DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 6 May 2021 (Thur)

Singapore Real Estate

Two office floors at Malacca Centre up for sale
Two office floors located at levels nine and 16 of Malacca Centre have been put up for public tender, sole marketing agent CBRE announced on Wednesday. Spanning 1,830 square feet (sq ft), the level nine office has an indicative price of S$6 million or S$3,278 per square foot (psf). Meanwhile, the level 16 office has a gross floor area of 2,142 sq ft and an indicative price of nearly S$6.9 million or S$3,211 psf.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/two-office-floors-at-malacca-centre-up-for-sale

Cooling measures cited as key risk by Singapore real-estate market, poll finds
Cooling measures have been named as the biggest risk faced by Singapore’s real-estate market, a poll among senior executives of real-estate firms has found. Of the approximately 50 such executives surveyed in March, 87.8 per cent indicated the possibility of cooling measures as a potential risk which may hit market sentiment in the next six months. This is almost double the previous quarter’s 44.7 per cent.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/cooling-measures-cited-as-key-risk-by-singapore-real-estate-market-poll-finds

Developers’ margins squeezed by higher land, construction costs: survey
The pains of margin compression for property developers in Singapore look set to continue, given recent tightened border measures due to the surge of Covid-19 cases in India. It comes as profit margins of developers had already thinned from the year-ago period, despite developers seeing strong private-home sales, according to a survey.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/developers-margins-squeezed-by-higher-land-construction-costs-survey

Undervalued property developers: are they worth a second look?
A number of property developers are trading at undemanding valuations. With some sitting on land parcels, while others are poised to launch residential projects, could they be worth another look? While Singapore continues to work at taming the pandemic, the residential property market has proven fairly resilient, thanks partly to low interest rates and demand from HDB upgraders, among other factors.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/undervalued-property-developers-are-they-worth-a-second-look

Singapore Economy

Singapore retail sales up 6.2% in March
Singapore retail sales rose 6.2 per cent year on year in March, with a low base effect likely to boost April’s figures as well, said economists. But the trajectory from there depends on whether tighter Covid-19 measures in May persist beyond their intended duration, they added.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-retail-sales-up-62-in-march
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/spore-retail-sales-up-62-in-march-growing-for-second-straight-month

Singapore gears up for return of phase 2 measures
Singapore is gearing up for a temporary disruption to its reopening plans as it raises its defences against the coronavirus, following the worst spate of Covid-19 community infections in close to a year. Pre-schools will impose curbs on parents entering their premises, restaurants are scrambling to rearrange bookings made for Mother’s Day this weekend…
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-gears-up-for-return-of-phase-2-measures

Temporary Covid-19 curbs will not derail Singapore’s recovery, say economists
Singapore – A new wave of Covid-19 in Singapore may have dented investor sentiment but economic damage will depend on how long the renewed mobility curbs last, analysts said. A rise in local cases, since the recent discovery of a cluster at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, some infected with a variant of the coronavirus identified in India…
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/temporary-curbs-will-not-derail-singapores-recovery-say-economists

Adaptation of strategies so large meetings can be held here safely
Given the rapidly evolving Covid-19 situation, the Government will continually assess and adapt its strategies so as to organise large-scale meetings here safely. Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing described this dynamic approach when asked if key events lined up in Singapore this year are at risk of being postponed or cancelled, because of the spike in cases, both here and abroad.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/adaptation-of-strategies-so-large-meetings-can-be-held-here-safely
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/elon-musk-among-top-leaders-businessmen-to-attend-bloomberg-forum-here-in-nov

Companies’ Brief

Uncertainty lingers over Covid-19 impact on Hongkong Land’s full-year financials
Hongkong Land is hazy on how the Covid-19 pandemic will affect its full-year results, the Jardines-backed property group said in an interim update for its first quarter of 2021 on Wednesday. Its statement comes despite reported resilience in its investment portfolio for the quarter, and “improving market conditions” for the development business in Singapore and mainland China.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/uncertainty-lingers-over-covid-19-impact-on-hongkong-lands-full-year-financials

Mandarin Oriental warns of impending H1 underlying loss in interim business update
Luxury hotelier Mandarin Oriental International continued to post losses into the first three months of the year, as the Covid-19 pandemic battered the industry. Unaudited underlying losses came to US$41 million for January to March, and the group expects to finish the half-year in the red – with more losses in the second quarter.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/mandarin-oriental-warns-of-impending-h1-underlying-loss-in-interim-business-update

