Vanke, China's largest residential developer, has expanded its property hunt to Australia, as uncertainty in Chinese markets boosts investors' appetites for stable global assets.
Representatives from the firm were in Sydney this week to meet agents and analysts, and scope Australian opportunities. 
A property executive close to the company said the developer was considering investments across a variety of sectors and not limiting its search to residential assets, saying Vanke was highly likely to look at office and industrial assets.
Vanke executives attended a JLL briefing on foreign investment yesterday. It is a long-awaited move from the company, which has a presence in more than 60 cities in China and a market capitalisation in excess of $30 billion.
Outflows into property around the world are tipped to top $20bn following a nightmarish past six month on Chinese markets, according to JLL international capital group head Darren Xia. But other trends, including rising consumption from a middle class that is predicted to boost China's GDP this year above the US for the first time in history, are also driving the wave of outbound capital.
"We're going from a transition from 'Made in China' to 'Made for China'," Mr Xia said of the country's switch to a consumption-lead economy. "Chinese capital is here to stay. It's destined to go global, and it's destined to become more diversified - but we will see more of it." Sydney is second only to London for Chinese investment in property, attracting more than $4.2bn over the year to date. And this figure could more than double in the medium term, according to Mr Xia, who said persistent volatility affecting China's financial markets and banks was hastening the outflow of money.
"We're only seeing beginning of this capital," Mr Xia said.
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