DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 13th April 2018

Top Story

MAS to allow for ‘modest and gradual’ rise of Singdollar in first policy tightening in 6 years
Singapore’s central bank on Friday (April 13) opted to tighten its Singdollar policy as expected, slightly increasing the slope of the Singdollar nominal effective exchange rate (S$NEER) policy band to allow for “modest and gradual” appreciation. The width of the policy band and the level at which it is centred will be unchanged. This is a shift away from the neutral policy stance of zero per cent appreciation of the S$NEER band – a position that the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has maintained since April 2016. It is also the first time the MAS has tightened monetary policy since April 2012.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/mas-to-tighten-singdollar-policy-allowing-for-modest-and-gradual-appreciation
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-dollar-mas-monetary-policy-10133554
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singapore-central-bank-tightens-monetary-policy-first-time-six-years
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-13/singapore-central-bank-tightens-policy-amid-solid-growth-outlook

Singapore Economy

Greater trade war danger is souring of Sino-US ties: PM Lee
The greater danger from a US-China trade war is not just in higher tariffs or damage to trade, but the souring of Sino-US ties more broadly, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Thursday. And Singapore and the region have to be prepared for this possibility, he added. Such an outcome “would make it very difficult for all the countries in Asia who are trying very hard to become friends with both, or stay friends with both,” he told Singapore reporters at the end of his five-day visit to China.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/greater-trade-war-danger-is-souring-of-sino-us-ties-pm-lee
http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/us-china-trade-war-will-affect-global-security-pm

Singapore, Chongqing to set up electronic info-sharing platform
Singapore is working with Chongqing to set up a single electronic window to connect the south-western Chinese city’s economy with Singapore through data and information sharing, said Chan Chun Sing, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, on Thursday. Such a platform will make for easier and more efficient customs clearance, which will eventually enable a more seamless flow of goods between China’s western regions and South-east Asia.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-chongqing-to-set-up-electronic-info-sharing-platform
http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/spore-chongqing-to-share-data-via-electronic-platform

Singapore economy grew 4.3% in Q1 of 2018, boosted by strong manufacturing growth
Singapore’s economy expanded 4.3 per cent in the first three months of 2018 on the back of strong manufacturing growth, according to Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) advance estimates out on Friday. This year-on-year rise was in line with economists’ expectations of 4.3 per cent growth, and beat the 3.6 per cent expansion in the final quarter of 2017.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-economy-grows-43-in-q1-on-strong-manufacturing-growth
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-economy-grows-43-in-q1-in-line-with-forecasts

February retail sales up on CNY spending
Retail sales rose in February, due in part to the spending around the Chinese New Year holiday. Takings were estimated at $3.7 billion, up 8.6 per cent on the $3.4 billion recorded in February last year. Online retail sales formed an estimated 3.9 per cent of the total.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/february-retail-sales-up-on-cny-spending http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/infographics/retail-sales-up-in-feb-thanks-to-chinese-new-year-effect

Singapore Real Estate

Yanlord, MCL bag Tulip Garden for S$907m, 20% above reserve price
A Yanlord Land Group and MCL Land joint venture has successfully bagged the freehold Tulip Garden for S$906.889 million, the nation’s second largest collective sales deal so far in 2018. The sale price is 20.4 per cent higher than the reserve price of S$753 million for the 316,708 sq ft freehold estate when the tender was launched on Feb 28.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/yanlord-mcl-bag-tulip-garden-for-s907m-20-above-reserve-price
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/freehold-tulip-garden-sold-en-bloc-for-907m
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/tulip-garden-sold-for-s-907m-on-fourth-en-bloc-attempt-10131980

88 Market Street secures JPMorgan as anchor office tenant
88 Market Street, the landmark 51-storey tower coming up on the site of the former Golden Shoe Car Park, has secured US investment banking giant JP Morgan as its first anchor tenant. CapitaLand announced the news on Thursday and also unveiled the project’s name – CapitaSpring. JP Morgan will take up 155,000 sq ft – or about a quarter of the 635,000 sq ft of net lettable area at CapitaSpring, occupying levels 24 to 30 of the tower in prime Raffles Place, CapitaLand said in a media statement.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/88-market-street-secures-jpmorgan-as-anchor-office-tenant
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/88-market-street-secures-jp-morgan-as-anchor-tenant

Cache Logistics Trust converts commodity hub to multi-tenancy lease
Cache Logistics Trust will convert its CWT Commodity Hub property from a master lease to a multi-tenancy lease structure from Thursday, said the Reit’s manager. The CWT Commodity Hub, located at 24 Penjuru Road within the Jurong Industrial Estate, is a ramp-up logistics warehouse. It has an average floor plate of about 448,000 sq ft, ceiling height of up to 10 metres, and an average of 70 loading bays per floor.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/cache-logistics-trust-converts-commodity-hub-to-multi-tenancy-lease

Companies’ Brief

Lian Beng’s Q3 profit up 63% on higher revenue
Construction firm Lian Beng Group, which is spinning off its property unit into a Catalist listing this month, on Thursday said it expected a “steady flow of activity” through to fiscal 2022. It reported a 63 per cent rise in net profit for the fiscal third quarter from a year ago. Net profit for the three months ended Feb 28, 2018, stood at S$4.68 million, up from S$2.87 million a year ago. This translated to earnings per share of 0.94 Singapore cents, up from 0.57 Singapore cents a year ago.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/lian-bengs-q3-profit-up-63-on-higher-revenue

TEE International Q3 profit doubles to S$374,000; TEE Land profit grows to S$1.2m
Engineering and real estate group TEE International saw net profit double to S$374,000 in its fiscal third quarter, while its listed property arm, TEE Land, said net profit swelled to S$1.2 million over the same period. TEE International’s earnings per share rose to 0.07 Singapore cent for the three months ended Feb 28, 2018. For the nine-month period, the group had a net loss of S$5.8 million, or 1.15 Singapore cents per share.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/tee-international-q3-profit-doubles-to-s374000-tee-land-profit-grows-to-s12m
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/tee-international-q3-profit-doubles-to-s374000-tee-land-profit-surges-to

Manulife US Reit acquires 2 US properties for US$387m; sets up US$1b multicurrency debt issuance programme
Manulife US Real Estate Investment Trust (Manulife US Reit) on Friday announced it has entered into agreements to acquire two properties in the US for US$387 million, and has established a US$1 billion multicurrency debt issuance programme aimed at increasing its financial flexibility by diversifying its sources of funding.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/manulife-us-reit-acquires-2-us-properties-for-us387m-sets-up-us1b-multicurrency

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Singapore firm to provide app to help build new Indian city
A Singapore company will tailor an app to help the authorities in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh build their new capital city, Amaravati. The city is being built from scratch after Andhra Pradesh lost its capital, Hyderabad, to the new state of Telangana, which was created in 2014.
http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/south-asia/spore-firm-to-provide-app-to-help-build-new-indian-city-0

New green method to strengthen buildings
Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have found a way to use wood waste to strengthen building materials. The new method uses biochar, which is a material produced when heat is used to decompose sawdust.
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-green-method-to-strengthen-buildings