The Wall Street Journal-20080204-In Brief

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In Brief

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Emap Completes Sale

Of Media-Publishing Unit

British publishing company Emap PLC said it completed the sale of its consumer-media publishing business to Germany's Heinrich Bauer Verlag KG for GBP 714.3 million ($1.4 billion). The sale, which includes magazines such as FHM, Heat and Grazia, completes a two-stage process through which closely held Bauer has become a major player in the United Kingdom media industry. Emap recently completed the sale of its U.K. radio assets, which was a condition for the sale of Emap's business-to-business assets to a consortium including Guardian Media Group PLC and private-equity group Apax Partners.

Morgan Stanley in Talks

On Sale of Tokyo Hotel

A Singaporean sovereign-wealth fund is in discussions to buy a Westin luxury hotel in Tokyo from U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley, a person familiar with the situation said. The Government of Singapore Investment Corp., known as GIC, is in advanced discussions to purchase the hotel, but a deal hasn't been sealed and no price has been agreed to, the person said yesterday. Morgan Stanley acquired the property in Tokyo's fashionable Ebisu district in 2004 for about 50 billion yen ($469 million). Morgan Stanley declined to comment and GIC couldn't be reached. The prospective deal comes as real estate in Tokyo and other big Japanese cities continues to be one of the bright spots in the country's otherwise sluggish investment environment. Many funds have bought property in Tokyo in recent years, helping to fuel strong price rises in some major cities.