(Yicai) March 27 -- Shares of Greentown China Holdings tumbled after the major Chinese real estate developer announced a leadership change, with its long-serving chairman stepping down amid declining sales.

Greentown [HKG: 3900] plunged 11.1 percent to close at HKD10.74 (USD1.40) in Hong Kong today, following a two-day trading suspension due to the management shake-up.

Liu Chengyun, deputy general manager of parent firm China Communications Construction, will take over as chairman, the Hangzhou-based real estate company announced this morning. The engineering and construction giant became Greentown's largest shareholder in 2015 and has since appointed senior executives to the property developer.

Liu, 56, has spent most of his career at China Communications but has no prior experience in real estate. Before becoming deputy GM in June 2023, he was chairman of Zhenhua Heavy Industries, a listed subsidiary specializing in crane manufacturing.

Zhang Yadong, the previous chairman whose tenure lasted for nearly six years, resigned on March 21, citing work-related changes. He was promoted to chairman in July 2019, after serving as chief executive since August 2018.

Under Zhang’s leadership, Greentown expanded significantly, surpassing CNY300 billion (USD41.3 billion) in annual sales for the first time in 2021, nearly doubling the CNY156.4 billion recorded when he took office.

Despite China's real estate downturn in recent years, Greentown maintained sales above CNY300 billion from 2021 to 2023. However, last year, sales fell to CNY276.8 billion.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine