DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 17th November 2016

Singapore Economy

Christmas comes early as MAS bears gifts on innovation sleigh
Singapore will close out the year by rolling out a slew of experiments and plans to boost the efficiency of financial transactions through technology, including the use of digital currency, as the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) makes good on its ambition to build a smart financial centre. In a landmark trial for a financial centre, a pilot will be launched to test interbank payments using blockchain technology with eight banks and the Singapore Exchange; this comes with an option to expand this trial to transactions in foreign currency. Singapore will also test a way of feeding existing citizens’ data to banks and other financial institutions to speed up form-filling.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/christmas-comes-early-as-mas-bears-gifts-on-innovation-sleigh
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/asia-bucks-global-trend-to-stay-as-fintech-magnet
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/brexit-offers-spore-chance-to-attract-uk-fintech-talent-mas?login=true
http://www.todayonline.com/business/singapore-sees-brexit-chance-recruit-londons-fintech-talent

Three-month Sibor up for third straight day
The key three-month Sibor (Singapore interbank offered rate) rose for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, in line with rising interest rates globally. Used to price mortgages, the three-month Sibor climbed to 0.92 per cent from 0.91 per cent on Tuesday and 0.88 per cent on Monday. Until Monday, it had flatlined at 0.87 per cent since July. Victor Yong, United Overseas Bank (UOB) interest rate strategist, noted that the Sibor moves come amid a “bit of noise” following the election of Donald Trump to be the next US president and that “it hadn’t moved for the longest time”. Markets are reacting to expected inflationary policies from a Trump White House but Mr Yong pointed out that there is scant details on the policies.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/three-month-sibor-up-for-third-straight-day

‘Technical recession looms’ for Singapore
The Singapore economy could sink into a technical recession this year amid fallout from the United States election results, weak global growth and rising market volatility, said OCBC economist Selena Ling. This could tip over into a full-blown recession next year, given the cloudy outlook, she said at a briefing yesterday. The economy shrank 4.1 per cent in the July to September period compared with the previous quarter – the biggest slump since 2012. Another quarter of contraction would push Singapore into a technical recession, defined as two consecutive quarters of decline in economic output. The economy is projected to expand by 1 to 2 per cent this year, in what is likely to be the slowest year since the global financial crisis.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/technical-recession-looms-for-spore?login=true

How department stores can survive the retail crunch
The secret to a successful department store is through the stomachs of shoppers. Retail experts think that food is the key to survival for department stores in Singapore. But they say that these one-stop-shops must also find a niche and stay nimble enough to evolve with ever-changing shopper preferences. The advice comes a little too late for John Little, Singapore’s oldest department store, which will shut its last outlet here by the end of the year after 174 years in operation. The brand, which is managed by Robinsons Group, decided to shut “after evaluating the relevancy and sustainability of the John Little brick-and-mortar business”, it said in a press statement last week.
http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/fashion/department-stores-must-evolve-to-survive-retail-crunch

Singapore Real Estate

New land reclamation method for Pulau Tekong
Singapore will reclaim land at the north-western tip of Pulau Tekong through a new innovative, cost-saving method of developing a polder. To be used here for the first time, this method will be adopted by the Housing & Development Board (HDB) for the upcoming land reclamation project. This followed close consultation by HDB with experts in polder development and an environmental study that showed the impact on the environment would be minimal. The tender for the polder project is expected to be called by end of this year, and construction work will commence at end-2017. When completed around 2022, it will add an additional 810 hectares of new land to Singapore.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/new-land-reclamation-method-for-pulau-tekong
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-reclamation-method-to-create-bigger-pulau-tekong?login=true
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/mnd-reclaims-land-pulau-tekong-through-new-method-requiring-less-sand

High-rise multi-tenanted logistics hub to be ready by 2019
Singapore’s first high-rise multi-tenanted logistics facility to house container depots, warehouses and a heavy vehicle park all within a single development will be completed by 2019, improving efficiency and lowering costs for the logistics sector. When completed, the JTC Logistics Hub @ Gul — which sits on a site area of 5.8ha — will be able to house about 30 warehouse units sized between 2,100 and 2,800sqm, and up to four container depot units with a maximum of 6,500 TEUs per floor.
http://www.todayonline.com/business/high-rise-multi-tenanted-logistics-hub-be-ready-2019
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/jtc-inks-deals-to-aid-productivity-at-new-hub
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/more-jobs-in-logistics-sector-with-launch-of-new-industry/3292910.html
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/new-logistics-sector-blueprint-to-create-pmet-jobs-add-value

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand to open 8 malls in 2017
CapitaLand will open eight malls in Asia in 2017 with almost one million square metres of gross floor area, the property developer announced on Thursday. Through wholly-owned CapitaLand Mall Asia, CapitaLand will open six malls in China, one in Malaysia and one in India. The first mall will open in the second quarter of 2017, and the last one in the fourth quarter. “As at Sept 30, 2016, 76 per cent of CapitaLand’s total assets contribute to recurring income, of which shopping malls and integrated developments form the bulk,” CapitaLand Mall Asia chief executive Jason Leow said in a statement.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capitaland-to-open-8-malls-in-2017