Cheung Kong Infra eyes $284 mln Hutchison bonds

HONG KONG, April 6 (Reuters) - Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings (CKI) (1038.HK) said over the weekend it planned to acquire up to HK$2.2 billion ($284 million) in debt securities issued by parent Hutchison Whampoa Ltd (0013.HK) in secondary markets. CKI, an infrastructure unit of Hutchison, said it planned to invest in longer-dated corporate bonds because the returns available on surplus liquidity had been low amid a sharp slowdown in the global economy.

The investment, representing 20 percent of the cash position of the company as of end-March 2009, will come from the proceeds from its sale of three power plants in China to Hongkong Electric Holdings (0006.HK), in which it owns a 38.9 percent stake, CKI said.

Shares of CKI have risen 2.7 percent so far in 2009, outperforming a 1.1 percent gain in the broader market .HSI. (US$1=HK$7.75) (Reporting by Donny Kwok; editing by Jonathan Hopfner)