DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 22 December 2021 (Wed)

Singapore Real Estate

Sultan Plaza up for collective sale with S$360m reserve price
Commercial building Sultan Plaza has been put on the market again, in what is likely the property market’s first en bloc attempt since the latest cooling measures kicked in, sole marketing agent Teakhwa Real Estate told The Business Times (BT).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/sultan-plaza-up-for-collective-sale-with-s360m-reserve-price

En bloc hopefuls push on with tenders despite cooling measures
Days after a round of property curbs was introduced, collective-sale candidates in Singapore remain in wait-and-see mode, with some unfazed for now. Several sites that have already begun their tenders are proceeding with the en bloc sale process, while a few have moved into private treaty talks…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/en-bloc-hopefuls-push-on-with-tenders-despite-cooling-measures

Indonesian developer Peak Tower Corp taps Marriott to run hotel at former Selegie Centre site
Peak Tower Corporation – which is backed by the Surabaya-based Anggasaputro family – has inked a 25-year contract with the Marriott hotel group to operate a 132-room hotel at the site of the former Selegie Centre after Peak Tower received the greenlight from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to develop a hotel on the plot of land.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/indonesian-developer-peak-tower-corp-taps-marriott-to-run-hotel-at-former-selegie-centre

Continued strength ahead in HDB, private housing rental markets
Heightened leasing demand for homes in Singapore has pushed some rents up to levels unseen in recent years, with robust volumes in certain heartland locations as well as Districts 9 and 10. It comes as overall rents of private and public housing have been climbing in the past year.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/continued-strength-ahead-in-hdb-private-housing-rental-markets-0

Stamp duty traps to watch out for
On Dec 15, 2021, the Ministry of Finance introduced a new package of measures designed to cool the residential property market. The measures include increases in Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD), the tightening of the Total Debt Servicing Ratio, adjustments to the Loan to Valuation limit for loans from HDB and a planned increase of housing supply.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/stamp-duty-traps-to-watch-out-for

Companies’ Brief

FJ Benjamin to raise S$3m in placement deal with Far East Organization unit
Retail group FJ Benjamin Holdings (FJB) on Tuesday (Dec 21) said it will raise S$3 million from a Far East Organization unit for expansion. Western Properties, a member of the Far East Organization group of companies, has agreed to subscribe to 120 million new FJB shares at S$0.025 each.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/fj-benjamin-to-raise-s3m-in-placement-deal-with-far-east-organization-unit

GuocoLand group CFO resigns; new executive appointments announced
GuocoLand’s group chief financial officer (CFO) Gregory Sim Chee Wah has resigned to pursue personal interests after slightly over a year at the post, announced the property developer on Wednesday (Dec 22) morning. Sim’s last day of service will be on Dec 31, 2021.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/guocoland-group-cfo-resigns-new-executive-appointments-announced

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Extended Covid-19 support suggests govt caution in face of uneven recovery
Even as Singapore aims for Covid-19 resilience, two support measures have been extended for a full year, in recognition that recovery remains difficult for some. First, while foreign worker inflows have picked up as border curbs ease, stringent Covid-19 precautions seem set to remain.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/extended-covid-19-support-suggests-govt-caution-in-face-of-uneven-recovery-0

Businesses to take flight in 2022, but turbulence expected
It has been a roller-coaster year living with the pandemic, with bursts of optimism dampened by new restrictions. This year started off well – vaccinations were underway, and Singapore was into Phase 3 of its re-opening.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/businesses-to-take-flight-in-2022-but-turbulence-expected

Stay cautious as Omicron sweeps globally
It was barely a month ago that the Covid-19 variant Omicron was first spotted by scientists. In just a few weeks, the highly transmissible variant has reached almost every country in the world, and cases are now surging in continental Europe and parts of South Africa.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/stay-cautious-as-omicron-sweeps-globally

The benefits of inflation in the era ahead
Having spent more than 40 years indoctrinated by the inflation-fighting mantras of central banks around the world, the world’s reaction to the highest year-on-year consumer price inflation in the United States since the early 1980s and in inflation-phobic Germany since the integration of East Germany in the early 1990s is hardly surprising.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/the-benefits-of-inflation-in-the-era-ahead

Employers to receive over S$400m in JSS payouts from Dec 31
About 24,400 employers in sectors facing significant safe management restrictions will receive payouts totalling over S$400 million from Dec 31, 2021 under the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS). This brings the total amount of JSS support to more than S$28 billion since the scheme was introduced in February 2020…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/employers-to-receive-over-s400m-in-jss-payouts-from-dec-31
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/over-400m-in-jss-payouts-for-employers-from-dec-31

Foreign worker levy rebate extended
A $250 foreign worker levy rebate will be extended until March next year for all work permit holders in the construction, marine shipyard and process sectors, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said in a statement yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/foreign-worker-levy-rebate-extended
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/mom-extends-foreign-worker-levy-rebate-waiver-of-foreign-worker-levy-during-shn

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

280 new Covid-19 infections and 2 deaths in Singapore
Singapore – The Ministry of Health announced 280 new Covid-19 infections and two deaths on its website on Tuesday (Dec 21). The number of infections is up from the 195 cases recorded on Monday, and it is the 19th day in a row that the number of new coronavirus cases has fallen below 1,000, according to statistics published on the MOH website.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/280-new-covid-19-infections-in-spore

Some avoiding gym with suspected Omicron cluster
The Anytime Fitness outlet in Bukit Timah – where Singapore’s first suspected Omicron cluster has been detected – had undergone a round of cleaning and was open yesterday morning, but some gym goers are staying away for fear of getting infected.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/some-avoiding-gym-with-suspected-omicron-cluster

Vaccination for kids aged five to 11 to start on Monday
Covid-19 vaccination for more than 300,000 children aged five to 11 begins next Monday, with older children – next year’s Primary 4 to Primary 6 pupils – going first. About 110,000 SMS invitations to book appointments will be sent today to their parents.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/vaccination-for-kids-aged-five-to-11-to-start-on-monday
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/parenting-education/how-can-i-get-my-child-vaccinated-against-covid-19

*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