Logistics real estate giant Prologis Inc. (NYSE: PLD) said it will develop properties in China valued at $3.5 billion, buy an existing portfolio of Chinese logistics assets with a value of $1.7 billion in a multipronged expansion into the fast-growing Chinese logistics warehouse and distribution market.
Under the program, Prologis and HIP China Logistics Investments Ltd., which already have partnerships in other ventures, will spend $882 million to develop the $3.5 billion property slate. Prologis has also formed a fund called PCCLF that will acquire the 22 million-square-foot portfolio with the $1.7 billion market value.
“China represents the largest consumption opportunity in the world, with a sophisticated and rapidly growing e-commerce market,” said Eugene Prologis chief investment officer Eugene F. Reilly. “Our strategy in China is to invest in the highest-quality logistics assets located in the most important consumption markets in the country.”
Investor demand for China logistics assets is “exceptionally strong at this time,” added Martina Malone, the company’s managing director, global head of capital raising.
Prologis, the world’s largest developer, owner and operator of logistics real estate, has 87 million square feet in Asia, which accounts for about 12% of its global footprint. It controls 225 buildings in Asia. As of the end of September, Prologis had $111 billion of assets under management. More than half of those assets are in nine global co-investment ventures.