COFCO Commercial Property Investment Co, a subsidiary of centrally administrated COFCO Corp, plans to invest 70 billion yuan (US$10.3 billion) in the next five to 10 years to build 20 commercial properties across the nation to consolidate its position in the sector.

It will focus on building commercial complexes of over 300,000 square meters in first- and second-tier cities in the Bohai Rim, Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta regions. In particular, the developer will expand the presence of its flagship shopping mall, Joy City, in these areas.

"Joy City has become a vital brand in our strategy to develop commercial complexes nationally and we have started to strengthen the brand," said General Manager Han Shi.

It aims to grow the commercial property business to account for 30 percent of the group's assets.

The first Joy City in Shanghai will open at the end of this year at Suzhou Creek Bay in Zhabei District, 800 meters from downtown People's Square. Leading retailers such as H&M, Sephora, Coac, Dollar Shop and Ole have signed deals to open stores in the mall which will cover 53,000 square meters in the first phase. The second phase, expected to be completed in 2014, will include luxury houses, hotels, serviced apartments and offices. The total development area will be over 400,000 square meters.

"The Shanghai outlet is a strategically vital step in our national expansion and Shanghai will be among the group's top priorities in the commercial property market," said Han.

The Tianjin outlet will open in the middle of 2011. The firm plans to open in Hangzhou, Chengdu and Shenyang.