DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 22, 23 & 24 Aug 2020 (Sat, Sun & Mon)

Singapore Real Estate

Opportunities emerging for investment property deals; discounts up to 20% may be had, says consultant
Some good may come from the Covid-19 pandemic – real estate is being offered to investors at lower prices as Singapore plunges into the worst recession on record. Opportunities could emerge with 10-20 per cent discounts from the pre-Covid level a couple of quarters down the road, said Christine Li, Cushman & Wakefield head of business development services, Singapore & South-east Asia.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/opportunities-emerging-for-investment-property-deals-discounts-up-to-20-may-be-had-says

Tanjong Katong shophouse for sale at $8.8m base price
A prime freehold corner four-storey conservation shophouse at 240 Tanjong Katong Road is up for sale with a starting price of $8.8 million, marketing agent PropNex said yesterday. The 2,064 sq ft site is zoned “residential with commercial on the first storey”, with an allowable plot ratio of 3.0.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/tanjong-katong-shophouse-for-sale-at-88m-base-price

JL Family Office buys 65 Club Street for $15.7m
JL Family Office, set up by ARA Asset Management cofounder John Lim, has bought 65 Club Street for S$15.7 million from boutique high-end property agency JerryTan Residential. The 999-year leasehold corner conservation shophouse on an elevated cul-de-sac will be the new home of JL Family Office…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/jl-family-office-buys-65-club-street-for-157m

Work resumed at all BTO sites, except one pending approval
Construction works have resumed at 89 Build-To-Order (BTO) sites as of Monday, Minister for National Development Desmond Lee said yesterday. Only one of the 90 BTO sites is currently pending approval from the Building and Construction Authority (BCA)…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/work-resumed-at-all-bto-sites-except-one-pending-approval

Reits (August 22-23, 2020)
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/reits-august-22-23-2020

Singapore Economy

Nations must upkeep links amid challenges: Teo Chee Hean
The coronavirus pandemic has reinforced the importance of maintaining links among countries and peoples, Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean said yesterday. It has shown how such connections cannot be taken for granted…
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/sm-nations-must-upkeep-links-amid-challenges

Trade pacts haven’t jeopardised jobs for S’poreans: Heng
Singapore’s bilateral agreements with other countries have not jeopardised job opportunities for its citizens, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday. In fact, they have opened doors to better jobs.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/manpower/trade-pacts-havent-jeopardised-jobs-for-sporeans-heng
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/bilateral-agreements-have-not-jeopardised-employment-opportunities-for

Unilateral move to welcome visitors aimed at reviving business
Singapore’s unilateral move to welcome visitors from Brunei and New Zealand is an invitation to the world to bring business back to Singapore, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said at a media doorstop on Friday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/unilateral-move-to-welcome-visitors-aimed-at-reviving-business
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/unilateral-reopening-of-borders-a-small-cautious-step-to-revive-changi-ong

Singapore lifting travel curbs for Brunei, NZ; reducing SHN period for mainland China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Australia excluding Victoria
Singapore is lifting travel restrictions for visitors from Brunei and New Zealand, while reducing the stay-home notice (SHN) period for travellers from low-risk countries/regions. Prior to travelling to Singapore, visitors from Brunei and New Zealand will need to apply for an Air Travel Pass (ATP) between seven and 30 days before their intended date of entry into Singapore.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-lifting-travel-curbs-for-brunei-nz-reducing-shn-period-for-mainland
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/singapore-eases-some-border-control-measures
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/singapore-to-allow-general-travel-to-brunei-new-zealand-from-sept

Opened border brings sweet relief for Singapore businesses as more Malaysians return to work
Hundreds of Malaysians – from factory workers to salesmen, electricians, painters and carpenters – have crossed the Causeway to Singapore for work since last Monday. The inflow has come as a relief for many businesses which lost their key staff when the border was closed on March 18.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/opened-border-brings-sweet-relief

Companies’ Brief

Fragrance Group buys back some notes due 2021
Fragrance Group has repurchased S$500,000 in notes due April 2021, which represent 0.4 per cent of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes. Some S$120.25 million of the notes, which have a coupon rate of 6.125 per cent, were outstanding following previous repurchases.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/fragrance-group-buys-back-some-notes-due-2021-0

Yanlord JV clinches site in Shanghai Pudong New District for 4.5b yuan
A joint venture (JV) of Yanlord Land Group has acquired a low-density prime residential development site in Kangqiao, Pudong New District of Shanghai for 4.5 billion yuan (S$0.89 billion). Property developer Yanlord holds a 51 per cent stake in the JV, and its partner, Huafa Industrial Co Ltd Zhuhai holds the rest.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/yanlord-jv-clinches-site-in-shanghai-pudong-new-district-for-45b-yuan

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Go Local: The vaccine for the leisure and hospitality industry
“The magic down there is so strong,” go the lyrics of a Four Tops hit, but Covid-19 has put paid to the tourism allure of Singapore and the magic is no more until a cure is found for the coronavirus. With the global economy hitting the brakes, unemployment has soared and consumer spending nosedived in tandem.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/go-local-the-vaccine-for-the-leisure-and-hospitality-industry-0

A welcome nature park network
Singapore’s second nature park network, in the northern coastal areas, attests to the need to expand the country’s ecological space and help balance the effects of urbanisation on the physical and mental well-being of citizens. Singaporeans should use the park network so as to make the project socially worthwhile.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/a-welcome-nature-park-network

