DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 19 Aug 2020 (Wed)

Singapore Real Estate

4-room Geylang BTO flats oversubscribed by 14 times
Home seekers made a beeline for the four-room Build-To-Order (BTO) flats in Geylang, which saw one of the highest application rates in recent years. As of 5pm yesterday, there were more than 14 first-time applicants vying for each of the 334 four-room flats at the Dakota One project. Four-room flats are the largest type in the project, which is within walking distance of Dakota MRT station.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/4-room-geylang-bto-flats-oversubscribed-by-14-times

Industrial Reits outperform in challenging first half
Industrial Reits – particularly those with data centre, logistics and business park assets – have proven to be the most resilient, outperforming the rest of the Singapore Reit (S-Reit) sector in the first half of this year, with retail and hospitality Reits bearing the brunt of the Covid-19 fallout.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/industrial-reits-outperform-in-challenging-first-half

Singapore Economy

Business down, but pessimism easing in Q2: BT-SUSS poll
Business worsened in the second quarter but firms’ pessimism recovered slightly from a record low, the latest Business Times-Singapore University of Social Sciences (BT-SUSS) Business Climate Survey found. The findings of the quarterly survey are in line with economists’ views that Q2 marked the trough of the Covid-19 recession, although the recovery ahead will be a slow one.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/business-down-but-pessimism-easing-in-q2-bt-suss-poll

60% of Singapore firms say they’ll need 1-2 years to recover
For nearly six in 10 Singapore firms, business will take one to two years to recover to pre-Covid-19 levels, even as they seek new revenue sources, speed up digitalisation and innovate in products and services. Revenues and profit margins have declined as a result of the pandemic. Yet, firms also face key challenges in financing and cash flow…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/60-of-singapore-firms-say-theyll-need-1-2-years-to-recover

Covid-19 may widen income gap in Singapore: DBS report
While the Singapore government has ramped up efforts to save jobs amid the Covid-19 crisis, the full impact on income is “far deeper and broad-based” than current economic numbers would suggest, with low-income earners bearing the brunt of the prolonged slump, fresh data from DBS showed.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/covid-19-may-widen-income-gap-in-singapore-dbs-report
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/banking/workers-aged-35-to-44-lower-income-group-bear-brunt-as-pay-shrinks-report

Companies’ Brief

Sabana unitholders call on sponsor to sell stake in manager
A group of Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana Reit) unitholders is “urgently” seeking guidance and support from regulators to stop the “potential severe conflict of interest issues” that they say are resulting from ESR Cayman’s controlling ownership of both Sabana Reit’s and ESR-Reit’s managers.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sabana-unitholders-call-on-sponsor-to-sell-stake-in-manager

Six Singapore names among Forbes’ top 200 listed Asia-Pac firms with less than US$1b sales
Six Singapore companies, including the Singapore Exchange (SGX), made the Forbes list of the top 200 listed firms in Asia-Pacific with less than US$1 billion in sales this year. The SGX topped the shortlist for the Republic, with US$666 million in sales, US$286 million in net income and a market value of US$6.3 billion, according to the list released on Tuesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/six-singapore-names-among-forbes-top-200-listed-asia-pac-firms-with-less-than-us1b
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/6-spore-companies-on-forbes-list-of-top-200-in-asia-pacific

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

The impact of Covid-19 on the financial system
The Covid-19 pandemic is an unprecedented stress event that has wreaked havoc on businesses and household balance sheets worldwide. According to the IMF’s World Economic Outlook (June 2020), global growth is expected to contract by 4.9 per cent in 2020.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-the-financial-system

Some businesses in nightlife sector may just have to bite the bullet
With no quick resolution in sight to Singapore’s continued fight against Covid-19, Monday’s announcement of extended – albeit tapering – government support came as a relief to many. Yet even while pledging further support for the hardest-hit sectors, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat made clear that a small minority of firms will have to bite the bullet and move on.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/some-businesses-in-nightlife-sector-may-just-have-to-bite-the-bullet

Pandemic has highlighted the role of technological innovation
As a result of the new socially-distanced reality, the digital economy could be relabelled the Covid economy. Investors are seeing an increasing pace of technological change, alongside a growing need to adopt and integrate innovation along all stages of the investment spectrum.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/pandemic-has-highlighted-the-role-of-technological-innovation

