DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 14 April 2022 (Thu)

Singapore Real Estate

Broad-based recovery seen across Singapore property segments: CBRE
The first quarter of the year has seen recovery across Singapore’s property segments as Covid-19 restrictions were eased, said CBRE in its Q1 2022 report. The real estate services firm said positive momentum in the office market from end-2021 carried over into the first quarter of this year, with the islandwide office market registering a healthy net absorption of 307,282 square feet (sq ft) – the third consecutive quarter of positive net demand.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/broad-based-recovery-seen-across-singapore-property-segments-cbre

Singapore Economy

Singapore’s GDP grew 3.4% in Q1, falling below economists’ expectations
Singapore’s economy grew 3.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2022, according to advance estimates from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Thursday (Apr 14). The Q1 growth figure came just below economists’ expectations of a 3.8 per cent expansion, according to a recent Bloomberg poll, and moderated from the 6.1 per cent growth in the fourth quarter of last year.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapores-gdp-grew-34-in-q1-falling-below-economists-expectations
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-gdp-growth-moderates-to-34-in-q1-flash-data

MAS takes more aggressive ‘double-barrelled’ move to tighten monetary policy, raises inflation forecast
Singapore’s central bank is taking a more aggressive approach to further tighten its monetary policy settings in 2 ways, while also raising its inflation forecast, citing fresh shocks to global commodity prices and supply chains that are adding to domestic cost pressures.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/mas-takes-more-aggressive-double-barrelled-move-to-tighten-monetary-policy

MAS tightens criteria for family offices to qualify for tax incentives
THE bar for family offices to qualify for tax incentives will be raised from Monday (Apr 18), with new requirements on fund sizes, AUM (assets under management) growth and business spending, among other stricter criteria.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/mas-tightens-criteria-for-family-offices-to-qualify-for-tax-incentives

Companies’ Brief

Brokers’ take: RHB raises CDL target to S$9.75 on recovery prospects, cheap valuation
City Developments Limited (CDL) is likely set for a strong recovery as global Covid-19 restrictions ease, RHB said. In a report on Wednesday (Apr 13), analyst Vijay Natarajan raised his target price on the property player to S$9.75 from S$9.25, while maintaining his “buy” call on the counter, to factor in a higher value for its hospitality portfolio as well as divestment gains.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/brokers-take-rhb-raises-cdl-target-to-s975-on-recovery-prospects-cheap-valuation

KPMG relocating to Asia Square, ByteDance in talks at Capital Tower
While the adoption of a hybrid working model is expected to crimp some demand for office space, one can still count on flight to quality and tech companies to generate some buzz in the Singapore commercial leasing market.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/kpmg-relocating-to-asia-square-bytedance-in-talks-at-capital-tower

Total remuneration of CLI’s Lee Chee Koon not accurate
We would like to make several important clarifications about the 2021 remuneration of CapitaLand Investment (CLI) group chief executive Lee Chee Koon in the article “Chief executives at 13 STI companies get higher pay in 2021” (The Business Times, Apr 13, 2022).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/total-remuneration-of-clis-lee-chee-koon-not-accurate

‘I’m not the kingmaker,’ says Sabana Reit director whom Quarz wants voted out
Sabana Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana Reit) is staring down the barrel of yet another crucial vote that could have a major impact on its plans going forward. This comes 16 months after its proposed merger with ESR-Reit was voted down by unitholders in December 2020.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/im-not-the-kingmaker-says-sabana-reit-director-whom-quarz-wants-voted-out

Views, Reviews, Forum and Others

Recession blues usurp global pandemic-recovery narrative
The global macroeconomic outlook could not be more cloudy, what with geopolitical conflict, soaring prices of everything from energy to food, supply chain disruptions, and a tightening monetary trajectory in full play.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/recession-blues-usurp-global-pandemic-recovery-narrative-0

Seizing new growth opportunities for Asean
As Asean economies continue their path to safely reopening and getting back to business, they must also manage growing economic challenges and identify how best to seize new opportunities for a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable recovery.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/seizing-new-growth-opportunities-for-asean

Managing labour crunch amid recovery
Several employers are facing a labour crunch as a result of Singapore’s recovery from the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. While this would be good news for workers, many of whom saw jobs disappear as Covid-19 spread its epidemiological tentacles across the nation, the shortage has implications for the economy going forward.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/the-straits-times-says-managing-labour-crunch-amid-recovery

Immune to Covid? It’s possible – but a medical mystery
One of the more astonishing things that scientists learned from deliberately exposing volunteers to Covid-19 was that nearly half of them never got infected – even when the virus was introduced directly into their noses.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/immune-to-covid-its-possible-but-a-medical-mystery

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Severe Covid-19 symptoms 5 times more likely in patients who got Sinovac rather than Pfizer jab: Study
Singapore – Recipients of the Sinovac-CoronaVac vaccine are five times more likely to experience severe Covid-19 symptoms when they are infected than those who had the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty vaccine.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/severe-covid-19-symptoms-5-times-more-likely-in-those-infected-who-got-sinovac-vaccine-than-pfizer-one-study

*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) situatio