700
million in Hopu-backed Iron Mining International Ltd, a source
told Reuters on Thursday.

The investment would be the Chinese fund’s second
involvement this week in a Mongolian mining deal as it shifts
its investment strategy to natural resources from financial
institutions.

BEIJING/HONG KONG, Oct 23 (Reuters) – Mining group SouthGobi
Energy Resources <SGQ.V> has secured a $300 million loan from
China’s sovereign wealth fund, sources said on Friday, as China
pushes ahead with investing in Canada’s natural resources sector.

While SouthGobi, 80 percent owned by Ivanhoe Mines <IVN.TO>,
is listed in Canada, the company is focused on exploring and
developing metallurgical and thermal coal deposits in Mongolia
and Indonesia.

HONG KONG (Reuters) – French insurer AXA <AXAF.PA> is in the early stages of selling its 15 percent stake in China’s Taikang Life Insurance Company, in a deal that could fetch as much as $1 billion, sources said on Thursday.

The auction of AXA’s stake in Taikang underscores how little control over management decisions the French company has at Taikang, according to sources, and comes as Taikang pursues an initial public offering.

HONG KONG, Oct 15 (Reuters) – U.S. brokerage Fox-Pitt
Kelton will cease operations in Asia, according to a memo
obtained by Reuters on Thursday, after a wave of resignations
following its agreement to be bought by Austalia’s Macquarie
Group <MQG.AX>.

A source familiar with the matter said several Fox-Pitt
employees had left to join Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, a small
U.S. brokerage seeking to expand in Asia.

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Demand for public stock offerings in Hong Kong and throughout the region remains strong, despite a few recent deals that struggled, according to a panel of three investment bankers and one hedge fund investor.

“The fact is liquidity remains incredibly strong,” said Steven Barg, head of Global Markets, Asia, for UBS AG <UBSN.VX>. “As long as you have a solid company, differentiated from what’s out there in the secondary market today, the IPO market and the follow on market is still available.”