DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 1st, 2nd and 3rd June 2019

Singapore Real Estate

Housing loans shrink for a third consecutive month
Housing loans in Singapore shrank for a third month in April, leading a continued contraction in consumer loans, preliminary data from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) showed on Friday. Mortgages booked in April on a net basis came in at S$202.76 billion, falling from S$203.38 billion in March.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/housing-loans-shrink-for-a-third-consecutive-month
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/banking/singapore-housing-loans-shrink-again-in-april

Funan mall to reopen on June 28; secures 92% retail take-up, 98% for office towers
Funan has achieved 92 per cent in commitment for retail leasing to date as well as 98 per cent in pre-leasing commitment for its twin office blocks, according to a joint media statement by CapitaLand Mall Trust’s (CMT) manager and CapitaLand on Monday morning. The mall will welcome shoppers again on June 28, two months ahead of its original schedule after a three-year redevelopment.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/funan-mall-to-reopen-on-june-28-secures-92-retail-take-up-98-for-office-towers
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/funan-mall-to-reopen-on-june-28-secures-92-retail-take-up-98-for-office
https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/trending/funan-reopen-jun-28-dyson-dji-brompton-lenovo-tech-mall-11590460
https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/revamped-funan-mall-reopens-june-28-new-concept-stores-cinema

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand, CDL complete S$400m Liang Court mall purchase
CapitaLand and City Developments Ltd (CDL) completed their S$400 million acquisition of Liang Court mall on Friday. The two property groups confirmed the completion of the purchase by their equal joint venture, in a statement to BT.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capitaland-cdl-complete-s400m-liang-court-mall-purchase

FLT to divest Australia property with planned sale of office, deck car park for A$5.4m
Frasers Logistics & Industrial Trust (FLT) is selling the office and deck car park of an Australia mixed-use freehold property for A$5.4 million (S$5.2 million), which will complete the sale of the entire property. The proposed sale follows a previously concluded A$15 million divestment of the warehouse, open-air storage and heavy vehicle parking area of the property located at 610 Heatherton Road, Clayton South, in the state of Victoria.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/flt-to-divest-australia-property-with-planned-sale-of-office-deck-car-park-for
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/flt-to-divest-entire-australia-property-with-planned-sale-of-office-deck

Ascendas Reit rally slips after breakthrough
Ascendas Reit has risen steadily year after year since the recovery in 2009, post financial crisis. Although share prices have been performing well, the ascent has lost some momentum recently. There was a breakthrough in March 2019 when the share price broke through the 2018 high. But the bullish rally was halted when it hit 3.06 and swiftly corrected to below the 3.00 psychological level.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/ascendas-reit-rally-slips-after-breakthrough

SPH sets distribution rate of 4.5% on S$150m perpetual notes
Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) has priced its S$150 million of subordinated perpetual notes at a distribution rate of 4.5 per cent to yield 261.2 basis points (bps) over the five-year swap offer rate. The securities were sold at par. There was a private-bank concession of 25 Singapore cents for every S$100 of securities, or 25 basis points.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sph-sets-distribution-rate-of-45-on-s150m-perpetual-notes
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/sph-prices-150m-of-perpetual-securities-at-45

KOP’s Q4 net loss of S$418,000 improves on S$9m loss a year ago
Catalist-listed property developer KOP posted a S$418,000 net loss for its fourth quarter ended March 31, narrowing drastically from a S$9 million loss a year earlier, thanks to higher revenue from its Indonesian resorts. Loss per share improved to 0.51 Singapore cent for FY2019, from 0.79 cent previously.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/kops-q4-net-loss-of-s418000-improves-on-s9m-loss-a-year-ago

Sabana Reit refreshes strategies to reshape future
Property veteran Donald Han is a tireless proponent of all things real estate. “If you slit my vein open, you will see nothing but real estate DNA there,” quipped the chief executive officer of the manager of SGX-listed Sabana Reit.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sabana-reit-refreshes-strategies-to-reshape-future

First Sponsor’s S$147.6m rights issue oversubscribed
Mainboard-listed First Sponsor Group’s S$147.6 million rights issue was oversubscribed, the Hong Leong-linked property developer said on Thursday night. Valid acceptances and excess applications were received for a total of 117.12 per cent of the available 113.6 million convertible securities with warrants, as at the close of the rights issue on May 24.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/first-sponsor%E2%80%99s-s1476m-rights-issue-oversubscribed

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Enforce fair rent terms to level the playing field?
Chia Ngiang Hong, President, Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (REDAS)
For long-term business competitiveness and sustainability, it is necessary to have fair business practices. It is understandable for retailers, F&B operators and other small businesses to clamour for some form of framework to help them realise fairer tenancy terms and conditions, better protect their interests and resolve disputes amicably.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/views-from-the-top/enforce-fair-rent-terms-to-level-the-playing-field

Over 100 hotels to launch job redesign with government aid
More than 100 hotels pledged on Friday to embark on job redesign in the year ahead. This would entail equipping their employees with new skills and cutting back on time-consuming, repetitive tasks so these employees can take on higher value-added jobs – and move up the career ladder and earn more.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/consumer/over-100-hotels-to-launch-job-redesign-with-government-aid
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/tripartite-scheme-helps-hoteliers-redesign-jobs