DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 30 Nov, 1 & 2 Dec 2019

Singapore Real Estate

Well-located One Holland Village Residences draws healthy sales
A consortium comprising Far East Organization, Sekisui House and Sino Group has sold 92 units at One Holland Village Residences. These units were sold between Nov 21, when preview sales at the 296-unit project began, and 6 pm on Dec 1. The District 10 project’s official launch was held on Saturday, Nov 30.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/well-located-one-holland-village-residences-draws-healthy-sales
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/buyers-take-up-92-of-the-296-units-at-one-holland-village-residences

Record M&A in Singapore property managers as investors pile in
[Singapore] Underpinned by a global hunt for yield, Singapore’s real estate investment trusts are having a bumper year in deal-making as well as fundraising. The mantra that bigger is better will continue to drive capital market activity in the sector, analysts say. Singapore-listed Reits have forked out US$16.9 billion to purchase assets this year, already triple the previous peak reached in 2014. The sector has also raised a…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/record-ma-in-singapore-property-managers-as-investors-pile-in
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/singapore-reits-see-record-year-of-ma-deals-as-investors-pile-in

Iskandar still having hangover from residential market overhang
With some Singapore-listed companies reeling from the impact of a lacklustre property market in Johor, the question arises whether plans by the Johor government to lower the minimum purchase threshold for foreigners could help to move the needle. While the outlook for Iskandar Malaysia is generally expected to remain subdued next year, there could be a short-term lift for the high-rise residential market as the…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/iskandar-still-having-hangover-from-residential-market-overhang-0

Singapore Economy

Singapore notches record Q3 tourist arrivals of 4.9m
Singapore tourist arrivals rose to an all-time quarterly high for the July to September period this year, driven by higher Chinese demand. However, local tour agencies have yet to see corresponding gains in their businesses from the influx, in part due to changing consumer preferences. According to data available on the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) website, Singapore welcomed the highest number of international…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-notches-record-q3-tourist-arrivals-of-49m

Companies’ Brief

Mapletree targets 12% IRR for Australia office fund
Mapletree Investments has successfully closed a new Australian private commercial trust at about A$654 million (S$608 million) in total fund equity. MASCOT Private Trust (MASCOT) is fully invested at closing and owns 10 Grade A office assets that are strategically located in key Australian gateway cities – Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth – with a total asset value of about A$1.4 billion. The properties…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/mapletree-targets-12-irr-for-australia-office-fund

FLT and FCOT propose S$1.58b merger, eye 50% stake in UK business park
A merger costing S$1.58 billion between Frasers Logistics & Industrial Trust (FLT) and Frasers Commercial Trust (FCOT) has been proposed by the managers of both real estate investment trusts (Reits). The proposed merger will be by way of a trust scheme of arrangement, which sees FLT acquiring all units of FCOT using a combination of cash and new units in FLT.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/flt-and-fcot-propose-s158b-merger-eye-50-stake-in-uk-business-park
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/frasers-logistics-frasers-commercial-announce-154b-merger-as-reit

Keppel Reit open to more development exposure
Keppel Reit Management’s chief executive, Paul Tham, is open to stepping up development activity for the trust as part of its ongoing strategy to boost yields. The trust – which owns about S$8 billion of CBD Grade A office properties in Singapore, Australia and South Korea – has in the past teamed up with its joint-venture partners in Australia for development projects.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-reit-open-to-more-development-exposure

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Forum: Do we need more shopping malls and apartments?
I am flummoxed by the news of the upcoming mixed-use development One Holland Village in Holland Drive (One Holland Village homes to open for sale on Saturday, Nov 28). Do we need another shopping centre when so many existing shopping malls have morphed into ghost malls? Take the pride of yesteryears – Centrepoint and Far East Plaza, to name two. Tenants are quitting, footfall is quickly vanishing and shops…
https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/do-we-need-more-shopping-malls-and-apartments