(Yicai Global) July 18 -- Zhejiang Guangsha is driving ahead with the sell-off of its property in a phased retreat from real estate, per its plan announced in the second half of 2015 to break into the cultural sector.

The company will transfer a 100-percent stake in Zhejiang Tiandu Industrial developer of Hangzhou Tiandu City in southeastern China to its controlling shareholder Guangsha Group for CNY1.5 billion (USD223.5 million), state media The Paper reported.

The amputation signals Guangsha's shift to films, television and other cultural lines to in a retreat from the pressure of ever-tightening real estate regulation.

The company's short-term profitability will drop after spinning off its property division, but it will recoup sufficient capital to re-position itself in culture through a big drop in its debt-to-asset ratio. 

Formed in 1993, Guangsha listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 1997. The company restructured its major assets in 2001, shifting its main business from construction to real estate development.

Guangsha's gradual divorce from its real estate business has been underway for years now. Hangzhou Tiandu City was the only remaining project it was developing.

Editor: Ben Armour