Top Story
REDAS sets up solidarity project fund, S$760,000 raised to date
The Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (Redas) has set up a fund to help those in the community most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, in particular those who work in the built environment. The fund, called the Solidarity Project Fund, is also meant to show “appreciation and care” for Singapore’s healthcare workers, said Redas in a news release on Thursday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Singapore Real Estate
Industrial Reits asked to step up as government rebates fall short
Some industrial real estate investment trusts (Reits) such as Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT) and Ascendas Reit may have to dig deeper into their coffers than unitholders are prepared for as tenants seek further reliefs. This comes as Singapore’s partial lockdown amid the virus outbreak has hit businesses across most sectors, not just those at the frontline.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Coronavirus: More industrial, retail tenants to seek relief under new law
Rental relief measures to help tenants whose businesses have been hit by the pandemic seem to be falling short, with some tenants saying the rental rebates are not enough, while some landlords are still demanding rental payments from tenants that have been forced to stop operating.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Yishun EC site tender period to last 6 months
Property consultants have mixed views on the likely outcome for a state land tender for an executive condo (EC) housing site in Yishun launched on Thursday. The Housing & Development Board’s (HDB) launch of the site, which is on the confirmed list of the first-half 2020 Government Land Sales Programme, has gone on as scheduled – but the tender period will be longer than usual, at six months.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Singapore Economy
Dire outlook for manufacturing, services over next six months
With the Covid-19 outbreak, manufacturing and services firms in Singapore have turned much grimmer about business conditions in the next six months, according to two separate surveys released on Thursday. Compared with the last quarter’s surveys, manufacturing sentiment swung from optimistic to near-record pessimism, while services pessimism deepened to a historic low.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Singapore must ‘proceed cautiously’ when easing circuit breaker: PM Lee
After the number of new Covid-19 cases comes down, Singapore can ease the circuit breaker measures and progressively restart the economy, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Thursday evening. But the process will not be a straightforward one, as the authorities will need to step up Covid-19 testing and speed up contact-tracing.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
https://www.straitstimes.com/
https://www.straitstimes.com/
President urges workers, companies to be ready for big changes after crisis
Society will see major changes to work, the workforce and workplaces after the coronavirus crisis, President Halimah Yacob said in her May Day message on Facebook yesterday. She added: “Life will never be the same after Covid-19… Companies and workers should take full advantage of this period to plan, rethink their strategies and ramp up workers’ skills to prepare for work after Covid-19.”
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Companies’ Brief
CapitaLand Mall Trust’s Q1 DPU down 70.5%
CapitaLand Mall Trust (CMT) has entered cash-conservation mode amid the volatility of Covid-19, leading to a 70.5 per cent fall in distribution per unit (DPU) to 0.85 cent for the first quarter ended March. Gross revenue for the quarter inched up 6 per cent to S$204.3 million, and net property income was up 5.9 per cent to S$148.3 million.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust posts Q2 DPU of 1.9 Australian cents
Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust’s (FLCT) distribution per unit (DPU) rose 4.4 per cent to 1.9 Australian cents for its second quarter ended March 31, from 1.82 Australian cents in the same period last year. However, in Singapore-dollar terms, DPU fell by 1.7 per cent to 1.73 Singapore cents, from 1.76 Singapore cents previously, the manager announced on Thursday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
LMIRT Q1 DPU down 78.2% on cash conservation
Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust (LMIRT) posted a 78.2 per cent drop in its distribution per unit (DPU) to 0.12 Singapore cent for the first quarter ended March 31. The DPU represents 24.1 per cent of the amount available for distribution of S$14.6 million.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Views, Reviews, Forum & Others
Preparing for a deeper downturn
The crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic and the unavoidable public health responses have led to repeated downgrades of economic forecasts everywhere. After two revisions since November, Singapore’s latest official forecast for gross domestic product growth this year stands at minus 1 per cent to minus 4 per cent.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Singapore economy faces major structural changes: PM Lee
Brothers and sisters from the labour movement. My fellow Singaporeans. This year, we mark May Day amidst difficult circumstances. The Covid-19 pandemic is still raging around the world. In Singapore, it is nearly a month since we imposed our circuit breaker. We are now down to about 10 to 15 new community cases daily. We have made significant progress, but we have more to do.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Amid pandemic, unemployment and small business bankruptcy curves need flattening
This May Day, it is imperative that we thank our essential services and frontline workers, and especially the migrant workers who come to Singapore to build our beautiful city. These migrant workers earn low wages, live in cramped quarters and now have the highest number of Covid-19 cases on the island state.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Containing the contagion: Hold out for a decisive curb on the virus
As Singapore moves into the second month of the circuit breaker period next week, all eyes remain on the daily new infection figures, as businesses and individuals alike hope that restrictions can eventually be lifted as planned – or even eased earlier, in part. When measures were tightened on April 21 with the suspension of less-critical consumer services, it was for an initial period through till May 4, even as the circuit breaker as a whole was extended to June 1.
https://www.businesstimes.com.
G-20 meeting: Digital tech key in Covid-19 response, says Iswaran
Digital technologies and policies are playing a key role in the response to the coronavirus pandemic, ministers from the Group of 20 (G-20) member states and guest countries stressed during a video conference yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) situation
Outbreak in dorms may take a few weeks before it’s under control
It may take a few weeks before infection numbers in foreign workers’ dormitories become low enough to signal that the Covid-19 outbreak is under control in those quarters, said the Health Ministry’s chief health scientist, Professor Tan Chorh Chuan. The number of new infections should start to taper down when most of the infected cases are identified and taken out, he told The Straits Times’ executive editor Sumiko Tan on ST’s news talk show The Big Story yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
No other way but to make use of TraceTogether mandatory
Singapore is the first in the world to roll out an app to reduce the tracking time of potentially infected individuals amid the Covid-19 pandemic. However, TraceTogether, which was launched in March, has so far not been able to do what it was designed for. One thing stands in the way: citizens’ unwillingness to use it.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
More need to use contact tracing app for it to be effective
About 1.1 million people – or one-fifth of Singapore’s population – have downloaded the contact tracing app, TraceTogether. But that is nowhere near enough for the tool to be deemed effective, said experts. This is because 20 per cent of the population having the app means that only 4 per cent of their contacts can be traced, said Professor Leong Thin Yin of the Singapore University of Social Sciences’ business programme.
https://www.straitstimes.com/
*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
Global Economy & Global Real Estate
Already pumping big cash, ECB demurs on dramatic moves
https://www.businesstimes.com.
US consumer spending plunged the most on record in March
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Fed support fuels corporate debt spree in April
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Fed’s Powell voices worry about long-term economic damage from Covid-19 outbreak
https://www.businesstimes.com.
China’s factories struggle amid slump in export orders
https://www.straitstimes.com/
Banks not returning to skyscrapers soon: Barclays
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Japan’s March factory output, retail sales drop as novel coronavirus hits economy
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Deflation fears creep back in Japan as pandemic hits prices
https://www.businesstimes.com.
SoftBank-backed Oyo to offload more loss-making hotels
https://www.businesstimes.com.
Additional Articles of Interests – Local & Overseas Real Estate
Local & Overseas Real Estate – Full Article
http://www.asiaone.com/
http://www.btinvest.com.sg/
http://www.stproperty.sg/