News Round Up

Tax paper due this week, ING sells properties, AMP Henderson changes name.

Monday, December 15th 2003, 6:33AM

The much-anticipated report on the tax treatment of offshore investment vehicles is expected to be presented to Cabinet today and released tomorrow.

Finance minister Michael Cullen asked officials at the Inland Revenue Department to write the report because of the way Australian Unit Trusts were being used for ‘tax efficiency’ purposes.

Cullen delayed the release of the report after he received a request from the Investment Savings and Insurance Association seeking to have input into its content.

The report is likely to suggest that offshore based collective investment funds should be treated under a risk free rate of return method.

It will be represented as a report from officials, as opposed to Goverenment policy.

ING sells properties

The ING Property Trust is to sell 10 of the 71 properties it recently bought from private superannuation funds MFL and SIL.

ING said it had entered into unconditional contracts to sell 10 of the properties for $30.71 million. The trust's book value for the properties is $27.8 million after provision for sale costs.

ING's $282.7 million purchase of land and buildings from MFL and SIL provoked controversy because its management company also manages the MFL and SIL funds, prompting worries about conflicts of interest.

However an independent appraisal by Grant Samuel deemed the terms of the deal fair.

The sales represent the first stage in the trust's rationalisation plan as set out in the Explanatory Memorandum issued to unit holders, ING said in a statement to the NZX.

Sales campaigns for a further 14 properties were in progress, and the trust had received conditional offers for two of these, totalling $6.7 million net of sale costs.

AMP Henderson changes name
AMP Henderson Global Investors (New Zealand) Limited has changed its name to AMP Capital Investors (New Zealand) Limited.

AMP Capital Investors (New Zealand) Limited is the Manager of the AMP Investments' World Index Fund (WINZ) and the AMP NZ Office Trust (ANZO).

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