GE close to selling part or all of its real estate holdings: source

(Reuters) - General Electric Co is nearing a deal to sell substantially all of its $30 billion real estate assets to a consortium led by Blackstone Group and Wells Fargo & Co, according to a person familiar with the matter.

An announcement could come as early as Friday, the person said.

GE spokesman Seth Martin declined to comment.

GE has been retreating from its property investments globally as it focuses on its industrial units. Blackstone said in November it would buy GE's property unit in Japan in a deal worth more than $1.6 billion.

GE shares were up 1.1 percent at $25.28 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Up to Wednesday's close, the stock had fallen about 1 percent this year.

(Additional reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Don Sebastian)