Hutchinson Port Holdings Trust (HPHT), the Hong Kong-based terminal operator, is expected to sell 60 percent of a Hong Kong terminal for a total of US$318 million.
The news comes just one year after Hutchinson Port paid US$505 million to buy the terminal from Dubai-based operators DP World and PSA China.
Cosco Pacific Ltd will purchase a 40 percent stake in Asia Container Terminals Holdings (ACT Holdings), whilst a further 20 percent will be sold to China Shipping Terminal Development Co, a unit of China Shipping Group co.
Hutchinson has said that the sales will result in £16 million in gains.
The move comes as Hong Kong starts to lose its stranglehold on China as a central maritime hub, as a result of strong trade growth nationwide and in over parts of Southeast Asia.
Hong Kong now ranks as fourth in port throughput, behind Shanghai, Singapore and Shenzhen.
