DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 27th September 2018

Singapore Economy

En bloc deals, better economy bolster Singapore tax coffers
The en bloc phenomenon in 2017 yielded windfalls of billions not just to home owners but also to the taxman. Bolstered by a 50 per cent jump in stamp duty collection and higher corporate tax collection on an improved economy, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) collected S$50.2 billion in tax revenue for the financial year ended Mar 31, 2018, over S$3 billion more than a year ago.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/en-bloc-deals-better-economy-bolster-singapore-tax-coffers
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/taxes-collected-rise-68-to-bumper-502b
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/iras-tax-revenue-collected-stamp-duty-10758628
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singapores-tax-revenue-boosted-higher-collections-stamp-duty-and-corporate-income-tax

Growth in factory output for August hits nadir for this year
The growth rate in Singapore’s factory output for August fell to its lowest this year, on the back of the triple whammy of the Sino-US trade conflict, slowing electronics demand and the high base from last year. But manufacturers hoping for quick relief will just have to hang tight; economists told The Business Times that they expect factory activity to remain muted over the next few months.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/growth-in-factory-output-for-august-hits-nadir-for-this-year
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-factory-output-continues-downward-trend-growth-eases-to-33-in-august
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/spore-factory-growth-slows-in-august

Singapore dollar’s rise against the ringgit accelerates to 2018 high
The Singapore dollar continued its ascent against the Malaysia currency on Wednesday (Sep 26) to reach a 2018 high against the ringgit. The Singapore dollar touched RM3.0363 on Wednesday, before easing back to RM3.0322 in the late afternoon. This is the highest since the Singdollar touched RM3.0417 on Dec 29 last year.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/singapore-dollar-rise-against-the-ringgit-accelerates-2018-high-10760412

Singapore Real Estate

Two Tanjong Pagar conservation shophouses up for sale with S$22.6m price tag
Two conservation shophouses in Tanjong Pagar have been put up for sale by the same owner in an expression of interest exercise, according to an announcement from the marketing agent on Wednesday. The three-storey leasehold commercial properties, which are both in Tras Street but are not adjacent, have a guide price of S$22.6 million, or about S$2,800 per square feet based on gross floor area.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/two-tanjong-pagar-conservation-shophouses-up-for-sale-with-s226m-price-tag
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/two-tras-street-conservation-shophouses-on-sale-for-226m-0

Hilton gears up for regional expansion as travel market grows
Hotel group Hilton will triple its presence in the Asia-Pacific in the next three to five years as it introduces new brands and expands the footprint of existing brands in the burgeoning travel market.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/hilton-gears-up-for-regional-expansion-as-travel-market-grows

Companies’ Brief

Sabana Reit to sell Geo-Tele Centre for S$99.6m, well above book value
Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana Reit) is letting go of a data centre in Tai Seng, with the manager citing its strategy of divesting under‐performing and mature assets. The manager inked a conditional sale and purchase agreement on Wednesday to sell Geo‐Tele Centre for S$99.6 million to ADC Singapore Trust, it said later that day.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sabana-reit-to-sell-geo-tele-centre-for-s996m-well-above-book-value
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/sabana-reit-to-sell-geo-tele-centre-for-996m-well-above-book-value

Keppel, SPH to make S$2.06 per share offer for rest of M1
Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), together with Keppel Corp, will be making a pre-conditional voluntary general offer of S$2.06 per share for the remaining M1 shares they do not own, valuing Singapore’s third largest mobile operator at S$1.9 billion. The purchase offer will be made through joint venture company, Konnectivity Pte Ltd, which is majority owned by Keppel.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-sph-to-make-s206-per-share-offer-for-rest-of-m1
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-sph-seek-trading-halt-pending-announcement
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/sph-keppel-said-be-considering-buyout-offer-telco-m1

Keppel to privatise Keppel T&T with S$1.91 per share cash offer
Keppel Corp said on Thursday that it plans to privatise Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation Ltd (Keppel T&T) with a S$1.91 per share cash offer. The diversified marine group said this would give shareholders of Keppel T&T an opportunity to realise their investment at an attractive premium of about 40 per cent over the company’s one-month volume weighted average price of S$1.365.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-to-privatise-keppel-tt-with-s191-per-share-cash-offer

Luxe property developer going big with smaller units
SC Global Developments is known for luxury property projects with big, spacious units, but the company will be going trendy and small with a new collection. Called Petit Collectibles, the brand is the company’s “answer to the demand for small units”, its founder and chairman Simon Cheong told The Straits Times on Tuesday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/luxe-property-developer-going-big-with-smaller-units
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/luxe-property-developer-sc-global-developments-going-big-with-smaller-apartments

Lawyer joins SPH Reit board
Lawyer Hoo Sheau Farn has been appointed as an independent non-executive board director of SPH Reit Management with effect from yesterday. Ms Hoo, 52, is a partner at law firm Allen & Gledhill whose areas of practice include real estate investment trusts (Reits) and property acquisition.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/lawyer-joins-sph-reit-board

VIEWS, REVIEWS, FORUM & Others

Define goals before taking the digital plunge
Businesses in Singapore are discovering new applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) even as concerns remain over the ability of an organisation to adapt to these digital technologies and be future-ready.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/define-goals-before-taking-the-digital-plunge

AI for everyone
In my discussions with business leaders, there is an optimistic consensus that 2018 will be the year artificial intelligence (AI) comes to the fore and begins to drive real impact in a truly ubiquitous and meaningful way. Already, IDC is predicting that worldwide spending on cognitive and AI systems will reach US$19 billion in 2018, an increase of 54.2 per cent over the amount spent in 2017.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/technology/ai-for-everyone

The global trade system faces a real risk of breaking down
Ten years after the failure of Lehman Brothers, we know that multilateral action was crucial in preventing the so-called Great Recession from becoming even worse than it was. Back then, it was the global financial system that was tottering. Today, it is the global trade system that is in jeopardy.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/the-global-trade-system-faces-a-real-risk-of-breaking-down

Global economies have lost several trillions to offshore tax havens
Multi-trillion dollars of illegal cash have leaked from nations and landed in offshore tax havens. These outflows have been one of the reasons for below-par economic performance. Global authorities have carried out only limited measures to counter the corruption, even though illegal outflows have contributed to impoverishment of several emerging countries.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/global-economies-have-lost-several-trillions-to-offshore-tax-havens

Raising capital in the digital world
For businesses looking to raise capital from the public and for investors looking for potentially higher returns in an active platform which a stock exchange affords, the conventional pathway of an initial public offering of shares (IPO) is no longer de rigueur. The growth in applications of blockchain technology in recent years has spurred alternative methods of capital-raising via initial coin or token offerings. (For ease of reference, the abbreviation “ICOs” is used in this article).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/raising-capital-in-the-digital-world

Wanted: Corporate boards that are independent and not risk-averse
Innovation is now widely seen as being critical to business success, with companies in Singapore urged to be nimble and enterprising in exploring new opportunities, markets, and capabilities, given the disruptive forces present in industry today.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/wanted-corporate-boards-that-are-independent-and-not-risk-averse

Commentary: Caution rising in China beneath the the Belt and Road Initiative’s shiny facade
China has launched a new publicity drive to promote the benefits of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – and the surprise is that a publicity campaign is necessary at all.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/cracks-beneath-the-shiny-facade-of-the-belt-and-road-initiative-10701696