DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 14 July 2021 (Wed)

Singapore Real Estate

Four-bedroom unit at Shun Tak’s Les Maisons Nassim sold for S$39m
A four-bedroom unit at Shun Tak Holdings’ luxury 14-unit Les Maisons Nassim at Nassim Road was snapped up in early May for S$39 million, or S$5,930 per square foot (psf). The 6,577-sq-ft unit, which appears to be the first transaction for the project, was bought by a buyer from overseas, The Business Times understands.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/four-bedroom-unit-at-shun-taks-les-maisons-nassim-sold-for-s39m

Singapore condo resale volume falls 13% in June; prices up 0.1%: SRX
Resale condominium prices in Singapore were up 0.1 per cent month on month in June, while prices rose 6.8 per cent year on year, flash figures from SRX Property showed on Tuesday. An estimated 1,510 units were resold in June, a decrease of 12.6 per cent from the 1,727 units resold a month earlier.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/singapore-condo-resale-volume-falls-13-in-june-prices-up-01-srx
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/june-condo-resale-prices-rise-at-slower-pace

Singapore Economy

Singapore Q2 GDP contracts from Q1 and pre-pandemic level; up 14% from last year’s low base
Singapore’s economy in the second quarter posted a 14.3 per cent year-on-year rebound due to the low base from last year when the Republic was in a “circuit breaker”, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Wednesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-q2-gdp-contracts-from-q1-and-pre-pandemic-level-up-14-from-last-years
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-economy-grows-143-in-q2-flash-data

Wealth gains in a pandemic and no easy answers on inequality
A global wealth report by Credit Suisse found that in a pandemic-hit year where Singapore experienced its worst-ever recession, wealth gains here continued to point north, moving in the opposite direction as the city-state’s gross domestic product (GDP).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/wealth-gains-in-a-pandemic-and-no-easy-answers-on-inequality

Singapore’s new trade-data platform aims to be game changer in digitalisation
For years, several initiatives to digitalise supply chains have fallen flat due to difficulties in getting enough stakeholders to use digital platforms. Industry players often cite a lack of trust, cost considerations and insufficient volume for the failure of these platforms to take off.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapores-new-trade-data-platform-aims-to-be-game-changer-in-digitalisation

Retiree households most affected by inflation last year: SingStat report
Retiree households were the hardest hit by inflation among all the household groups last year, according to a Singapore Department of Statistics (SingStat) report released yesterday. Overall inflation for retiree households – those comprising only non-employed people aged 65 and above – rose marginally by 0.1 per cent last year.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/retiree-households-most-affected-by-inflation-last-year-singstat-report

Companies’ Brief

Temasek posts 24.5% one-year return; posts record investments and divestments
A record year for both investments and sales, coupled with some blockbuster listings of names like Airbnb and Doordash, pushed Temasek Holdings’ one-year total shareholder return (TSR) to 24.5 per cent for the 12 months ended March 31.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/temasek-posts-245-one-year-return-posts-record-investments-and-divestments
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/temaseks-245-shareholder-return-highest-since-2010

Support for portfolio companies based on outlook for each: Temasek
Temasek’s participation in its portfolio companies’ capital raising is decided on a situation-by-situation basis, depending on the outlook for each company. “It’s not a fixed plan where we say, ‘this is how much we’re going to deploy, support our companies’, because, unfortunately, things don’t come out this way,” said Mr Nagi Hamiyeh, joint head of Temasek’s investment group and head of portfolio development at Temasek International.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/support-for-portfolio-companies-based-on-outlook-for-each-temasek

Temasek shuns hard carbon targets in divestment decisions
Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings does not set hard carbon targets that its portfolio companies must meet to avoid divestment. As the group doubles down on fresh climate-aligned opportunities, it will, at the same time, work with existing portfolio companies on their decarbonisation journey, said Nagi Hamiyeh, Temasek International’s investment group joint head and head of portfolio development.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/temasek-shuns-hard-carbon-targets-in-divestment-decisions-0

EHT unit gets court nod to reject Queen Mary floating hotel’s lease and operational agreements
Urban Commons Queensway (UCQ), a unit of embattled Eagle Hospitality Trust (EHT), has been granted approval by the United States Bankruptcy Court to reject the lease and operational agreements to the Queen Mary property on July 7, DBS Trustee announced in a regulatory filing on Tuesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/eht-unit-gets-court-nod-to-reject-queen-mary-floating-hotels-lease-and-operational

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Digital economy agreements herald new era of global connectivity
Amid the uncertainty and disruption caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the one bright spot has been the opportunities brought about by the fast-growing digital economy, which has largely stayed resilient and been a catalyst for growth and the transformation of enterprises.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/digital-economy-agreements-herald-new-era-of-global-connectivity

Vaccine passports need blockchain technology to work
For most of us, the last year has been insular and isolated: working from home, limited social interaction, and no international travel. As we cross the middle of 2021, vaccines are starting to offer hope of normal life, economic resurgence, and renewed global connections.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/vaccine-passports-need-blockchain-technology-to-work

Next frontier of sustainable investing: Measuring impact
When we’re talking about ESG in investment management, what are we talking about?” – George Serafeim That question prefaced an expert panel discussion at the Alpha Summit by the CFA Institute about two months ago.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/next-frontier-of-sustainable-investing-measuring-impact

Asian businesses step up to ESG reckoning
In recent years, rising demand for mobility due to higher incomes and population growth have set in motion calls for more energy efficient transport. Less spoken about is environmentally-friendly rubber – the key raw material that vehicles run on – even as the consumption of natural rubber has risen by 5 per cent annually in the last two decades.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/futureproof-an-esg-series/asian-businesses-step-up-to-esg-reckoning

Invest in multiple assets to manage climate issues: Pictet
Climate-change issues will affect everything from asset-class dynamics to strategic asset allocation and investing styles, said Pictet Wealth Management in its 2021 edition of Horizon – an annual publication that details its 10-year view on economies, expected returns and strategic asset allocation.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/invest-in-multiple-assets-to-manage-climate-issues-pictet

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Deep cleaning at KTV lounge linked to latest cluster
Deep cleaning was under way at one of five KTV lounges yesterday, after staff were called up for special testing operations. The KTV lounges are linked to an emerging cluster involving several Vietnamese social hostesses.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/deep-cleaning-at-ktv-lounge-linked-to-latest-cluster

Ongoing transmission likely at 3 lounges: MOH
The Ministry of Health (MOH) said last night that ongoing transmission at three KTV clubs and lounges is likely. They are Club Dolce in Balestier Point, Wu Bistro in Golden Mile Complex and Club De Zara in the Textile Centre.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/ongoing-transmission-likely-at-3-lounges-moh

HK-S’pore travel corridor plan hits another snag
The renamed quarantine-free travel corridor plan between Hong Kong and Singapore has hit another snag after months of delay. An announcement on the arrangement, previously known as the air travel bubble, was expected yesterday but is understood to have been scrapped at the last minute.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/hk-spore-travel-corridor-plan-hits-another-snag

*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