DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 15th December 2017

Top Story

17,000 BTO flats to be launched in 2018, keeping supply steady
Around 17,000 Build-to-Order (BTO) flats will be launched in 2018, maintaining a level of flat supply similar to this year’s, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong announced in a blog post on Thursday morning. These new flats will be spread around mature and non-mature towns. These include the upcoming Tengah town, the first time that Housing Board flats will be launched there.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/17000-bto-flats-to-be-launched-in-2018-keeping-supply-steady
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/hdb-to-launch-17000-new-flats-next-year?login=true
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/hdb-new-flats-2018-bto-9498232

Singapore Economy

Extra S$8b worth of liquidity tied up due to poor working capital performance: study
Working capital performance in half of Singapore’s business sectors has deteriorated year on year (y-o-y), translating into an additional S$8.7 billion of liquidity tied up, a joint study by PwC Singapore and Spring Singapore has found.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/extra-s8b-worth-of-liquidity-tied-up-due-to-poor-working-capital-performance
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/spore-firms-need-to-improve-on-cash-management

Singapore Real Estate

Property agents roped in to fight money laundering, terror funding
The Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) has set out checklists to better guide real estate agencies and salespersons in carrying out their know-your-customer procedures to guard against cases of money laundering and financing of terrorism in big-ticket property transactions.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/property-agents-roped-in-to-fight-money-laundering-terror-funding

Co-working space startup WeWork calls Funan home
The manager of CapitaLand Mall Trust, CapitaLand Mall Trust Management Limited, announced that it has secured its first office tenant in Funan. Co-working startup WeWork is leasing 40,000 square foot (sq ft) of space in the integrated development. WeWork’s space will be located across two floors at Funan’s North Office block, which is linked to the retail section of the development.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/co-working-space-startup-wework-calls-funan-home
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/funan-gets-co-working-start-up-as-first-office-tenant

Blueprint to add buzz to Orchard over next 20 years
A grand plan is in the works to shape the development of Singapore’s premier shopping belt over the next 15 to 20 years. The authorities are looking into implementing an “actionable Orchard Road Blueprint” within that period, said a joint statement from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) yesterday.
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/blueprint-to-add-buzz-to-orchard-over-next-20-years

Kwek Leng Beng gets award from Najib
The executive chairman of Hong Leong Group has been recognised for his efforts in opening up new frontiers of opportunity and growth and creating a new pipeline for economic expansion. Mr Kwek Leng Beng was given the Global Blue Ocean Shift Award on Wednesday by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak at the Global Entrepreneurship Community Summit in Kuala Lumpur.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/kwek-leng-beng-gets-award-from-najib

Litigation not best answer to neighbours’ dispute: Judge
A resident of Camelot By-The-Water condominium who sued another resident for $100,000 in damages for defamation was awarded $5,000. Dr John Robertson Gillies had taken Dr Suresh Balan to court after a quarrel in June 2015 at the upscale Tanjong Rhu residential property where both have been living for over 10 years. The 99-unit development affords views of Marina Bay Sands and the Singapore Flyer.
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/litigation-not-best-answer-to-neighbours-dispute-judge

Companies’ Brief

Oxley buys Chevron House, Vista Park, stake in Vietnam project in deals totalling over S$1b
Oxley Holdings, headed by Ching Chiat Kwong, continues its property buying spree. In a span of less than 24 hours from late Wednesday to Thursday evening, it announced three acquisitions totalling over S$1 billion. These comprise Chevron House for S$660 million, the Vista Park collective sale site in South Buona Vista Road for S$418 million and a smaller deal in Vietnam.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oxley-buys-chevron-house-vista-park-stake-in-vietnam-project-in-deals-totalling
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oxley-holdings-awarded-vista-park-collective-sale-at-s418m
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/oxley-holdings-buys-chevron-house

FCL, FCOT buy UK business park for £174.6m
Frasers Centrepoint Limited (FCL) and the manager of Frasers Commercial Trust (FCOT) on Thursday said their subsidiaries have entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire on a 50-50 basis Farnborough Business Park (FBP) in the United Kingdom for £174.6 million (S$314.8 million). The seller is HEREF Farnborough Holdco, which holds the title to the property.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/fcl-fcot-buy-uk-business-park-for-%C2%A31746m

United Engineers offers to buy up rest of WBL
United Engineers (UE) has made a pre-conditional voluntary unconditional cash offer for all the shares of WBL Corporation (WBL) it does not already own; the move follows Yanlord Land Group and Perennial Real Estate’s acquisition of a one-third stake in UE earlier this year. UE has made the offer for WBL through its wholly owned subsidiary, UE Centennial Venture Pte Ltd, which currently owns 67.59 per cent of WBL.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/united-engineers-offers-to-buy-up-rest-of-wbl

ESR-Reit acquires property in Ang Mo Kio
ESR-Reit (Real Estate Investment Trust) has acquired an 80 per cent interest in a special purpose vehicle that owns a leasehold interest in a property situated within the Serangoon North Industrial Estate in Singapore for S$240 million, marking its largest acquisition to date.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/esr-reit-acquires-property-in-ang-mo-kio
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/esr-reit-scoops-up-property-in-ang-mo-kio-avenue-5

CEReit’s stabilising manager behind a third of volume since IPO
The stabilising manager for Cromwell European Reit (CEReit) has bought 27.89 million units from the open market since the trust’s Nov 30 initial public offering (IPO), accounting for one third of the counter’s trading volume since listing and helping to support its market price.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/cereits-stabilising-manager-behind-a-third-of-volume-since-ipo-0

OUE H-Reit obtains S$980m facilities to partially refinance debt
The real estate investment trust (Reit) portion of the stapled OUE Hospitality Trust (OUE H-Trust) has obtained S$980 million of loan facilities to partially refinance its existing debt. The new facilities comprise two term loan facilities and two revolvers, according to a filing with the Singapore Exchange. The lenders are BNP Paribas, DBS Bank, OCBC Bank and Standard Chartered.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/oue-h-reit-obtains-s980m-facilities-to-partially-refinance-debt
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/oue-h-trust-gets-loan-facilities-of-980m

Viva Industrial Trust says Kim Seng Holdings’ right of first refusal has ceased
The managers of Viva Industrial Trust (VIT) on Thursday said that Kim Seng Holdings (KSH) has ceased to be a shareholder of the managers and as a result, KSH’s right of first refusal has ceased. According to the trust’s prospectus, KSH had granted a right of first refusal to the trust for income-producing real estate located in Singapore and the Asia-Pacific region which are used primarily for business park and other industrial purposes.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/viva-industrial-trust-says-kim-seng-holdings-right-of-first-refusal-has-ceased