DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 23 June 2021 (Wed)

Singapore Real Estate

HDB terraced house in Whampoa sells for record $1.268m
A 49-year-old Housing Board terraced house in Whampoa was sold for $1.268 million this month, making it the most expensive HDB resale unit to change hands so far, in what has already been a record year for million-dollar flats.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/hdb-terraced-house-in-whampoa-sells-for-record-1268m

Collaboration is key in improving cities: incoming Temasek chief executive Dilhan Pillay
[Singapore] Corporations play an essential role in improving cities, especially during times of crisis and disruption. A winner-takes-all approach does not work; instead, there is a need for collaboration, partnership, and complementary skills and capabilities, said incoming Temasek chief executive Dilhan Pillay.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/collaboration-is-key-in-improving-cities-incoming-temasek-chief-executive-dilhan-pillay
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/collaboration-key-to-improving-cities-incoming-temasek-ceo

Understand quality, not just quantity, of green spaces: Expert
Understanding the quality of nature areas in a city, and not just the amount of land covered by greenery, will help land-scarce Singapore make better decisions on land use, conservation scientist Koh Lian Pin said yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/understand-quality-not-just-quantity-of-green-spaces-expert

Singapore Economy

Singapore, Vietnam to work on digital economy agreements
Singapore and Vietnam have agreed to accelerate the setting up of joint working groups to develop bilateral agreements on digital economy. Their foreign ministers also agreed on mutual recognition of health certificates to facilitate the safe resumption of travel between the two countries.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/singapore-vietnam-to-work-on-digital-economy-agreements

Arkema’s specialty materials plant in Jurong set to create hundreds of jobs in 2022
French specialty materials manufacturer Arkema announced on Tuesday that its new plant on Jurong Island is in the final stages of construction. Upon completion, it is estimated that a few hundred new jobs will be created in Singapore,
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/arkemas-specialty-materials-plant-in-jurong-set-to-create-hundreds-of-jobs-in
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/bio-factory-being-built-on-jurong-island-may-lead-to-200-new-hires

GlobalFoundries’ $5.4b S’pore plant to create 1,000 jobs
Semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries is increasing its production capacity in Singapore with a hefty US$4 billion (S$5.4 billion) investment. The addition of a new fab, or manufacturing plant, here comes amid a global chip shortage and is expected to add about 1,000 jobs, the company said yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/globalfoundries-54b-spore-plant-to-create-1000-jobs

Companies’ Brief

Keppel working on project to explore floating city in Singapore
[Singapore] A floating city in Singapore may well become a reality, with Keppel Corporation exploring such nearshore urban developments. Keppel chief executive officer and executive director Loh Chin Hua disclosed this at the World Cities Summit during a panel discussion about how cities can take the lead in responding to climate, social and technological change.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/keppel-working-on-project-to-explore-floating-city-in-singapore

CLCT prices S$150 million 7-year notes at 2.4%
CapitaLand China Trust (CLCT) has priced S$150 million worth of notes due 2028 at 2.4 per cent. In a filing to the Singapore Exchange on Tuesday, it said that the notes will be issued under its S$1 billion multicurrency debt issuance programme,
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/clct-prices-s150-million-7-year-notes-at-24

Corporate digest
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/corporate-digest-1403

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Shaping cities, societies beyond Covid-19
The organisation of the World Cities Summit this week provides an appropriate occasion for registering the role of urban conglomerations in the quality of human life, particularly after the coronavirus pandemic has subsided. Singapore’s Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) notes in a report how cities…
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/shaping-cities-societies-beyond-covid-19-0

Positive sign that more countries are eager to join CPTPP trade bloc
Hardly a week has gone by of late without one country or another expressing interest in joining the multilateral trade deal known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/positive-sign-that-more-countries-are-eager-to-join-cptpp-trade-bloc

No reason to fear the Fed
Last Wednesday, the United States Federal Reserve spooked financial markets by subtly signalling that interest rate hikes could come sooner than it had earlier anticipated. Equity markets fell everywhere, gold and other commodities softened, US bond yields rose and the US dollar spiked.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/no-reason-to-fear-the-fed-0

Singapore has what China tech giants need
China’s tech sector has taken a beating. The combined market capitalisation of the top 10 tech companies (including Alibaba, Tencent and Meituan) has slid almost 30 per cent since February. And it’s not for a lack of growth.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/singapore-has-what-china-tech-giants-need

