Hutchison Prepares To Focus on 3G Operations

There is speculation in Australia surrounding Hutchison Whampoa's local unit and possible structural changes. According to Hutchison Australia's CFO David Dyson, the company plans to review the structure of the company fully before July 2007, at which time AUD600mn of convertible notes held by Hutchison Whampoa will mature. When converted to a share value, the maturity of the notes will take Hutchison Whampoa's stake in its Australian unit to 82% from the current 57.8%. As a result of this, Hutchison Whampoa's controlling shareholders could look to privatise the unit.

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