DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 16th Oct 2019

Singapore Real Estate

Sept home sales soar as developers rev up launches
The end of the Hungry Ghost month proved something of a starting gun for home seekers, who flooded back into the market to send September sales of new private homes through the roof. Sales hit 1,270, up 13 per cent from August and a striking 36 per cent higher than the same month last year. It was, in fact, the best September sales performance in seven years, thanks largely to five bumper launches, especially…
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/sept-home-sales-soar-as-developers-rev-up-launches
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/infographics/developers-q3-private-home-sales-set-to-be-highest-in-six-years
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/new-private-home-sales-hit-a-high-in-sept
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/ura-private-home-sales-september-2019-12002102
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/6-10-singaporeans-think-government-should-regulate-prices-new-condo-survey

Queenstown could get 5,000 new HDB flats by 2027
More than 5,000 new homes could be launched in Queenstown by 2027, based on details in a traffic study that will be conducted for Singapore’s oldest town. The Housing Board called a tender for a traffic impact assessment (TIA) on Monday. According to tender documents, about 2,060 of these homes in two developments could be launched as early as 2021 or 2022.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/queenstown-could-get-5000-new-flats-by-2027

US grocery space player could add to S-Reit asset classes
The sponsors of United Hampshire US Reit are looking to raise up to US$400 million from the Singapore market, and are on the lookout for cornerstone investors. The Business Times understands that no meaningful range for a projected yield has been set yet, given the lack of precedence of the asset class in the real estate investment trust (Reit) sector here.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/us-grocery-space-player-could-add-to-s-reit-asset-classes

Companies’ Brief

MCT’s Q2 boosted by better portfolio contribution
Higher contribution from its assets – VivoCity, Mapletree Business City I, PSA Building and Bank of America Merrill Lynch HarbourFront – with one exception, boosted Mapletree Commercial Trust’s (MCT) second-quarter performance. That exception was Mapletree Anson. For the three months ended Sept 30, the commercial landlord posted a distribution per unit of 2.32 Singapore cents, up from 2.27 cents a year…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/mcts-q2-boosted-by-better-portfolio-contribution

Keppel DC Reit posts 4.3% rise in Q3 DPU
Keppel DC Reit has posted a third-quarter distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.93 Singapore cents, up 4.3 per cent from 1.85 Singapore cents in the same period a year earlier. The higher distributable income was due mainly to higher contributions from the Singapore properties, lower tax expenses and higher net realised gains on derivatives relating to the settlement of foreign currency forward contracts hedged.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-dc-reit-posts-43-rise-in-q3-dpu

KORE Q3 DPU unchanged at 1.5 US cents
Keppel Pacific Oak US Reit (KORE), previously known as Keppel-KBS US Reit, has posted a third-quarter distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.5 US cents, unchanged from the same period a year earlier. Distributable income for the three months ended Sept 30 was US$12.4 million, up 31 per cent from the third quarter last year and 23.3 per cent higher than what the Reit had forecast. DPU, however, came in below forecast…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/kore-q3-dpu-unchanged-at-15-us-cents

Keppel Capital unit, Allianz to buy stake in Beijing office complex for S$1.3b
Keppel Capital unit Alpha Investment Partners is jointly acquiring an 85 per cent interest in a Grade A office complex in Beijing with Allianz Real Estate for S$1.3 billion. The remaining 15 per cent stake in the complex – called Ronsin Technology Center – will continue to be held by seller D&J China, which will now manage the property together with Alpha and Allianz, Keppel Corp said on Wednesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-capital-unit-allianz-to-buy-stake-in-beijing-office-complex-for-s13b
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/keppel-capital-unit-and-allianz-to-buy-stake-in-beijing-office-complex

Singapore’s most active construction stocks hold firm with 11% YTD return: SGX
The 10 most actively traded stocks with a construction focus on the Singapore bourse generated an average total return of 11 per cent in the year till Oct 11, amid growth in the sector. This is also in line with the 11 per cent average total return for the five largest listed Singapore-focused real estate developers in the 2019 year to date (YTD), the Singapore Exchange (SGX) said on Tuesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/singapores-most-active-construction-stocks-hold-firm-with-11-ytd-return-sgx

RedDoorz to add 11 Singapore budget hotels to network by end 2020
Singapore-based hospitality startup RedDoorz will expand its portfolio of 18 budget hotel properties in Singapore to 29 by the end of 2020, it said on Tuesday. The five-year old hotel management and booking platform operates both franchise and lease models for its hotels in Singapore.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/reddoorz-to-add-11-singapore-budget-hotels-to-network-by-end-2020
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/reddoorz-to-have-29-budget-hotels-here-by-end-2020

Hotel Properties launches new perpetual issue
Billionaire Ong Beng Seng’s Hotel Properties has launched a new perpetual issue on Tuesday. The S$135 million deal is a perpetual issue non-callable five years priced to yield 4.4 per cent per annum at par. The initial price guidance was in the 4.60 per cent area, according to a term sheet seen by The Business Times.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/hotel-properties-launches-new-perpetual-issue

BreadTalk Group gets regulatory nod for its buyout of Food Junction
Mainboard-listed food and beverage player BreadTalk Group has obtained regulatory approval for its buyout of food operator Food Junction, paving the way for the group to become the third-largest food-court operator in Singapore. In a statement released on Tuesday evening, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) said it had found that the combined market share of the parties…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/breadtalk-group-gets-regulatory-nod-for-its-buyout-of-food-junction
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/breadtalk-gets-cccs-nod-for-acquisition

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Singapore’s No. 1 competitiveness ranking masks some weak spots
Last week, Singapore made headlines around the world for topping the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Competitiveness Index, edging ahead of the United States, which was top last year. It’s a prestigious accolade from a credible organisation. The Geneva-based WEF, which is best known for being the convener of the annual jamboree of world leaders at Davos, has been ranking countries on competitiveness since…
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/singapores-no-1-competitiveness-ranking-masks-some-weak-spots