DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 26 March 2021 (Fri)

Singapore Real Estate

Three strata commercial units in CBD up for sale via expression of interest
Three strata-titled commercial units in GB Building are up for sale via expression of interest. The building is located at 143 Cecil Street in the central business district (CBD). The units, which have a total strata area of 31,086 square feet (sq ft), can be purchased individually or as a portfolio, exclusive marketing agent Knight Frank said on Thursday. It declined to name the seller and the price of the portfolio.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/three-strata-commercial-units-in-cbd-up-for-sale-via-expression-of-interest

On the Singapore market: CBD space, shophouses, condominium retail shops
The Singapore property market is flush with activity this week, with spaces in the central business district (CBD), Little India, Kampong Glam and Eunos up for sale. From heritage buildings and commercial properties to retail clusters, here are some spaces on the market this week:
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/on-the-singapore-market-cbd-space-shophouses-condominium-retail-shops

Are buyers overpaying for freehold properties?
Private freehold lands are scarce in Singapore, where more than 80 per cent of the lands are state-owned. The government sells state lands with a finite tenure of 99 years to private developers for residential development purposes. The lands, together with any buildings and structures built on the lands, will be returned to the state at the end of the lease. In highly urbanised Singapore, many buildings that are still structurally sound are redeveloped before the 99-year lease tenure.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/are-buyers-overpaying-for-freehold-properties

CDL ‘confident’ about attaining master-developer status
City Developments Limited (CDL) has set its sights on becoming a master developer in Singapore, even as it focuses on replenishing its land bank to ensure a stable launch pipeline. The property group, which builds up its land bank by taking part in collective-sale tenders and the government land sales programme, aims to be the one developer picked to plan and build an entire precinct or district instead of individual, smaller parcels.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/cdl-confident-about-attaining-master-developer-status

Room for growth in private home sales if foreign buyers return
While Housing Board upgraders have helped keep new private home sales buoyant, the possible return of foreign buyers amid vaccine roll-outs and more open borders could fire up the market, a City Developments (CDL) official said yesterday. Group general manager Chia Ngiang Hong told a briefing that developers had sold about 23,000 units during the 2013 to 2014 peak, while 9,982 units were transacted last year and 9,912 in 2019.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/room-for-growth-in-private-home-sales-if-foreign-buyers-return

All 20 units of luxury development sold
Swire Properties of Hong Kong announced on Thursday night that it has sold all 20 units at its completed freehold luxury apartment development, Eden, at 2 Draycott Park for S$293 million. (see amendment note) The price works out to S$4,827 per square foot. All 20 apartments in the project are four-bedroom units of over 3,000 sq ft each. Every unit occupies an entire floor. The sale will be completed by May 26, 2021, subject to the fulfilment of the purchase agreement, Swire said.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/all-20-units-of-luxury-development-sold
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/all-20-units-of-swires-luxury-condo-eden-in-draycott-park-sold-for-300m

Singapore Economy

When land travel with Singapore resumes, Malaysian workers may find their jobs gone
Prior to Covid-19, over 350,000 travellers crossed the land border daily between Singapore and Malaysia, making it the busiest land checkpoint in the world. Many were Malaysians, commuting to work in Singapore. They performed laborious roles as food servers, cleaners and builders. They also provided essential services, like in healthcare and public transport. All of that came to a halt when the border closed in March last year.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/when-land-travel-with-singapore-resumes-malaysian-workers-may-find-their-jobs

Companies’ Brief

Soilbuild Reit hearing adjourned to March 30 after objection from unitholder
THE court hearing on the application to sanction Soilbuild Business Space Reit’s (Soilbuild Reit) trust scheme of arrangement has been adjourned to March 30, 9am. This came after a Soilbuild Reit unitholder opposed the trust scheme sanction application on the ground that the “one-proxy rule”, which allows for the appointment of only one proxy per unitholder, should not have been used for the trust scheme meeting.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/soilbuild-reit-hearing-adjourned-to-march-30-after-objection-from-unitholder

Sabana Reit directors quit after some refuse to endorse them
Two independent non-executive directors of Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana Reit) have resigned following the refusal of “certain unit holders” to endorse their appointments, the Reit’s manager said on Wednesday night. The announcements did not name the unit holders, but noted that they hold about 12 per cent of the Reit’s total units. Earlier this month, minority investors Quarz Capital Management and Black Crane Capital had said in an open letter that they would not endorse the proposed directors.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/sabana-reit-directors-quit-after-some-refuse-to-endorse-them

