DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 27 August 2021 (Fri)

Singapore Real Estate

Selangor Dredging looks to sell conserved freehold building at guide price of S$18.9m
With Jui Residences recently sold out, Malaysian developer Selangor Dredging Berhad (SDB) is putting a conserved freehold commercial building, which is integrated with the residential development, up for sale at an indicative price tag of S$18.9 million.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/selangor-dredging-looks-to-sell-conserved-freehold-building-at-guide-price-of-s189m

Firmus Capital acquires Le Quest Mall in Bukit Batok
Firmus Capital has acquired Le Quest Mall, a single-storey commercial property at Bukit Batok Street 41. The property is the retail component of private mixed-residential development Le Quest. The move comes just a month after the private equity real estate investment manager leased a building in Toa Payoh Lorong 8 to electric car maker Tesla.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/firmus-capital-acquires-le-quest-mall-in-bukit-batok-0

Two 999-year shophouses in Boat Quay, Club Street up for sale
Two 999-year shophouses located in Boat Quay and Club Street have been put on the market via expression of interest (EOI), marketing agents CBRE and PropNex said on Thursday. Both properties are zoned for commercial use, which means foreigners are eligible to purchase and there would be no additional buyer’s stamp duty.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/two-999-year-shophouses-in-boat-quay-club-street-up-for-sale

Five BTO projects face delays, two public projects affected as contractor Greatearth goes bust
Five ongoing Build-To-Order (BTO) housing projects will be delayed and two public projects face possible hold-ups as the main contractor for these sites has gone bust. This will impact more than 2,900 homebuyers across these affected BTO projects: Sky Vista @ Bukit Batok, Senja Heights and Senja Ridges in Bukit Panjang, and Marsiling Grove in Woodlands.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/five-bto-projects-face-delays-two-public-projects-affected-as-contractor-greatearth-goes
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/five-bto-projects-delayed-as-contractor-goes-bust

New road maps launched to help process construction and maintenance sector digitalise
[Singapore] Local petrochemical engineering firm CYC International has seen significant reduction in manpower needs and project times since adopting robotic systems in its operations. With time-consuming and labour-intensive tasks such as tank cleaning and painting works automated, it has seen a 60 per cent reduction in manpower needs.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/new-road-maps-launched-to-help-process-construction-and-maintenance-sector
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/digital-plan-for-process-construction-and-maintenance-sector-launched

Singapore Economy

Singapore manufacturing to grow more slowly
Singapore factory output growth slowed in July, with the manufacturing expansion set to moderate on a cooling global semiconductor boom. DBS senior economist Irvin Seah said: “Manufacturing growth will remain in expansion mode, but the pace on a year-on-year basis will continue to moderate in the next six months.”
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-manufacturing-to-grow-more-slowly
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/factory-output-growth-eases-in-july

Companies’ Brief

GuocoLand’s net profit up 48% for FY21 to S$169.1m
Property developer GuocoLand has posted a 48 per cent year-on-year increase in net profit to S$169.1 million for the full year ended June, despite a 9 per cent fall in revenue. Revenue for FY21 was S$853.7 million, down from S$934.8 million a year ago, going by the interim financial statements released by the mainboard-listed company on Thursday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/guocolands-net-profit-up-48-for-fy21-to-s1691m

Oxley posts full-year net profit of S$49.5m
Property developer Oxley Holdings has posted a net profit of S$49.5 million for the full year ended June 30, reversing from a loss of S$275.1 million in the previous year. The company’s revenue jumped 58 per cent to S$781.9 million in the first six months of 2021, bringing full-year revenue to S$1.4 billion – a 33 per cent increase compared with the preceding financial year, according to Oxley’s interim financial statements.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oxley-posts-full-year-net-profit-of-s495m

Wing Tai Holdings profit jumps 173% amid higher revenue
Property and retail player Wing Tai Holdings has reported a net profit of S$43.6 million for the full year ended June 30, a 173 per cent jump compared with its previous financial year. This came despite a net loss of S$13.2 million for the first six months of 2021.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/wing-tai-holdings-profit-jumps-173-amid-higher-revenue

