DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 25th, 26th and 27th May 2019

Singapore Real Estate

Frasers Property’s Rivière starts at S$2,580 psf; preview opens today
Frasers Property Singapore will open its latest project, luxury residential development Rivière, for preview on Saturday. The development, located on Jiak Kim Street alongside the refurbished former premises of popular nightclub Zouk, will have 455 units spread across two 36-storey towers.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/frasers-propertys-rivi%C3%A8re-starts-at-s2580-psf-preview-opens-today
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/two-luxury-residential-towers-coming-up-next-to-former-zouk-site

Property buyers ‘hit by scammers posing as their lawyers’
Scammers are targeting property buyers by impersonating their lawyers handling the transactions – and then fraudulently asking for funds to be transferred to them. Two law firms recently encountered such “serious and alarming” scams in quick succession, one of which had a client who fell for the ruse and suffered unspecified but significant losses, the Law Society said at a press conference on Friday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/consumer/property-buyers-hit-by-scammers-posing-as-their-lawyers
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/law-society-warns-scammers-impersonating-lawyers-cheat-property-buyers

Singapore business body pushing for fair rent terms from private landlords
The Singapore Business Federation (SBF) is in the midst of a last big push to get private landlords to support and adopt the tenets outlined by the Fair Tenancy Framework even as they look to introduce more best practices. These include being more upfront about occupancy costs and limiting the amount of data tenants share, said Cynthia Phua, who chairs the Rental Practice Working Group under the SBF.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/singapore-business-body-pushing-for-fair-rent-terms-from-private-landlords

Living among tourists: Short-term home rentals thriving at People’s Park Centre
Amid the hustle and bustle at People’s Park Centre, tourists dragging large pieces of luggage into and out of lifts to the 120 apartments that sit above the well-known Chinatown shopping landmark are a common sight. Even though short-term stays of fewer than three months in private homes remain an offence under the Planning Act and the authorities have said they intend to step up enforcement…
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/living-among-tourists

Singapore Economy

Singapore output reverses slide in April, but sustained upturn unlikely
Singapore’s manufacturing output edged back into growth territory in April, up 0.1 per cent year-on-year, contrary to economists’ expectations of a 3.5 per cent fall, and improving from March’s revised figure of a 4.3 per cent contraction. But excluding the volatile biomedical manufacturing cluster, output was actually down 2.1 per cent, according to Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB)….
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-output-reverses-slide-in-april-but-sustained-upturn-unlikely
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/spore-factory-output-inches-up-01-in-april
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/manufacturing-april-output-edb-11561372

Singapore manufacturers not hit by Huawei ban but brace for tech war
Singapore manufacturers that produce parts for the tech sector said that they are not directly hit by the recent developments surrounding Huawei, even as they feel the heat with the trade war shaping up to become a tech war. Nevertheless, economists warned that the effects will start trickling down to local players, with the entire tech industry expected to feel the fallout as the supply chain gets further disrupted.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-manufacturers-not-hit-by-huawei-ban-but-brace-for-tech-war

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand to sell Shanghai property; earmarks 2nd property for sale
CapitaLand is targeting to divest two Shanghai office properties and inject them into its maiden discretionary real estate equity fund, CapitaLand Asia Partners I (CAP I). It has agreed to sell its interest in companies that own Innov Center, which consists of three office buildings and a two-storey retail podium with a total gross floor area (GFA) of 80,701 square metres (sq m), at a price that takes into account an agreed property value of 3.1 billion yuan (about S$621 million).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capitaland-to-sell-shanghai-property-earmarks-2nd-property-for-sale
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/capitaland-to-inject-shanghai-office-projects-into-equity-fund

New CEO for the managers of two Frasers Hospitality trusts
From July 1, Colin Low will succeed Eu Chin Fen as chief executive officer of Frasers Hospitality Asset Management (FHAM) and Frasers Hospitality Trust Management (FHTM). FHAM is the manager of Frasers Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust and FHTM is the trustee-manager of Frasers Hospitality Business Trust.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/new-ceo-for-the-managers-of-two-frasers-hospitality-trusts

