Westfield Group, the world’s biggest shopping center operator by assets, will sell seven malls in the U.S. for $1.6 billion to an affiliate of Starwood Capital Group LLC, the investment firm led by Barry Sternlicht.

The Sydney-based company is divesting the malls, which it deems non-core, to redeploy capital to other projects, it said in a statement to the Australian stock exchange. Westfield will retain a 10 percent interest in the shopping centers, which will be managed by Starwood, it said.

Westfield is exiting lower-quality properties in the U.S to reinvest in higher-return assets and projects. It sold seven malls in the U.S. in April 2012 to Starwood for $1 billion and sold half stakes in six malls in Florida to O’Connor Capital Partners for about $700 million in March.

“Today’s announcement continues the implementation of our strategic plan which positions Westfield to generate greater shareholder value,” Westfield’s co-chief executive officer, Peter Lowy, said in the statement. “We are focused on redeploying our capital into superior retail destinations in major cities through divesting non-core assets and introducing joint venture partners.”

Westfield shares have risen 2.7 percent this year, compared with a 12.3 percent gain in the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index.

The value of the deal is in line with the book value of the assets as of June 30, and $120 million below their Dec. 31 value, the company said. While the sale will dilute annualized funds from operations by 4.5 cents a share, this will be mitigated when it reinvests the funds and by its share buyback program, it said.

The sale won’t affect forecast funds from operations of 66.5 cents a share for the year ending Dec. 31, Westfield said. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2013, it said.