Mar. 9, 2007 (China Knowledge) – Hong Kong-listed conglomerate Swire Pacific Ltd. <19><87>, which owns 40% of Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. <293>, announced that the carrier's CEO will step down and be put in charge of Swire's China investments.

Philip Chen, 51, will be appointed chairman of John Swire & Sons (China) Ltd. on Jul. 1. However, he will remain at Cathay Pacific as a non-executive deputy chairman, Swire said in a statement Thursday.

In his new role, Chen will be in charge of developing Swire's investment strategy on mainland China. Chen will also continue to play a role in developing Cathay Pacific's business in the Mainland market.

Chen will be replaced by Cathay's COO Tony Tyler, who will be succeeded by John Slosar, currently the managing director of Swire Beverages.