3 in 4 small firms in S’pore satisfied with relief aid: Poll}
About three in four small companies in Singapore, or 72 per cent, are satisfied with the relief measures rolled out by the Government to help them cope with the economic fallout due to Covid-19, according to a survey out today.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/3-in-4-small-firms-in-spore-satisfied-with-relief-aid-poll

More Singapore firms set to adopt fintech to boost efficiency: CPA poll
About 73 per cent of Singapore businesses expect to use at least one fintech product or service in the next 12 months, an increase from the 67 per cent that used fintech in the past 12 months. This comes as businesses are looking to improve their operational efficiencies, according to findings from a new regional survey by global professional accounting body CPA Australia.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/technology/more-singapore-firms-set-to-adopt-fintech-to-boost-efficiency-cpa-poll

The pandemic performance review
Employee reviews, typically a delicate matter, have become even trickier to manage amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. With employees working from home on an unprecedented scale and the crisis rendering current business goals moot, companies are being forced to rethink how they assess performance.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/brunch/the-pandemic-performance-review

Covid-19: An unexpected catalyst for a lower carbon world
Digitalisation is a trend that we believe is aligned to a sustainable economy, and while the move towards a digital economy has been an important theme for the last few years, the Covid-19 pandemic has significantly accelerated the transition.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/covid-19-an-unexpected-catalyst-for-a-lower-carbon-world
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/global-warming-could-unlock-carbon-in-tropical-soil

Singapore Budget 2020

Latest aid measures subject to scrutiny in Parliament: Indranee
The recent slew of Covid-19 measures were announced via broadcast to give businesses and workers clarity on the Government’s plans to support them before the opening of Parliament, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah said in a Facebook post yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/latest-aid-measures-subject-to-scrutiny-in-parliament-indranee

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

New Covid-19 cluster in Kaki Bukit dormitory
A new cluster in a dormitory in Kaki Bukit was announced by the Ministry of Health (MOH) yesterday. One of the newly confirmed Covid-19 cases was linked to four previously confirmed cases to form a new cluster at Homestay Lodge at 39 Kaki Bukit Avenue 3.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-covid-19-cluster-in-kaki-bukit-dormitory

87 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, including 1 in community
[Singapore] There were 87 new coronavirus cases confirmed as of Sunday afternoon, taking Singapore’s total to 56,353. They included one community case who is a workpass holder and 13 imported cases who had all been placed on stay-home notices upon arrival in Singapore.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/87-new-covid-19-cases-in-singapore-including-1-in-community

Camera shop employee among five unlinked community cases
A 61-year-old Singaporean man who went to work at SLR Revolution, a camera shop in Excelsior Shopping Centre, is among five unlinked Covid-19 community cases reported by the Health Ministry yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/camera-shop-employee-among-five-unlinked-community-cases

280 workers’ approval rescinded for failing to go for routine Covid-19 testing
Employers have been urged to register workers staying in dormitories, among others, for rostered routine testing, with 102,000 workers yet to be scheduled for their swabs despite just two weeks left to take the test.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/280-workers-approval-rescinded-for-failing-to-go-for-routine-testing

Coronavirus: F&B outlets must play recorded music softly
Recorded music at food and beverage (F&B) outlets can only be played softly in the background so patrons do not have to raise their voices to be heard, Education Minister Lawrence Wong said at a virtual press conference yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/fb-outlets-must-play-recorded-music-softly

Lucky Plaza and Peninsula Plaza to have odd-even entry restrictions on weekends
Entry into shopping malls Lucky Plaza and Peninsula Plaza on weekends will soon only be allowed based on the last digit of a visitor’s identity card or foreign identification card, as part of measures to limit crowds. From Aug 29, those with an even last digit on their cards can visit these malls only on even dates, while those with an odd last digit can visit only on odd dates.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/lucky-plaza-and-peninsula-plaza-to-have-odd-even-entry-restrictions-on-weekends

Singapore researchers discover new Covid-19 variant which causes milder infections
Researchers in Singapore have discovered a new variant of Covid-19 that causes less severe infections, according to a new study in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet. This could provide new avenues for vaccine and therapeutic development, experts say.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-researchers-discover-new-covid-19-variant-which-causes-milder-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/spore-scientists-find-milder-variant-of-covid-19-virus

Coronavirus: Supply of vaccine likely to be limited when made available in Singapore
When a coronavirus vaccine is finally produced, it is not likely to be available in large quantities, so the authorities may have to prioritise its distribution, the Health Ministry’s director of medical services Kenneth Mak said yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/moh-supply-of-vaccine-likely-to-be-limited-when-made-available

WHO hopes pandemic will end in under 2 years
Geneva • The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it hopes the planet will be rid of the coronavirus pandemic in less than two years – faster than it took for the Spanish flu. “We hope to finish this pandemic before less than two years,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters on Friday in Geneva, hours before the global death toll from Covid-19 topped 800,000.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/who-hopes-pandemic-will-end-in-under-2-years

Vaccine nationalism is not the way
World Health Organisation (WHO) director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issued an apposite warning to nations that it would be impossible to rebuild the global economy without vaccinating the planet’s highest-risk populations simultaneously.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/vaccine-nationalism-is-not-the-way-
*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