AIMS APAC Reit posts 45% rise in Q4 DPU to 2.9 S cents
AIMS APAC Reit: O5RU 0% saw a 45 per cent boost to its distribution per unit (DPU) to 2.90 Singapore cents in Q4 FY2021 ended March this year, from two cents in Q4 FY2020. Gross revenue for Q4 2021 was up 16.1 per cent at S$32.8 million, from S$28.2 million in Q4 2020.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/aims-apac-reit-posts-45-rise-in-q4-dpu-to-29-s-cents

Corporate digest
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/corporate-digest-1372

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Time to end the love affair with real estate. Here are some ideas
Real estate in Singapore in many ways is a common denominator underpinning many of the country’s issues. When property prices rise, it is only to the benefit of those who enjoy the luxury of being investors. High prices make it more difficult for the younger generation to aspire to home ownership and puts them under pressure to demand higher wages.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/time-to-end-the-love-affair-with-real-estate-here-are-some-ideas

What it takes to keep South-east Asia’s digital economy booming
As Covid-19 maintains a grip on South-east Asia, the economic fallout continues to unfold in unpredictable ways. Yet one thing is certain. The coronavirus has brought about a massive digital adoption spurt for everything from online shopping and streaming entertainment to telehealth and digital banking.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/what-it-takes-to-keep-south-east-asias-digital-economy-booming

KL-Singapore HSR: Not end of the road
Early in March, Malaysia paid Singapore $102.8 million as compensation for failing to go ahead with the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project. That closed a chapter on the latest attempt by the two countries to build a cross-border HSR.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/kl-singapore-hsr-not-end-of-the-road

Is the US economy recovering or overheating?
The financial and economic news in the United States lately has been dominated by concerns about inflation. “Runaway inflation is the biggest risk facing investors, Leuthold’s Jim Paulsen warns”, according to the cable news channel CNBC.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/is-the-us-economy-recovering-or-overheating

Landscape award goes to 12 parks for first time
A total of 27 parks and developments in Singapore have been recognised for good landscape design and management under an enhanced certification scheme by the National Parks Board (NParks). The 2020 Landscape Excellence Assessment Framework certification scheme now puts more emphasis on ecology, the integration of greenery in design, and park management in line with the City in Nature vision, NParks said in a statement yesterday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/environment/landscape-award-goes-to-12-parks-for-first-time

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

New cluster of four linked to Pasir Panjang Terminal
The sole Covid-19 case in the community announced yesterday and three previous cases have been linked by their workplace at Pasir Panjang Terminal, forming the 10th active cluster here. The latest case is a 59-year-old trailer truck driver who works at Brani Terminal and Pasir Panjang Terminal, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/new-cluster-of-four-linked-to-pasir-panjang-terminal
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/16-new-covid-19-cases-in-singapore-one-in-the-community

What to do when TraceTogether-only check-in is required
From May 17, all visitors to places that require SafeEntry check-ins – such as malls, eateries, offices, schools and places of worship – must use either the TraceTogether app or token, for contact-tracing purposes. The date for this compulsory TraceTogether-only SafeEntry check-in was brought forward by about two weeks from the previously announced June 1, the Government said on Tuesday.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/what-to-do-when-tracetogether-only-check-in-is-required

Some firms instruct all staff to work from home as a precaution
Some firms are asking all employees who are able to do so to work from home as a precautionary measure amid a spike in community cases here. On Tuesday, the multi-ministry task force tackling Covid-19 reduced the cap on employees in the workplace to 50 per cent of those able to work from home from Saturday to May 30, down from the current 75 per cent.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/some-firms-instruct-all-staff-to-work-from-home-as-a-precaution

Hospitals prepare for surge in Covid-19 cases
Most hospitals here are reducing non-urgent surgery as they ramp up capacity to prepare for a rise in Covid-19 cases, but life-saving treatment for illnesses like cancer or stroke will not be affected. All hospitals were asked on Monday to help conserve resources in the healthcare sector by deferring non-urgent surgery and appointments at specialist outpatient clinics until further notice.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/hospitals-prepare-for-surge-in-covid-19-cases-0

*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