DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 20 Jan 2021(Wed)

Singapore Real Estate

DBS sees ‘pre-emptive’ policy response to curb higher property prices
Singapore authorities may act pre-emptively to curb higher property prices, said DBS Group Research. The analysts said that while a steady 2 to 3 per cent annual increase in the Singapore property price index (PPI) in line with household income growth is well supported by fundamentals, an acceleration in excess of 5 per cent will tip the market into “bubble territory”.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/dbs-sees-pre-emptive-policy-response-to-curb-higher-property-prices

New CBD skyscraper ready by 2nd half of 2021
CapitaSpring, a 51-storey skyscraper in the Central Business District (CBD), is scheduled to be completed by the second half of this year. Providing an update on the building’s progress yesterday, its owners – CapitaLand Limited, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (CICT) and Mitsubishi Estate Co – said that 38 per cent of CapitaSpring’s net lettable area of 647,000 sq ft has been taken up.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/new-cbd-skyscraper-ready-by-2nd-half-of-2021

Talk of more private property cooling measures
Talk of another round of property cooling measures has intensified in the wake of recent ministerial remarks that the Government is keeping a close watch on the market, which has so far defied the pandemic-induced recession. This comes as Urban Redevelopment Authority flash estimates showed private home prices rose 2.1 per cent for the fourth quarter – the steepest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2018 when they jumped 3.4 per cent before property cooling measures hit in July that year.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/talk-of-more-private-property-cooling-measures
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/singapore-may-act-to-cool-rising-home-prices-analysts-say

Asset-heavy property groups may take the privatisation route
As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to ravage the UK, hotels are suffering, particularly in London, which is missing international visitors. Unsurprisingly, Singapore-listed GL Limited, whose core business is owning and operating 13 hotels in London, reported a loss for the half year ended Dec 31, 2020 last week. Surprisingly, almost immediately on the back of the results announcement in which GL’s board said it expects to continue to face a difficult operating environment in 2021, GL’s largest shareholder made an offer to take it private last Friday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/asset-heavy-property-groups-may-take-the-privatisation-route

Singapore Economy

Strengthening position in global value chain among Singapore’s key economic strategies for 2021: Chan Chun Sing
Singapore – While the Economic Development Board (EDB) has done well to secure $17.2 billion of fixed-asset investments in an exceptionally difficult year, the road ahead will be challenging, said Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing on Wednesday (Jan 20). Speaking at a media briefing ahead of EDB’s annual year-in-review, Mr Chan outlined the hurdles anticipated and the Republic’s key economic strategies for 2021 as the world grapples with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/strengthening-position-in-global-value-chain-among-singapores-key-economic
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-draws-172-billion-of-investments-in-2020-most-since-2008-despite-covid-19
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/decade-high-s172b-in-fixed-asset-investments-for-singapore-in-2020-edb

Sector-specific help, focus on jobs expected in Budget 2021
After 2020’s multiple support packages to keep the economy afloat amid the unfolding Covid-19 crisis, this year’s Budget is expected to be a more modest one, continuing the shift away from firefighting and towards supporting recovery and preparing for the future. With the labour market recovery likely to take longer, however, jobs will remain a priority.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/sector-specific-help-focus-on-jobs-expected-in-budget-2021

SBF, trade bodies lead way on fair employment
The pledge made by the 29 trade associations and chambers (TACs) to support fair hiring and employment practices is as much a commitment to the Singapore core as it is a commitment to hiring based on merit. As pointed out by Federico Donato, president of the European Chamber of Commerce in Singapore: “When you want to win the Champion’s League, you have to have the best talent and you have to keep the best talent. And (for) the best talent, sometimes there’s no passport (and) no gender.”
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/sbf-trade-bodies-lead-way-on-fair-employment
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/29-trade-bodies-pledge-their-support
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/trade-groups-pledge-support-for-fair-employment-practices

S’pore has role to play in fostering global cooperation: Experts
Multilateralism is far from perfect, but in a world where challenges such as Covid-19 are increasingly global and trans-border in nature, Singapore has a role to play in helping the world rebuild itself and stem the fraying of global cooperation. This was the conclusion drawn by a group of panellists on the third day of the four-day Singapore Perspectives conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/spore-has-role-to-play-in-fostering-global-cooperation-experts

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand’s building in CBD struggles to find tenants
Three years ago, it was touted as a development that would rejuvenate Singapore’s central business district. But an upcoming building in the city-state could have fallen victim to the pandemic, which has upended the office market as work from home remains a long-term arrangement for some companies.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/capitalands-building-in-cbd-struggles-to-find-tenants

Pressure on CDL heir as he strives to salvage Sincere deal
Pressure is mounting on an heir to Singapore’s biggest family fortune as he seeks to salvage the property investment at the centre of an ambitious expansion into China. In the past month, Mr Sherman Kwek, the 45-year-old chief executive of City Developments (CDL), has had to contend with two more board member resignations, taking the total to three since October.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/pressure-on-cdl-heir-as-he-strives-to-salvage-sincere-deal

Frasers Hospitality Trust expects properties in countries with domestic travel market to recover faster
Frasers Hospitality Trust (FHT) is banking on its properties in countries with a predominant domestic travel market to recover faster than the others. This includes properties in Australia, Japan and the United Kingdom, said FHT, a stapled group comprising Frasers Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust and Frasers Hospitality Business Trust.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/frasers-hospitality-trust-expects-properties-in-countries-with-domestic-travel

