DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 24th August 2017

Top Story

Sim Lian plans over 2,000 units at Tampines site
Sim Lian plans to develop a condo with more than 2,000 units on the Tampines Court site which has been awarded to it for S$970 million. At S$970 million, this is the second-largest collective sale in dollar quantum after Farrer Court, which went for S$1.3388 billion back in 2007. Inclusive of Tampines Court, eight collective sales totalling S$3.48 billion have been inked so far this year, surpassing the three deals worth a tad over S$1 billion for the whole of 2016, based on JLL’s figures.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/sim-lian-plans-over-2000-units-at-tampines-site
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/tampines-court-sold-en-bloc-for-970m?login=true
http://www.todayonline.com/business/property/tampines-court-sold-biggest-en-bloc-sale-decade

Singapore Economy

Consumer prices rise 0.6%, below economist expectations
Inflation inched up last month on the back of higher water tariffs and pricier retail items like clothing and household goods. But the tepid job market and subdued economic environment are expected to keep prices in check for the rest of the year. The consumer price index (CPI) – the main measure of inflation – edged up 0.6 per cent last month compared with July last year, according to Department of Statistics data released yesterday. This was up from 0.5 per cent in June and slightly below economist expectations of 0.7 per cent.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/consumer-price-index-for-july-rises-06
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-headline-inflation-rises-to-06-in-july-on-higher-water-tariffs-pricier
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/infographics/singapore-inflation-creeps-up-in-july
http://www.todayonline.com/business/higher-retail-water-tariffs-push-july-consumer-prices

Singapore Real Estate

Almost 90% of Asia-Pac retailers betting on click-and-collect: study
The entry of Alibaba, through its stake in Lazada, and Amazon’s entry in Singapore, have given online shopping a new impetus in the Asia-Pacific region and traditional retailers are stepping up to stay relevant. According to a recent study, 88 per cent of Asia-Pacific retailers plan to implement click-and-collect systems – buy online and pick up in store – by 2021.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/technology/almost-90-of-asia-pac-retailers-betting-on-click-and-collect-study

Reit Association of Singapore appoints Nupur Joshi as new CEO
The Reit Association of Singapore (Reitas) has appointed Nupur Joshi as its new chief executive officer. Assuming the role from Sonny Tan, Ms Joshi will helm Reitas together with the executive committee led by Reitas president Chua Tiow Chye. Mr Chua, who is also deputy group CEO of Mapletree Investments, thanked Mr Tan for his contributions and hard work as the first CEO of the association.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/reit-association-of-singapore-appoints-nupur-joshi-as-new-ceo

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand, Alibaba raise bar on omni-channel retail model
South-east Asia’s real estate giant and Singapore’s very own CapitaLand appears ready to crank things up to grab a slice of the action in the booming e-commerce retail space. And what better way to meld “bricks with clicks” than to join hands with two leading e-commerce players – Alibaba and Lazada – to position itself as an “omni-channel” retail landlord? In China, CapitaLand inked an agreement to manage Alibaba Shanghai Center – the e-commerce giant’s new headquarters in Shanghai, which will comprise four office towers and a retail podium – to “reinvent modern retail”.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/consumer/capitaland-alibaba-raise-bar-on-omni-channel-retail-model
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/capitaland-to-manage-alibabas-new-shanghai-hq

Ascendas-Singbridge, GIC acquire land in India to develop IT park
Ascendas-Singbridge Group and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC announced the acquisition of a 16-acre (6.5-hectare) land parcel in Pune, a sprawling city in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. This acquisition, at an undisclosed sum, marks the second investment under the Ascendas India Growth Programme (AIGP), in which GIC is a principal investor along with Ascendas-Singbridge.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ascendas-singbridge-gic-acquire-land-in-india-to-develop-it-park
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/gic-ascendas-singbridge-buy-plot-in-india-for-it-park

