Hong Kong retail chain, Best Mart 360, is to sell 49 per cent of its shares to state-owned China Merchants Hoi Tung Trading Company. 

In a filing, the company said its controlling shareholders, Lin Tsz Fung and Hui Ngai Fan, entered a memorandum of understanding with the state-owned China Merchants Group’s subsidiary in relation to the potential sale and purchase of 490 million shares. 

The value of the deal has not yet been disclosed. However, local media estimates the deal could be worth more than US$200 million. 

Earlier this year, the retailer estimated to double its profit for the year to March 31 after spending two years increasing its range from a core of confectionery and convenience foods into other traditional FMCG categories. 

As of March, Best Mart 360 had 136 retail stores across 18 districts of Hong Kong, Macau and Shenzhen. 

China Merchants Hoi Tung Trading is a comprehensive trading company covering food, transportation, and commodity, with subsidiaries in 10 cities in China and seven branches overseas.