Oxley Holdings teams up with Pavilion to develop Oxley Towers in Kuala Lumpur
Property developer Oxley Holdings’ Malaysian arm is partnering Malaysia-based Pavilion Project Management to develop Oxley Towers – a hotel, residential, retail and office complex – in Kuala Lumpur. The Malaysian arm, Oxley Rising, has entered into a strategic partnership with Pavilion Project Management, a member of property developer Pavilion Group.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oxley-holdings-teams-up-with-pavilion-to-develop-oxley-towers-in-kuala-lumpur

Did UOL underprice its Clavon launch?
When UOL Group sold 442 units at the Clavon condo along Clementi Avenue 1 by the end of the first day of its public launch, Dec 12, it achieved the best launch-day sale volume for a Singapore private housing project in 2020. The 442 units were sold at an average price of S$1,640 per square foot and accounted for nearly 70 per cent of the 99-year leasehold project’s total 640 units.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/did-uol-underprice-its-clavon-launch

OUE C-Reit divests 50% of OUE Bayfront to Allianz entity
The manager of OUE Commercial Real Estate Investment Trust (OUE C-Reit) said it is divesting a 50 per cent stake in the Reit’s OUE Bayfront property based on an agreed value of S$1.27 billion, or S$3,170 per square foot, to a special purpose vehicle (SPV) managed by Allianz Real Estate. Allianz separately announced the agreed transaction value is S$634 million subject to closing, which is slated for end-February 2021.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oue-c-reit-divests-50-of-oue-bayfront-to-allianz-entity
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/127b-deal-to-divest-50-of-oue-bayfront-to-allianz

First Reit unitholders vote in favour of proposed restructuring
Unitholders of First Reit on Tuesday voted in favour of the proposed restructuring of the Lippo Karawaci (LK) master lease agreements (MLAs), as well as the whitewash resolution waiving the right to receive a takeover offer from First Reit’s substantial shareholder OUE. At the Reit’s extraordinary general meeting held on Tuesday, unitholders representing some 91.33 million units, or 91.25 per cent, voted in favour of the first resolution related to the proposed restructuring. Unitholders representing some 90 million units, or 90.5 per cent, voted in favour of the whitewash resolution.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/first-reit-unitholders-vote-in-favour-of-proposed-restructuring

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Sustainable (or ESG) investing: Are we on the same page?
The world has seen a significant increase in investor interest in sustainable investing, also known as ESG (environmental, social and governance) investing. Asset managers have responded to this interest and demand with a proliferation of ESG-labelled investment products. As investors, we find ourselves inundated by numerous terminologies.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/sustainable-or-esg-investing-are-we-on-the-same-page

Employers should lead by example to boost Covid-19 vaccine take-up rate
Singapore – the first country in Asia to receive doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine last month – is now in the fourth week of its vaccination programme, a labourious but extremely important exercise to get as many of the 5.7 million-strong population inoculated against Covid-19 as possible. While the decision to get the free jab or not remains purely voluntary, the government has strongly encouraged everyone who is medically eligible to get vaccinated when their turn arrives. There will be enough doses for all citizens and long-term residents by the third quarter of this year.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/employers-should-lead-by-example-to-boost-covid-19-vaccine-take-up-rate

World Economic Forum to focus on rebuilding trust to overcome Covid-19
The year 2021 will be crucial and pivotal for the future of humankind, said World Economic Forum founder and executive chairman Klaus Schwab, calling on world leaders to focus on rebuilding trust and creating more resilient, inclusive and sustainable economic growth.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/world-economic-forum-to-focus-on-rebuilding-trust-to-overcome-covid-19-0

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

New local cluster formed; 8-year-old boy is latest case in para-vet group
The wife and the housemate of a 33-year-old Chinese national who tested positive for Covid-19 last Saturday have also tested positive for the infection, forming a new local cluster, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a statement last night. The two Chinese nationals are work permit holders who were identified as close contacts and put on quarantine last Friday. Both tested positive on Sunday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-local-cluster-formed-8-year-old-boy-is-latest-case-in-para-vet-group

See a doctor if you have a cough or cold, experts advise
They urge caution as para-vet cluster grows to 7; 4 did not seek treatment despite feeling unwell. If you have a cough, sore throat or runny nose, you should not assume it is just the common flu. It could mean you have Covid-19, medical experts said yesterday. And now is not the time to avoid seeing a doctor and getting a medical certificate (MC) if you are unwell, added infectious diseases specialist Leong Hoe Nam.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/see-a-doctor-if-you-have-a-cough-or-cold-experts-advise

Trial reopening of nightclubs and karaoke joints put off amid rise in community cases
The reopening of selected nightclubs and karaoke joints under a pilot programme has been postponed till further notice, amid a spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the community. This is to prevent the risk of further community transmission and formation of clusters in “high-risk settings such as nightclubs and karaoke outlets, which entail people coming into close contact for prolonged periods of time and in enclosed spaces”, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Tuesday. It was noted that some of the community cases were currently unlinked and under investigation.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/trial-reopening-of-nightclubs-and-karaoke-joints-put-off-amid-rise-in-community
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/pilot-to-reopen-karaoke-outlets-nightclubs-put-on-hold
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/pilot-plans-to-reopen-karaoke-outlets-nightclubs-on-hold

Global response to Covid-19 a series of failures: WHO panel
Geneva • Laying bare a year-long cascade of failures, a World Health Organisation (WHO) panel recounts in a damning report how governments and public health organisations worldwide responded slowly and ineffectively to the coronavirus, despite years of warnings. Released on Monday, the interim report, an early blueprint for reform, describes the faulty assumptions, ineffective planning and sluggish responses, including missteps by the WHO itself, that helped fuel a pandemic that has killed more than two million people.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/global-response-to-covid-19-a-series-of-failures-who-panel
*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