DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 31 Dec 2020 (Thu)

Singapore Real Estate

Firm outlook for private housing market belies risk factors
The outlook for private home prices in 2021 remains firm with most property consultants forecasting prices will appreciate slightly more than in 2020. A brighter economic outlook, easing of travel restrictions and a reduction in the inventory of unsold private residential units along with low interest rates all bode well for the private housing segment. On the flip side, observers flagged several factors that may weigh on the market in the next 12 months.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/firm-outlook-for-private-housing-market-belies-risk-factors

Normanton Park gets green light to sell, but with conditions
Normanton Park, a 1,862-unit leasehold condominium project that was hit with a no-sale licence nearly two years ago, has got the green light to sell its units, but with conditions. The largest and first new launch for next year will open for public preview on Saturday. Normanton Park comprises 1,840 condo units, 22 strata terraces and 8 shop units. To ensure that the interests of home buyers are protected, the Controller of Housing (COH) has required that the sale of the units be subject to sale licence conditions.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/normanton-park-gets-green-light-to-sell-but-with-conditions-0

1,190 families get keys to first smart-enabled HDB homes here
More than 1,400 households will be able to monitor electricity usage across appliances in smart-enabled flats in Punggol Northshore. As at Dec 14, 1,192 home owners who have collected the keys to their flats – about 85 per cent of the total – are the first in Singapore to live in such smart-enabled Housing Board flats, the HDB said yesterday. The 1,402 units in total are in 12 residential blocks spread across two Build-To-Order (BTO) projects, Northshore Residences I and II.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/1190-families-get-keys-to-first-smart-enabled-hdb-homes-here
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/hdb-to-trial-smart-parking-system-at-punggol-northshore-bto-flats

Singapore Economy

DPM Heng Swee Keat to deliver Singapore Budget on Feb 16, 2021
The Singapore Budget will be delivered in Parliament on Feb 16, 2021, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Thursday. Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat’s upcoming national spending plan will follow an extraordinary year for fiscal policy amid the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Singapore this year saw an unprecedented four Budgets and two ministerial statements roll out stimulus and support packages for a battered economy.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/dpm-heng-swee-keat-to-deliver-singapore-budget-on-feb-16-2021

Singapore economy to shrink again in Q4, but less sharply: Poll
Singapore (Reuters) – Singapore’s economic contraction is expected to have moderated in the fourth quarter, as the city-state lifted more coronavirus-related curbs due to a drop in local infections. Gross domestic product (GDP) is seen falling 4.5 per cent from the same period a year earlier, according to the median forecast of economists in a Reuters poll, marking the fourth straight quarter of decline.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-economy-to-shrink-again-in-q4-but-less-sharply-poll

Singapore must position for success within new global supply chains: Chan Chun Sing
As Covid-19 accelerates shifts in global supply chains, Singapore must aim to be at the critical nodes when attracting investments, said Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing at the EDB Society’s 30th anniversary commemoration on Wednesday night. Even amid the pandemic, the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) managed to secure S$13 billion of fixed asset investment commitments in the first four months of 2020, said Mr Chan.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-must-position-for-success-within-new-global-supply-chains-chan-chun-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/spore-must-tackle-2-key-tasks-as-it-seeks-to-stay-ahead-chan

Economists expect smaller but more calibrated Budget in 2021
Budget 2021 is likely to remain expansionary as Singapore’s economy moves into the next phase of recovery from its worst-ever recession, although the scale of support is likely to be smaller than that of this year’s, according to economists. This comes as Singapore continues to face short- to mid-term challenges, going into 2021, Alvin Liew, senior economist at UOB said. He added that the pandemic could become worse, especially with the emergence of new virus strains, before vaccines can be widely deployed.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/economists-expect-smaller-but-more-calibrated-budget-in-2021

Jobs lost but new opportunities found as well
A once-in-a-century global pandemic has disrupted lives, killed people, upended commerce, shuttered businesses, destroyed jobs and simply caused untold chaos to the order in our lives. One of the darkest shadows it cast was the way it reinforced inequities. Lower-skilled and blue-collar workers have borne the brunt of the global lockdowns and job losses. In contrast, more educated workers, especially financially and tech-savvy folk, managed to ride out the storm and work from home (WFH).
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/jobs-lost-but-new-opportunities-found-as-well

Companies’ Brief

CDL obtains S$470m green revolving credit facility
City Developments Limited (CDL) has obtained a five-year S$470 million green revolving credit facility for refinancing its flagship Republic Plaza commercial property and on-lending to other eligible green projects. These other green projects are those defined in CDL’s sustainable finance framework, the mainboard-listed property developer said in a press statement on Wednesday. The green revolving credit facility, which starts in January 2021, was provided by a group of lenders comprising Agricultural Bank of China, Credit Industriel et Commercial, DBS, HSBC, MUFG, Maybank and SMBC.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/cdl-obtains-s470m-green-revolving-credit-facility

Eagle Hospitality Trust stuck in limbo after unitholders vote against change of manager
After the proposed change of a manager for the beleaguered Eagle Hospitality Trust (EHT) failed to get the green light from securityholders on Wednesday, there is uncertainty about the next step forward. Securityholders of EHT, which is a stapled trust comprising Eagle Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust (EH-Reit) and the currently dormant Eagle Hospitality Business Trust (EH-BT), had voted on four interconditional resolutions at an extraordinary general meeting (EGM).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/eagle-hospitality-trust-stuck-in-limbo-after-unitholders-vote-against-change-of

