Mall giant SM Prime Holdings is earmarking PHP80 billion (US$1.5 billion) this year to support its expansion plans.

CFO John Nai Peng Ong says about 60 per cent of this will be for developing more projects while the balance will be used to expand its land bank.

The company’s capital spending last year was between PHP60 billion and PHP70 billion.

SM Prime seeks to end the year with six new malls. The new offerings are SM City Urdaneta Central, SM City Telabastagan in San Fernando, Pampanga, SM City Legaspi, SM City Ormoc, SM City Dagupan and SM Center Imus (opened in February). This will take its total to 80 new properties – 73 in the Philippines and seven in China.

Construction of an SM mall in Yangzhou will start this year, and SM Prime president Jeffrey Lim says that for land-banking the company will probably focus on the Fujian area.

“All our initiatives in China will be a combination of commercial and residential,” says chairman Henry Sy Jr.