[:en]AS Watson, the retail arm of Hutchison Whampoa, has sold its 50 per cent stake in its duty free business to partner Nuance Group.

The company did not disclose the amount to be received for the sale, which will be completed by the end of June. The duty free business has a network of 46 stores in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Malaysia.

“We see this deal as an opportunity for us to focus on our core retail operations, as we continue to expand rapidly in Asia and Europe,” said AS Watson MD Dominic Lai.

He said the sale is part of the company’s strategy to focus on health and beauty retail instead. AS Watson, which operates more than 10,500 stores in 25 markets in Asia and Europe, is 25-per-cent owned by Singaporean company Temasek.

Hutchison Whampoa owner Li Ka-shing plans to list AS Watson in Hong Kong and London by June to raise between $5 billion and $6 billion.