Various options exhausted for SPH’s media restructuring
Various options were exhausted before the proposal to restructure Singapore Press Holdings’ (SPH) media business was made, SPH chief executive Ng Yat Chung has said. Speaking at a virtual dialogue organised by Sias – the Securities Investors Association (Singapore)…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/various-options-exhausted-for-sphs-media-restructuring

SGX RegCo seeks feedback on climate reporting, ESG, board diversity
Listed companies in Singapore could be required to make mandatory climate-related disclosures and provide details on their board diversity policy in the coming years, with changes to listing rules proposed by Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sgx-regco-seeks-feedback-on-climate-reporting-esg-board-diversity
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/climate-reporting-could-be-mandatory-for-spore-listed-firms

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Strengthening US-Asean supply chains
One of the striking aspects of the recent visit by United States Vice-President Kamala Harris to Singapore and Vietnam was her emphasis on the need for more resilient supply chains in South-east Asia – a topic that was the main focus of her discussions with business leaders in both countries.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/strengthening-us-asean-supply-chains

The world economy’s supply chain problem keeps getting worse
A supply chain crunch that was meant to be temporary now looks like lasting well into next year as the surging Delta coronavirus variant upends factory production in Asia and disrupts shipping, posing more shocks to the world economy.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/the-world-economys-supply-chain-problem-keeps-getting-worse
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/global-supply-chain-crunch-deepens-as-delta-variant-surges

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

112 new locally transmitted Covid-19 cases; 40 linked to Bugis Junction cluster
[Singapore] There were 112 new locally transmitted Covid-19 cases reported on Thursday afternoon (Aug 26). Of these, 40 infections are also linked to the cluster at Bugis Junction, which has a total of 101 cases. Of the remaining 72 local cases, 31 were linked to previous cases and already quarantined, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in its daily update.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/112-new-locally-transmitted-covid-19-cases-40-linked-to-bugis-junction-cluster

MOH investigating two new Covid-19 clusters at Punggol and Toa Payoh bus interchanges

[Singapore] All staff at Punggol Bus Interchange and Toa Payoh Bus Interchange will be tested for Covid-19, after clusters were detected at these places on Thursday (Aug 26). There are 11 cases linked to Punggol Bus Interchange, comprising 10 employees and a household contact of a staff.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/moh-investigating-two-new-covid-19-clusters-at-punggol-and-toa-payoh-bus
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/three-new-clusters-two-at-toa-payoh-punggol-bus-interchanges

Pilot global business meeting venue now a Covid-19 facility
A pilot facility to allow for international business meetings amid the pandemic has been converted into a facility to house Covid-19 patients instead, as Singapore steps up preparations for a future where the coronavirus becomes endemic.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/pilot-global-business-meeting-venue-now-a-covid-19-facility

Impractical to raise dine-in cap at hawker centres, coffee shops, say MOH and NEA
Singapore – It is impractical to increase dine-in caps for hawker centres and coffee shops to five vaccinated customers, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the National Environment Agency (NEA) on Thursday (Aug 26).
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/impractical-to-raise-dine-in-cap-at-hawker-centres-coffee-shops-say-moh-and-nea

Covid-19 virus changes shape for survival: Study
Scientists in Singapore have made an important discovery about the shape and structure of the Sars-CoV-2 virus’ genetic material – which can help in producing more effective drugs to treat Covid-19. They found that the virus’ ribo-nucleic acid (RNA) can fold into complex and dynamic shapes for its growth and survival when inside infected cells.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/covid-19-virus-changes-shape-for-survival-study

Pfizer’s jab ups heart inflammation risk, with threat higher among Covid-19 patients: Study
Jerusalem • The use of Pfizer and German partner BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine marginally increases the risk of heart inflammation, but the risk is higher among those infected with the coronavirus, a study showed.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/pfizers-jab-ups-heart-inflammation-risk-with-threat-higher-among-covid-19-patients-study

Over 100,000 households collect their free masks
More than 100,000 households have collected their free masks on the first day of Temasek Foundation’s mask distribution exercise. Under the fifth such distribution exercise by Temasek Foundation, each household can collect 50 medical-grade surgical masks and 25 N95 respirator masks at selected malls and supermarket outlets islandwide from yesterday to Sept 26.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/over-100000-households-collect-their-free-masks

*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