Westfield Plans to Split Domestic, International Operations

Westfield Group, Australia’s biggest mall operator, plans to split its domestic and international businesses, advancing a separation of assets that began three years ago. Its shares jumped by the most in almost 22 months.

Westfield Group, which jointly owns malls in Australia and New Zealand with Westfield Retail Trust, proposes combining their stakes to create a new company called Scentre Group, it said in a regulatory filing. Westfield Group will be renamed Westfield Corp. and hold malls overseas. Both REITs will be listed on the Australian stock exchange, and Westfield Corp. may also be listed elsewhere, it said.