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Further steps in opening up economy
With no community spread of Covid-19 infections over the last two weeks, the easing of restrictions, starting next month, on the proportion of employees that will be permitted to return to workplaces and on crowd sizes for events and functions will be widely welcomed. It amounts to a carefully calibrated further step towards re-opening the economy, enabling a return to greater normalcy in work arrangements and social life – although it will still fall short of the pre-Covid-19 status quo ante.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/further-steps-in-opening-up-economy

Co-living startup Hmlet hit by senior management exodus
Hmlet’s chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder Yoan Kamalski has stepped down after five years at the helm, the latest in a series of departures by top management. The co-living startup has also lost its chief technology officer (CTO) and chief financial officer (CFO), among a few other top executives, BT understands. Its chief technology officer Pramodh Rai recently resigned after spending about 1.5 years building up the co-living startup’s tech infrastructure, and will leave Hmlet in June. He will continue to play an advisory role in the startup.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/co-living-startup-hmlet-hit-by-senior-management-exodus

Clifford Capital to embrace more new economy, green projects
Infrastructure spending in Asia has picked up in recent months, with the strongest deal flow in new economy projects as well as green and renewable energy due to changes in demand, supply chains, environment, social and governance (ESG) priorities and technologies. In an interview with The Business Times, Audra Low, the CEO of Temasek-backed Clifford Capital, said the company’s core mandate of helping Singapore-based companies pursue infrastructure, shipping and offshore marine projects across the globe remains unaffected by Covid-19.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/leadership-management/clifford-capital-to-embrace-more-new-economy-green-projects

S’pore could see supply disruption, may need to tap current inventories
Supplies to Singapore and the region may be temporarily disrupted, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said yesterday, after one of the world’s largest container ships got stuck in the Suez Canal, blocking traffic in the critical waterway. Should supplies get disrupted, some drawdown on existing inventories will become necessary, he wrote in a Facebook post. The alternative is for ships coming from Europe and the Middle East to sail around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa to get to Asia, he added.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/spore-could-see-supply-disruption-may-need-to-tap-current-inventories

Suez Canal container ship incident a reminder of global trade’s vulnerabilities
Singapore – Just when global sea shipments seem to be starting to flow again, an event at the key Suez Canal literally and figuratively threatens to put a choke-hold on global trade flows. Fortunately, work is under way to free the 220,000-tonne Ever Given container ship, which became stuck on both sides of the canal after heavy winds forced it to drift sideways, effectively blocking the 205m-wide waterway.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/container-ship-incident-a-reminder-of-global-trades-vulnerabilities

Singapore Budget 2021

Employers to get over S$3b in wage subsidies payouts from end-March
From March 30, more than 150,000 employers will receive payouts of over S$3 billion under the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) of wage subsidies. The payment will benefit over two million local employees. Employers who have made mandatory Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions for their local employees for the months of September to December 2020 by the stipulated deadlines will qualify to receive the payout, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) in a joint statement on Thursday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-budget-2021/employers-to-get-over-s3b-in-wage-subsidies-payouts-from
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/150000-employers-to-get-3b-in-jobs-support-payouts

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Last Covid-19 cluster closed; all 17 new cases imported
The last remaining local cluster of Covid-19 infections has closed, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said last night. “As there have been no more cases linked to the Case 60,102 cluster for the past two incubation periods (28 days), the cluster has now closed. There are currently no open clusters of infections,” it said. Case 60,102 refers to the 41-year-old Singaporean cabin crew member with Singapore Airlines who tested positive for the coronavirus on Feb 9.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/last-covid-19-cluster-closed-all-17-new-cases-imported

Limit of eight applies to all social, recreational gatherings at work
More restrictions are to be eased as Singapore ramps up its vaccination programme. From April 5, up to 75 per cent of staff can return to the workplace at any one time, up from the current 50 per cent. Working from home will no longer be the default, as workplaces move towards a more flexible and hybrid way of working. More people will also be allowed to attend some events from April 24, if pre-event testing is in place for these activities. Specifically, for wedding receptions, the limit will be increased from 100 to 250 attendees, in zones of up to 50 people each.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/limit-of-eight-applies-to-all-social-recreational-gatherings-at-work

80% of education staff invited for jabs have made booking
There has been an overwhelmingly positive response from staff in education institutions who have been invited to get the Covid-19 vaccine. Around 80 per cent of the 50,000 employees contacted early this month have made appointments for a jab, said Education Minister Lawrence Wong, who added that some have already received their first shot.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/80-of-education-staff-invited-for-jabs-have-made-booking
*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