DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 31 May 2022 (Tue)

Singapore Real Estate

Income At Raffles quietly on market; S$3,300 psf guide price works out to about S$900m
Income At Raffles, a 999-year leasehold predominantly office property at 16 Collyer Quay, is being quietly marketed for sale via a closed expression of interest exercise, The Business Times understands.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/income-at-raffles-quietly-on-market-s3300-psf-guide-price-works-out-to-about-s900m

Sultan Plaza set for relaunch with unchanged S$360m reserve price
Sultan Plaza will be relaunched for collective sale on Tuesday (May 31) via public tender with an unchanged reserve price of S$360 million, said exclusive marketing agent Teakhwa Real Estate on Monday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/sultan-plaza-set-for-relaunch-with-unchanged-s360m-reserve-price
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/sultan-plaza-makes-2nd-attempt-at-en-bloc-sale-with-unchanged-360m-reserve-price

Singapore Economy

Tourists are back, but staycations are here to stay
Singapore hotels do not expect to bid farewell to demand from local guests post-pandemic – despite the pick-up in international arrivals, and the recovering popularity of overseas holidays. Even as borders reopen, Marcus Hanna, managing director of the adjacent Swissôtel The Stamford and Fairmont Singapore hotels, told The Business Times (BT) that staycations are expected to remain important and “we’re still seeing good demand for daycations as well”.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/tourists-are-back-but-staycations-are-here-to-stay

Hotel revenues continue recovery in April as high-end room rates inch higher
Hotel room revenue has hit its highest level since the Covid-19 pandemic began, as international visitor numbers continue to recover on border reopenings. Singapore operators raked in S$180.5 million in April, according to recent Singapore Tourism Board data that also showed visitor arrivals surging to 294,304 in April, from 121,197 in March.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/hotel-revenues-continue-recovery-in-april-as-high-end-room-rates-inch-higher

Faster room rate recovery fuels industry cheer despite ongoing labour shortages
Hoteliers in Singapore have been counting their blessings as room rates creep towards pre-pandemic levels, with some observers expecting a full recovery by the year’s end. The latest rates rebound “bodes well for hotel owners and operators as they look ahead at the rest of 2022”…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/faster-room-rate-recovery-fuels-industry-cheer-despite-ongoing-labour-shortages

Real wage growth up 1.6% in 2021: MOM
Real wage growth was up 1.6 per cent in 2021, slightly higher than the previous year at 1.4 per cent but still lower than the 3.3 per cent recorded in 2019, according to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Monday (May 30).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/real-wage-growth-up-16-in-2021-mom
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/retail-information-and-communications-among-sectors-with-largest-pay-hikes

Bigger pay hikes in 2022 as employers price in higher cost of living: HR firms
Employers are expected to provide larger-than-usual salary adjustments in 2022 to stay ahead of soaring inflation, say human resource and employment consultants, with companies such as Singtel already doing so.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/bigger-pay-hikes-in-2022-as-employers-price-in-higher-cost-of-living-hr-firms
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/robust-pay-rises-in-singapore-last-year-tempered-by-inflation

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand Investment says nearly half of global portfolio is green building-certified
CapitaLand Investment (CLI) has achieved green building certifications for 48 per cent of its global portfolio by square metres (sq m), it said in its 2021 Global Sustainability Report released on Tuesday (May 31).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capitaland-investment-says-nearly-half-of-global-portfolio-is-green-building
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/capitaland-investment-says-nearly-half-of-global-portfolio-is-green-building-certified

GIC in joint venture to acquire UK’s third-largest purpose-built student accommodation provider
Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC announced on Monday (May 30) that it has formed a joint venture with Greystar Real Estate Partners to acquire Student Roost, the third-largest purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) provider in the UK.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/gic-in-joint-venture-to-acquire-uks-third-largest-purpose-built-student-accommodation

Views, Reviews, Forum and Others

London homes beckon despite economic uncertainties
Buying a home for investment in Singapore can involve substantial transaction costs. Citizens pay additional buyer’s stamp duty of 17 per cent for a second home and 25 per cent for a third and subsequent home.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/london-homes-beckon-despite-economic-uncertainties

For Singapore, a pressing need to build up its food supply resilience
Numerous studies show that chicken is the most popular and among the most consumed meats in the world today. But from Wednesday morning (June 1), Malaysia will no longer export some 3.6 million chickens a month overseas, with neighbouring Singapore among the countries most affected by the surprise ban.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/for-singapore-a-pressing-need-to-build-up-its-food-supply-resilience

What’s changed over 30 years of sustainable investing in Asia?
In the 30 years since opening our first office in Asia – a small Singapore shopfront run by one intrepid investment manager – a truly astonishing amount of change has happened in the region. Today, Asia-Pacific is a vast area of opportunity from Pakistan to New Zealand, home to major financial markets and nations that are among the wealthiest in the world.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth-investing/whats-changed-over-30-years-of-sustainable-investing-in-asia

ESG investing accelerates
Panellists in a roundtable say they expect the current exponential growth in assets under management to continue…
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/hub-projects/esg-investing-accelerates

*For more information, please visit the Ministry of Health (MOH) website atwww.moh.gov.sgand refer togo.gov.sg/mohupdatesfor updates on the COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) situation