DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 28th July 2017

Top Story

URA private home price index dips 0.1% q-o-q in Q2; rental index down 0.2%
The Urban Redevelopment Authority’s final second quarter 2017 data released on Friday shows that the benchmark private residential property price index slipped 0.1 per cent in Q2 this year over Q1 2017, a smaller decline than the 0.3 per cent drop shown in the flash estimate released earlier this month. In Q1 this year, the index fell 0.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ura-private-home-price-index-dips-01-q-o-q-in-q2-rental-index-down-02
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/private-home-prices-fall-by-01-for-q2
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/private-home-prices-down-for-15th-straight-quarter-pace-of-9071814

Singapore Economy

IE Singapore sets up network for SMEs to expand overseas quickly
International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore) aims to ease market entry for Singapore SMEs with the launch of its new Plug and Play Network. The network will provide support in business advisory services, business matching and market set-up through co-working spaces. Close to six in 10 Singapore SMEs cite the inability of finding suitable business partners and contacts as a key challenge of expanding into foreign markets.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/ie-singapore-sets-up-network-for-smes-to-expand-overseas-quickly

Singapore-dollar bond market still robust despite Nam Cheong default
Singapore-dollar bond prices remain strong despite last week’s S$365 million default by Nam Cheong, another offshore support vessel-focused group that has become insolvent. The latest default means 13 Singapore dollar bond issues worth a staggering S$2.5 billion since 2015 have gotten into trouble.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/singapore-dollar-bond-market-still-robust-despite-nam-cheong-default

Retailers use tech to woo shoppers
With Singapore having a high smartphone penetration rate, brick-and- mortar retailers in the west are increasingly turning to digital platforms and mobile apps to dish out their best deals during the Great Singapore Sale (GSS), which runs from June 9 to Aug 13. One such application synonymous with the digital aspect of this year’s GSS is the GoSpree app.
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/retailers-use-tech-to-woo-shoppers

Singapore Real Estate

Singapore firms dip toes into blockchain tech for property
At least two Singapore “proptech” companies are using blockchain platforms to “tokenise” property – that is, to create tokens backed by real estate which investors can buy. It is a pioneering move that is nascent even globally – and is such a new idea that there does not seem to be explicit existing legislation in Singapore governing these digital instruments. The two companies are FundPlaces and Reidao.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/singapore-firms-dip-toes-into-blockchain-tech-for-property

Resale price index of public housing in Singapore slips
The HDB Resale Price Index (RPI) fell by 0.1 per cent to 133.7 in the second quarter, from 133.9 in the first quarter. A year ago, the index stood at 134.7, the Housing & Development Board (HDB) said on Friday. Resale transactions rose by 32.5 per cent to 6,001 cases, compared to 4,530 cases in the preceding quarter.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/resale-price-index-of-public-housing-in-singapore-slips
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/hdb-resale-transactions-jump-32-5-in-q2-despite-prices-remaining-9071864

URA office rental index slips 1.1 % q-o-q in Q2; vacancy rises to 12.4% at end-June
The Urban Redevelopment Authority’s office rental index fell 1.1 per cent in the second quarter of 2017 over the preceding quarter, a smaller decline than the 3.4 per cent drop in Q1 this year. URA’s office price index shed 1.4 per cent in Q2, again a smaller fall than the 4 per cent drop in Q1 2017. The islandwide vacancy rate of office space rose to 12.4 per cent at end-Q2 this year from 11.6 per cent at end-Q1 2017.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ura-office-rental-index-slips-11-q-o-q-in-q2-vacancy-rises-to-124-at-end-june

Prices and rentals of industrial space continue to moderate in Q2
Prices and rentals of industrial space continued to moderate in tandem with occupancy rates, according to JTC’s latest quarterly market report of industrial properties released on Thursday. In Q2 2017, the price and rental indices for the overall industrial property market fell by 1.6 per cent and 0.8 per cent respectively compared to the previous quarter. The price and rental indices fell by 8.2 per cent and 4.1 per cent from a year ago.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/prices-and-rentals-of-industrial-space-continue-to-moderate-in-q2
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/industrial-property-market-in-doldrums

16 bids for URA tender for 99-year private housing site in Serangoon North Ave 1
Sixteen bidders participated at a state tender that closed on Thursday for a 99-year leasehold private housing site along Serangoon North Avenue 1. The top bid, from a partnership between a unit of Keppel Land and a unit of Wing Tai, was S$446.28 million, or S$964.81per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). The 1.72-ha site can yield an estimated 505 housing units.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/16-bids-for-ura-tender-for-99-year-private-housing-site-in-serangoon-north-ave-1
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/kepland-wing-tai-tie-up-top-bidder-for-serangoon-north-site
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/serangoon-north-site-draws-bullish-top-bid-of-4463m
http://www.todayonline.com/business/serangoon-north-housing-site-gets-buillish-top-bid-s4463-million

Companies’ Brief

Q2 DPU for CRCT up 0.4%
Contribution from its most recently acquired CapitaMall Xinnan in Chengdu gave a lift to CapitaLand Retail China Trust’s (CRCT) results for the second quarter. However, additional tax provision for Beijing malls due to a change from cost to revenue basis effective July 1, 2016, partially dampened that shine. CRCT’s distribution per unit (DPU) for the three months ended June 30, 2017, edged up 0.4 per cent to 2.62 Singapore cents from 2.61 Singapore cents in the previous year, the group said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Thursday morning.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/q2-dpu-for-crct-up-04

Mapletree Commercial Trust’s Q1 DPU rises to 2.23 cents
Positive contributions from VivoCity, Mapletree Anson and PSA Building as well as the accretive acquisition of Mapletree Business City I boosted results for Mapletree Commercial Trust (MCT) in its first quarter. Distribution per unit (DPU) edged up to 2.23 Singapore cents from 2.03 Singapore cents in the preceding year, the group said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Thursday evening.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/mapletree-commercial-trusts-q1-dpu-rises-to-223-cents

Ascendas Reit’s Q1 DPU edges up to 4.049 cents on new acquisitions
Contributions from new acquisitions gave a fillip to results for industrial landlord Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust (Ascendas Reit) in its first quarter. Distribution per unit (DPU) edged up to 4.049 Singapore cents from 3.882 Singapore cents in the year-ago quarter, the group said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Thursday evening.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/ascendas-reits-q1-dpu-edges-up-to-4049-cents-on-new-acquisitions

Views, Reviews & Forum

Data analytics – breathing new life into Singapore’s gloomy retail scene
An ever-changing economy, volatile retail sales and growing vacancies in shopping malls – all this seems to spell trouble for the local retail scene, but there is light at the end of the hardship tunnel. In today’s digital age, the effective use of technology and data has become a disruptor for businesses and this very trend is set to be a game changer for the retail industry.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/data-analytics-breathing-new-life-into-singapores-gloomy-retail-scene

Cut land lease under GLS programme to 60 years
The current en-bloc sale frenzy is a sign of pent-up demand for private housing, especially for 99-year leasehold properties. The Government should consider reducing the lease of some selected Government Land Sales (GLS) plots to 60 years and release more land for sale for private housing projects.
http://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/cut-land-lease-under-gls-programme-to-60-years