OM, IA MARSHAM ST
STAFF
(MON) 07. 13'92 09:00
/ NO. 308073361
FOR RELEASE: 13 JULY 1992
JOINT PRESS RELEASE
BY
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited
China National Aviation Corporation
China Travel Service (Holdings) Hong Kong Limited The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited
During recent discussions with Cathay Pacific Airways Limited
(Cathay Pacific), China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC) a majority-owned subsidiary of Civil Aviation Administration of China, the aviation regulatory authority in the People's Republic of China and China Travel Service (Holdings) Hong
Kong Limited (CTS) expressed interest in acquiring a shareholding in Cathay Pacific. This was welcomed by Cathay Pacific as a positive development both for the airline and for the future of Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific therefore approached The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (Hongkong Bank) and asked whether it would be interested in selling its indirectly held 10 per cent shareholding in Cathay Pacific to CNAC and to CTS in equal proportions.
Mr William Purves, Chairman of HongkongBank, commented:
"Although it had been our intention to retain a long-term investment of 10 per cent in Cathay Pacific, aviation is clearly not a core business for a financial services group and it was considered appropriate to respond positively to this approach."
As a result, Fort Hall Limited, an indirectly held wholly-owned subsidiary of Hongkong Bank, today entered into agreements with