Traders at the soon-to-be demolished Oriental City have been offered a glimmer of hope for the future.

A new 21,000m2 site has been found close to the current Asian centre in Edgware Road that is available for rent.

If terms can be agreed, the hundreds of traders who faced an uncertain future might be able to relocate to the new premises within months of Oriental City's closure this weekend.

The owner of Oriental City refused to divulge the exact location of the possible temporary relocation until a deal has been agreed.

Chairman of the Oriental City Tenants' Association (Octa), Yip Fai Liu, said the news could save some of the businesses threatened with closure.

"Everyone is very hopeful, but from day one we haven't been in control of our own destiny and the developers know more about it than us," said Mr Liu, who is closing his restaurant China City and laying off many of his 60 staff.

"The public has a lot of sympathy for us, but if we can get this new location at least 40 per cent of businesses can keep going until the new Oriental City opens."

He said if the site was secured, the group hopes to put in a mini food court, a small supermarket and at least ten shops, and save about 200 jobs.

"It is time to show if the owners can stand up and be seen as a hero or a villain," he added.

Work on the development, which will include flats and a primary school, is due to start immediately but could take more than three years to complete.

It will include retail space for some of the businesses to return but many fear they will be forced to close in the meantime.

Peter Virdee, managing director at the property investment and development firm B&S, which has taken over Oriental City, is hopeful there can be a positive conclusion for tenants.

"We have identified a space for the traders which is excellent news and we are just going through some house keeping to get a full proposal together," he added.

"We are waiting for the tenants to come back to us identifying their requ-irements for a new site, and we are getting some very positive feedback."