Allianz joins Keppel to buy Shanghai’s Hongkou SOHO
Germany-based insurer and asset manager Allianz has partnered Singapore’s Keppel Group to acquire an office and retail mixed-used development, Hongkou SOHO in Shanghai, China, for US$525 million. The deal, undertaken through Allianz Group’s US$53 billion real estate investment and asset manager Allianz Real Estate, is part of its strategy to allocate around 5 per cent of its global real estate portfolio to the Asia-Pacific region.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/allianz-joins-keppel-to-buy-shanghais-hongkou-soho
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/allianz-keppel-co-invest-716m-to-buy-china-property

SIC rules in favour of UOL on certain trades by UOBAM
UOL Group Limited said it has alerted the Securities Industry Council of Singapore (SIC) of certain trades on its shares by UOB Asset Management Ltd (UOBAM), which resulted in a breach of condition under an application to SIC for a whitewash waiver. The application to SIC was to waive Haw Par Corporation’s obligation to make a mandatory offer for UOL arising from a share swap agreement in June.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sic-rules-in-favour-of-uol-on-certain-trades-by-uobam

Metro in talks to sell its indirect 30% stake in Nanchang Top Spring
Metro Holdings said that it is in talks with H-Change Real Estate Group Ltd on a potential disposal of its indirect 30 per cent interest in a Chinese company called Nanchang Top Spring. No legally binding agreement has been inked yet by Metro Shanghai (HQ) Pte Ltd, the group’s subsidiary that owns a direct 30 per cent stake in Nanchang Top Spring.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/metro-in-talks-to-sell-its-indirect-30-stake-in-nanchang-top-spring

Divestment gain boosts IHH Healthcare’s Q2
Sustained growth in both inpatient admissions and average revenue per admission across all home markets – Malaysia, Singapore, Turkey and India – as well as a one-off gain from the divestment of the stake in Apollo Hospitals lifted the second-quarter results for IHH Healthcare Bhd.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/divestment-gain-boosts-ihh-healthcares-q2
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/one-off-gain-gives-ihh-q2-profit-a-booster-shot

Boustead Projects unit secures design-and-build contract from Yusen Logistics
Real estate solutions specialist Boustead Projects Limited announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Boustead Projects E&C Pte Ltd has secured a design-and-build contract from Yusen Logistics (Singapore) Pte Ltd. The contract is for the redevelopment of an existing logistics facility in Tuas, Singapore. The redevelopment, which is set to be completed by Q4 2018, will mainly involve the addition of a two-floor ramp-up warehouse which will maximise the plot ratio of the existing logistics facility.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/boustead-projects-unit-secures-design-and-build-contract-from-yusen-logistics

Isoteam posts 67% drop in Q4 profit
Isoteam reported a 67 per cent drop in net profit to S$1.4 million for the fourth quarter ended June from S$4.1 million a year ago. Revenue came in lower by 27 per cent to S$22 million with revenue contribution across its business segments – repairs and redecoration, additional and alteration, coating and painting and others – all posting declines. Accordingly, earnings per share fell to 0.48 Singapore cent versus 1.44 Singapore cents a year ago.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/isoteam-posts-67-drop-in-q4-profit

Views, Reviews & Forum

Active lifestyles begin with a well-designed city
Education and health screenings make up a large part of public health policy (Beating diabetes starts with small steps: PM Lee; Aug 21). But there is one factor which has an impact on our health, but has been overlooked – how our cities are designed. When cities are built with motorists in mind, the lifestyle of the population tends to be more sedentary.
http://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/active-lifestyles-begin-with-a-well-designed-city

Millennials eschew traditional housing for co-living in microflats
Millennials priced out of London’s traditional housing market are opting to rent tiny apartments in so-called “co-living” developments, a fast-growing area that private investors and venture capital are eager to tap into. Investors have put more than £1 billion (S$1.7 billion) into “microflats”, where residents share facilities such as dining areas, lounges, work spaces, laundry rooms and gyms, and the investors are looking to do more.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/millennials-eschew-traditional-housing-for-co-living-in-microflats