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Which developing economies will rise after the Covid-19 pandemic?
After 2000, globalisation and surging commodity prices astronomically boosted economic growth among nations with emerging economies. Over the next decade, their share of the global economy nearly doubled, growing to 35 per cent. By 2007, 107 of the 110 developing economies featured in the Penn World Table were catching up to the United States in average income, helping millions to escape poverty. The celebratory mood was captured in a popular phrase: “The rise of the rest”.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/which-developing-economies-will-rise-after-the-covid-19-pandemic

Ringing in the new year, with hope, resolve and determination
Each New Year’s Day is an occasion for hope and celebration, and at the close of the annus horribilis that has been 2020, the world could certainly do with a good dose of the former – even as the continued reality of Covid-19 circumscribes the latter.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/ringing-in-the-new-year-with-hope-resolve-and-determination

Covid-19 has no grand lesson for the world
Most of the global crises of the last century or so were at least instructive. World War I discredited empires in favour of national self-determination. World War II argued for curbing that nationalism with the UN and other formal trammels. Even the later, bloodless disasters served as learning experiences. The stagflation of the 1970s exposed the limits of the Keynesian state. The financial crisis in 2008 established its worth all over again. For each shock, an education.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/covid-19-has-no-grand-lesson-for-the-world

A no less challenging year ahead
There are years that merely pass, and those that stand as clear markers and provide important lessons for current and future generations. That the end of 2020 has arrived may be welcome news to a world weary of how the coronavirus pandemic severely affected societal and economic norms and conventions, impacting jobs, relationships, businesses and endeavours.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/st-editorial/a-no-less-challenging-year-ahead-0

A year when some retailers lost the battle for survival
Retailers have had it tough for some time, with bricks-and-mortar operators under siege from online sellers, but they met with greater challenges this year amid a pandemic that has wreaked havoc across the economy. Most stores were forced to close temporarily during the circuit breaker period from April to June. Wary shoppers preferred to stay home, while safe distancing measures meant fewer buyers could roam the aisles.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/a-year-when-some-retailers-lost-the-battle-for-survival

Singapore to renew IMF loan commitments totalling $4.7b
Singapore will renew its loan commitments totalling US$3.58 billion (S$4.7 billion) to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said in a media statement yesterday that this will be accomplished under the New Arrangements to Borrow (NAB) agreement with a US$1.86 billion loan for 2021-2025, as well as a Bilateral Borrowing Agreement (BA) with a US$1.72 billion loan for 2021-2024.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/spore-to-renew-imf-loan-commitments-totalling-47b

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

SIA pilot who flew to UK among 27 new virus cases
A Singapore Airlines (SIA) pilot and a work pass holder have preliminarily tested positive for the new B117 strain of the coronavirus that is circulating in the United Kingdom. They were among 27 new coronavirus cases confirmed yesterday, taking Singapore’s total to 58,569. The new B117 strain is reportedly 70 per cent more contagious, but has not shown signs of being more lethal or severe.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/sia-pilot-who-flew-to-uk-among-27-new-virus-cases

Vaccination drive kicks off, paving way for further reopening
Singapore’s national Covid-19 vaccination programme kicked off yesterday, with the first Pfizer-BioNTech jabs being administered to 40 healthcare workers at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID). This marks an important milestone in the Republic’s fight against Covid-19, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong told reporters, noting that vaccination could help accelerate the resumption of economic as well as other community activities and pave the way for the reopening of more borders.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/vaccination-drive-kicks-off-paving-way-for-further-reopening
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/40-ncid-staff-first-in-singapore-to-get-pfizer-biontech-vaccine

Singapore air crew to undergo more PCR tests, minimise contact during layovers: CAAS
Air crew of Singapore carriers will now have to undergo more Covid-19 tests and minimise their contact with locals while on layover, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said on Wednesday. The authority’s announcement of tightened measures follows the emergence of two Covid-19 positive cases among Singapore Airlines’ personnel over the past week – a member of the cabin crew tested positive on Dec 27, and a pilot on Dec 29.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-air-crew-to-undergo-more-pcr-tests-minimise-contact-during-layovers
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/stricter-rules-more-testing-for-airline-crew

Safety paramount in vaccination exercise: Gan
The process of vaccinating Singaporeans against Covid-19 will take some time, as it is challenging and must be carried out safely and carefully, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong. During a visit to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) on Wednesday, he said he had met the centre’s management team to get a better understanding of the challenges they face and how the vaccination exercise can be carried out smoothly.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/safety-paramount-in-vaccination-exercise-gan
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/get-vaccine-even-if-there-are-few-local-cases-gan-kim-yong
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/vaccination-will-be-done-slowly-and-carefully-to-ensure-safety-health-minister

Migrant workers move out of temporary sites, return to dorms
With Singapore entering phase three of its reopening, migrant workers are gradually moving out of temporary accommodation and returning to their dormitories. The last batch of workers who had been staying in vacant Housing Board flats in Redhill Close vacated them yesterday morning.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/jobs/migrant-workers-move-out-of-temporary-sites-return-to-dorms
*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