Sydney / AFP Australian cattle firm S. Kidman and Co. on Tuesday said a Chinese-led consortium was the preferred buyer of most of its stations, with an offer worth US$288.8 million. Kidman, Australia’s biggest private landowner, has attracted keen interest from Chinese firms wanting to secure the sprawling pastoral empire. It said a consortium of Dakang Australia Holdings Pty. …

    Tokyo / Bloomberg Japan’s Norinchukin Bank bought more than $2.9 billion of UK mortgage-backed bonds sold by Cerberus Capital Management, according to people familiar with the matter. The cooperative lender, which serves as the central financial institution for Japanese farmers and fisherman, acquired senior-ranking notes in a 6.1 billion pound deal that priced earlier this month, said the …

  Melbourne / Bloomberg Telstra Corp. and a Ping An Insurance Group Co. unit said their agreement over the sale of a $1.6 billion stake in China’s Autohome Inc. is binding, indicating the transaction will go ahead despite the emergence of a higher management buyout proposal. Ping An Trust & Investment Co., which agreed to buy a 48 percent stake …