Eagle Hospitality Trust’s IPO falls 6.4% on debut
The optimistic scenario painted by the manager for Eagle Hospitality Trust (EHT) failed to pan out when the trust slumped on its mainboard debut on Friday. The counter shed 6.4 per cent from its initial public offering (IPO) price to close at US$0.73 on its first day of trading.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/eagle-hospitality-trusts-ipo-falls-64-on-debut
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/eagle-hospitality-trust-units-fall-below-ipo-price-on-debut

Short rental cycles resulting in ‘hit-and-run’ business practices, says IndoChine boss
Michael Ma, founder of the IndoChine group of hotels, eateries and clubs, has been vocal about his dismay at the decision made by Gardens by the Bay not to renew the IndoChine Supertree lease. The terms on the lease agreement signed was what is known in the industry as “three-plus-three”. IndoChine was given an initial lease of three years in 2012, which was then renewed for another three years in 2015.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/short-rental-cycles-resulting-in-hit-and-run-business-practices-says-indochine

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Amid the China-US crossfire
Chia Ngiang Hong, President, Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (REDAS)
Like all other businesses, we need to watch closely and prepare ourselves to deal with the impending challenges and unforeseen situations arising from the ongoing trade tensions, particularly so if the conflict is prolonged. Although trade-dependent economies like Singapore could benefit to some degree from trade diversion, a full-blown trade war can weigh heavily on the economy, market sentiment and confidence.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/views-from-the-top/amid-the-china-us-crossfire

Real rates likely to stay negative for prolonged time
Mr Didier Rabattu is a limited partner of the Lombard Odier Group. Before joining the group in 2011, he was a partner at Amber Capital and portfolio manager of a fund that focused on agriculture and the consumer and retail sectors. Previously, he was a partner at Talaris Capital and co-managed a global fund from 2007 to 2009 and worked at Deutsche Bank as global co-manager of the consumer/retail sectors in the investment bank from 1995 to 2006.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/real-rates-likely-to-stay-negative-for-prolonged-time

What is property tax?
Well recognised as one of the most sustainable forms of wealth tax to generate revenue for a government, property tax is a levy on ownership of any immovable property, including land. The onus of payment is on the person who has a legal or beneficial interest in the property. The tax is payable whether the property is occupied by the owner, rented out or left vacant.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/what-is-property-tax

Two new MRT stations for North-South Line; extended rail system may link Woodlands to Marina East
Two MRT stations will open in Sungei Kadut and Brickland to serve Singapore’s north-west by the mid-2030s, part of an extended rail system that may even include a new train line to connect Woodlands to Marina East through Sengkang. These are among the key transport enhancements revealed yesterday in the Land Transport Master Plan (LTMP) 2040…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/two-new-mrt-stations-for-north-south-line
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/new-mrt-stations-and-line-extensions-to-offer-better-connectivity
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/new-mrt-stations-lines-lta-master-plan-11564622
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/lta-master-plan-transport-new-rail-line-11564618
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/new-mrt-stations-tel-extension-and-possible-new-rail-line-lta-2040-blueprint
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/at-a-glance-key-updates-to-mrt-bus-network-and-more-2040-master-plan
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/new-mrt-line-northeast-singapore-will-benefit-underserved-areas-analysts

Dismount zones in housing estates being explored for PMDs, bikes
Personal mobility devices (PMDs) and bicycles could be banned from accident-prone zones within housing estates, with the authorities hoping to resolve the issues surrounding such a move as soon as possible, Senior Minister of State for Transport Lam Pin Min said yesterday. Town councils are discussing with the Government the possibility of identifying such zones and standardising…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/dismount-zones-being-explored-for-pmds-bikes

Smart building
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/infographics/smart-building