Asia needs bold action on climate change post-pandemic
As asia and the Pacific confronts and recovers from the coronavirus disease pandemic, we must continue our pursuit of sustainable development and take action on global climate change, the existential challenge of our time.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/asia-needs-bold-action-on-climate-change-post-pandemic

Preparing for return of ‘mini-cycles’ to the US economy
With the US economy having clearly moved through its recovery phase, investors should begin to prepare for the next phase of the economic cycle. The recent Federal Reserve meeting raised the prospect of a slowing of its bond buying on the horizon.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/preparing-for-return-of-mini-cycles-to-the-us-economy

The joy of dividend investing
The father of value investing, Benjamin Graham, said that the true investor will do better if he forgets about the stock market and pays attention to his dividend returns and the operational results of his companies.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/the-joy-of-dividend-investing

The best time to invest was when you drew your first pay cheque. The next best is now
Life in university halls of residence was packed full of activities, Sheila recalls. It felt like only yesterday. She reminisces that she felt richer as a tertiary student with a generous allowance from parents to cover her expenditure during undergraduate studies.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/the-best-time-to-invest-was-when-you-drew-your-first-pay-cheque-the-next-best-is

Number of millionaires in Singapore expected to rise 61.9% by 2025: Credit Suisse report
The number of millionaires in Singapore is expected to jump by 61.9 per cent by 2025 to about 437,000, from the current 270,000 millionaires, according to a global wealth report by Credit Suisse. Singapore ranked 11th globally in terms of millionaire density, with about 1,361 ultra-high-net-worth adults with net worth exceeding US$50 million in 2020.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/number-of-millionaires-in-singapore-expected-to-rise-619-by-2025-credit-suisse
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/number-of-millionaires-in-singapore-to-surge-62-by-2025-to-437000-report

Singaporeans least aware of ESG investing in Asia: survey
Singaporeans are the least aware of what ESG (environmental, social and corporate governance) investing is, compared to their North Asian counterparts, according to Fidelity International’s Asia Sustainable Investing Survey, out on Tuesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/singaporeans-least-aware-of-esg-investing-in-asia-survey

M&A targets: opportunities vs opportunism
The vise-like grip of the pandemic shows few signs of easing, yet the appetite for deal-making remains surprisingly hearty. The question is, how many of these deals are good opportunities and how many are opportunistic ones?
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/ma-targets-opportunities-vs-opportunism

$2.2b in JSS payouts from June 30 to support wages
More than 140,000 employers will receive Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) payouts totalling more than $2.2 billion from next Wednesday. These payouts will support the wages of more than two million local employees…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/22b-in-jss-payouts-from-june-30-to-support-wages

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Two new Covid-19 clusters identified
Two new Covid-19 clusters were declared on Tuesday, said the Ministry of Health (MOH). One is at 90 Redhill Close, and another was linked to a foreign domestic worker who tested positive for the coronavirus on June 14.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/two-new-covid-19-clusters-identified
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/two-new-covid-19-clusters-including-redhill-close

Enabling Village in Redhill cleaned after cleaner tests positive
Public spaces and one of the blocks at the Enabling Village in Redhill were cleaned, after a cleaner at the community and social business hub tested positive for Covid-19.In a Facebook post yesterday, SG Enable, a government-established agency that seeks to empower people with disabilities…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/enabling-village-in-redhill-cleaned-after-cleaner-tests-positive

18 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, including 15 in the community
[Singapore] There were 18 new coronavirus cases confirmed at noon on Tuesday (June 22), taking Singapore’s total to 62,448. Of these, 15 were community cases – five of which are currently unlinked. There were no cases from migrant workers’ dormitories, and three imported cases who had been placed on stay-home notice on arrival in Singapore, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/18-new-covid-19-cases-in-singapore-including-15-in-the-community

Testing starts for those who were at Bukit Merah supermarket
Covid-19 testing for staff and members of the public who had been to the FairPrice supermarket at 166 Bukit Merah Central appeared to be running smoothly yesterday morning. A temporary testing site was set up at Block 125A Bukit Merah View after a number of Covid-19 cases were found among people who had visited the supermarket…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/testing-starts-for-those-who-were-at-bukit-merah-supermarket

*For more information, please visit the Ministry of Health (MOH) website at www.moh.gov.sg and refer to go.gov.sg/mohupdates for updates on the COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) situation