Chinese Investment Popping Up in Secondary US Markets
Toledo Blade reports: Though there has been much ado about Chinese investors, both big and small, making inroads into the leading US markets, they are touching down in less visible metros as well. Ignazio Messina, Staff Writer for the Toledo, Ohio-based Blade Newspaper, recently detailed the first major Chinese acquisition in his hometown to exemplify a broader trend in Toledo-sized markets across the nation. The Docks restaurant complex, a Toledo institution, has been sold for $2.2 million to Simon Guo, a Chinese broker. The success of this deal has led Mr Guo and his partners to negotiate with Toledo officials to “buy and develop the stalled Marina District project in East Toledo.”
Of the closed deal, Mr Messina stated that, “The Docks deal is part of a burgeoning trend across America in which Chinese with high net worth — and the Chinese government through the China Investment Corp, a $300 billion sovereign wealth fund — are spending billions to invest in American businesses and buy U.S. real estate.”
This statement was affirmed by Real Capital Analytics’ Ben Carlos Thypin, who told the Blade that Chinese investors, who had previously focused almost-exclusively on top markets such as New York and Chicago, are now looking beyond to secondary and tertiary destinations. Said Mr Thypin, “In the past year we saw one in Milwaukee. What’s happening in Toledo is a continuation of that trend. They can buy a lot of land and build a lot more for their money as long as they are comfortable with the place. It will serve as some kind of base for a long period rather than a financial investment… I imagine they are doing their homework and that is why they are going to Toledo, because it is so cheap and they can afford for this to take a long time.”
Despite the rise in investment from China, individual transactions such as Mr Guo’s trade for the Docks in Toldeo, are very hard to track. This is because, as Mr Thypin remarked, “There is a problem dealing with Chinese companies here or there. You do not know who is the guy behind the guy, behind the guy,” He also stated, however, that, “As their investments spread to places that are less used to foreign investments, perhaps there will be more scrutiny to these firms, who they are, and whether they are coming from the government or the private [sector].” Indeed, RCA has tracked reported Chinese investment for more than a decade, as it grew from $448 million in 2003 to more than $2.3 billion in 2009.
For more details on the happenings in Toledo, Ohio's investment market, please see the full article on the Blade's site.
View the full article on Toledo Blade: Chinese Investment Popping Up in Secondary US Markets
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