SCCCI aided 680 firms’ China venture in first half
The Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) helped more than 680 firms venture into China in the first half of this year, an indication of the role trade associations and chambers play in growing companies here. As an important bridge between the Government and firms, these organisations also help companies overcome crises, said Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling at an annual conference organised by the SCCCI yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/sccci-aided-680-firms-china-venture-in-first-half

Zoom opens data centre in Singapore
Video conferencing app Zoom has opened a new data centre in Singapore, in hopes of expanding its reach in the region through the city-state. The company on Tuesday said in a media briefing that it is also actively building up its engineering, sales and customer success teams in Singapore, to assist in its growing operations here.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/zoom-opens-data-centre-in-singapore

Nine more cities get nod for transit flights through Singapore under SIA group
Travellers from nine new cities, including three South-east Asian countries, will now be allowed to transit through Singapore, the Singapore Airlines (SIA) group announced on Tuesday, in its latest round of approvals. The three countries are: Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/nine-more-cities-get-nod-for-transit-flights-through-singapore-under-sia-group
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/more-passengers-allowed-to-transit-at-changi-airport

Singapore telcos can tap early 5G plans to suss out interest
Singapore is pressing on with its goal of rolling out nationwide standalone 5G networks from next year on, with full coverage by end-2025 – Covid-19 pandemic notwithstanding. Ahead of that milestone, though, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and telecom industry are now exploring how to deploy non-standalone (NSA) 5G services that tap the 4G networks currently in use.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/singapore-telcos-can-tap-early-5g-plans-to-suss-out-interest

Singapore Budget 2020

JGI aims to boost employers’ hiring of locals, create more good jobs: Josephine Teo
The Jobs Growth Incentive (JGI) aims to stretch employers’ budget for manpower growth to create more good jobs for Singaporeans, said Manpower Minister Josephine Teo in a Facebook post on Tuesday. The S$1 billion scheme is Singapore’s “biggest push ever for jobs” to match the seriousness of the impact that Covid-19 is having on businesses, she went on to highlight.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/jgi-aims-to-boost-employers-hiring-of-locals-create-more-good-jobs-josephine-teo
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/manpower/scheme-prods-firms-to-boost-hires-via-wage-savings-minister
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/manpower/jobs-growth-incentive-to-spur-hiring-of-older-workers

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Coronavirus: Sole community case is 39-year-old Singaporean man working at bus depot
A 39-year-old Singaporean man who works at a bus depot in a “non-public facing” role is the sole community case announced by the Ministry of Health (MOH) yesterday. The ministry said the case is currently unlinked, and added that his job “does not entail interaction with commuters and bus captains”.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/sole-community-case-is-39-year-old-sporean-man-working-at-bus-depot

About 100 workers in cleared dorms found Covid-19 positive during routine testing: MOM, MOH
About 100 migrant workers in dormitories previously cleared of the virus have tested positive for Covid-19 during routine biweekly testing. The Ministry of Manpower and the Ministry of Health said yesterday that the rostered routine testing is for migrant workers staying in dormitories, those working on construction or production sites, and those in the construction, marine and process sectors.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/100-workers-in-cleared-dorms-tested-positive

Pandemic has entered new phase in Asia-Pacific: WHO
The recent surge in cases in countries that had managed to contain the Covid-19 pandemic in its early months actually marks their move to a new phase for which they are better prepared, said a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) official.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/pandemic-has-entered-new-phase-in-asia-pacific-who

Vaccine won’t be a silver bullet, experts warn
A vaccine will not be a silver bullet to end the Covid-19 pandemic and the world still needs to improve its response to fight the virus.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/vaccine-wont-be-a-silver-bullet-experts-warn

People aged below 40 spurring spread in countries seeing a surge
The pandemic is changing as people in their 20s, 30s and 40s are increasingly driving the spread of Covid-19 infections in countries in this region that are seeing a surge in cases. In Japan, the Philippines and Australia’s state of Victoria, more than half the people infected are younger than 40 years old, said Dr Tamano Matsui, the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Western Pacific Programme area manager for health emergency information and risk assessment.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/people-aged-below-40-spurring-spread-in-countries-seeing-a-surge
*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) situation