DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 5th, 6th and 7th January 2019

Singapore Real Estate

Big developers’ share prices take a beating
The cooling measures that hit the market last July have hammered share prices of the country’s big developers to the point where some are at “close-to-crisis valuations”. The change in fortunes since the July 6 measures has been stark with property shares under the FTSE ST Real Estate Holding & Development Index down between 20 and 25 per cent with little prospect of improvement given a projected slowdown in sale volumes and continued declines in home prices.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/big-developers-share-prices-take-a-beating

Flynn Park, Choon Kim House have second go at en bloc sale
The freehold 72-unit Flynn Park, off Pasir Panjang Road, has a minimum price of S$363.8 million. Following the July cooling measures, owners have been collecting signatures to get an 80 per cent mandate to lower the reserve price to S$325 million; they are at 75 per cent now.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/flynn-park-choon-kim-house-have-second-go-at-en-bloc-sale
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/flynn-park-choon-kim-house-give-collective-sales-another-shot-0

Singapore property agents’ track records now available online
Would-be Housing Board flat buyers and sellers can now find out more about property agents’ track record with the click of a button. On Friday, the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) launched the Property Agents’ Transaction Records Initiative, which publishes the records of residential transactions facilitated by realtors here in the last two years.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/singapore-property-agents-track-records-now-available-online-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/check-out-hdb-property-agents-track-records-online

Singapore Economy

Slight 2.5% fall seen in Singapore 2019 dividends in absence of DBS’s one-off
Dividend huggers may be slightly miffed because 2019 dividends from Singapore is expected to fall 2.5 per cent to S$19.9 billion due to the absence of one-off specials from DBS Group Holdings and Keppel Corp. Property and Reit loyalists will be rewarded as real estate payouts are likely to rise in 2019 according to financial data provider IHS Markit.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/slight-25-fall-seen-in-singapore-2019-dividends-in-absence-of-dbss-one-off

Singapore must continue to transform economy amid global uncertainties: Heng
Singapore must continue to innovate and transform its economy in the face of uncertainties in the global economy and rapid technological advancements, said Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat. At the same time, Singaporeans must also be equipped with the relevant skills so that the country can progress together, Mr Heng said in a Facebook posting on Thursday, as he called for the public to continue sharing suggestions for the upcoming Budget.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/singapore-must-continue-to-transform-economy-amid-global-uncertainties-heng

Budget 2019 could focus on SMEs: Analysts
As Singapore presses on with economic transformation, the Government can be expected to further nudge small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to innovate and seek opportunities abroad, said observers yesterday, ahead of next month’s Budget statement.
https://www.straitstimes.com/politics/budget-2019-could-focus-on-smes-analysts

EDB revamp to boost foreign investments, local enterprises
The Economic Development Board (EDB) has introduced changes in the way it works as it moves to bolster foreign investment and boost local enterprises. Staff has been sorted into three streams so it can build deeper relationships with companies, better attract promising businesses and generate financing for local start-ups.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/edb-revamp-to-boost-foreign-investments-local-enterprises
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/getting-asean-to-do-business-with-the-world-through-singapore

Companies’ Brief

ARA, Chelsfield acquire Manulife Centre in Singapore for S$555.5m
ARA Asset Management and British property group Chelsfield have jointly acquired Manulife Centre at 51 Bras Basah Road for around S$555.5 million. That’s about S$2,305 per square feet for the 11-storey commercial building with a net lettable area of over 241,000 sq ft. The vendors are City Developments (CDL) and Alpha Asia Macro Trends Fund II (AAMTF II), which is managed by Alpha Investment Partners.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ara-chelsfield-acquire-manulife-centre-in-singapore-for-s5555m-0

ARA co-founder John Lim now Sias patron
ARA Asset Management’s co-founder John Lim is now patron of the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) with effect from Jan 1. The role is honorary with no executive functions. He joins Stephen Riady, executive chairman of property group OUE, who became patron of Sias from June last year. Tony Tan Keng Yam, the former president of Singapore, became the chief patron of the shareholder watchdog group in October 2017.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/ara-co-founder-john-lim-now-sias-patron

SPH Reit posts flat DPU of 1.34 Singapore cents for Q1 FY2019
Retail landlord SPH Reit, which posted a distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.34 Singapore cents for the first quarter ended Nov 30, 2018, expects to see the full contribution from its latest acquisition Figtree Grove Shopping Centre in the second half of the year. First-quarter DPU – which is unchanged from a year ago – will be paid out to unitholders on Feb 15.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sph-reit-posts-flat-dpu-of-134-singapore-cents-for-q1-fy2019
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/sph-reit-declares-dpu-of-134-cents-for-first-quarter

Sabana Reit getting basics right before going abroad
Donald Han could have chosen to retire comfortably at a top real estate consultancy agency and make his mark as an industry veteran. Instead, the intrepid Singaporean permanent resident left his cushy position and headed “straight into a battlefield”.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sabana-reit-getting-basics-right-before-going-abroad

CapitaLand in 50:50 venture to buy 70% of Shanghai’s Pufa Tower for $546.3m as seed asset for new fund
CapitaLand has entered a 50:50 joint venture to acquire a prime office building in Shanghai as a seed asset for a value-add fund which CapitaLand is setting up “to invest in commercial real estate in key gateway cities in Asia”, it announced on Monday morning (Jan 7). The acquisition will immediately contribute to the group’s recurring income.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/capitaland-in-5050-venture-to-buy-70-of-shanghais-pufa-tower-for-5463m-as

Construction tech startup Novade on paperless crusade with one-stop solutions platform
When he led Autodesk’s Asia sales team, Denis Branthonne wanted to sell the engineering and architecture software that his company was famous for. It turned out that his clients at construction sites also had other concerns. “In the last few years of my tenure, a lot of clients were telling me, ‘We understand the software and see its benefits, but we really need systems to help us manage operations on-site’,” said Mr Branthonne, 48, who worked at Autodesk between 2002 and 2013.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/construction-tech-startup-novade-on-paperless-crusade-with-one-stop-solutions-platform

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Court rejects bid to get StreetSine to place $456k security for costs
The High Court has rejected a bid by 23 defendants, including the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers (SISV), for info-tech firm StreetSine Singapore to place some $456,000 as security for costs before continuing its lawsuit against them. The defendants had claimed they were entitled to security as there was “credible evidence” StreetSine would be unable to pay their costs if they won the case.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/court-rejects-bid-to-get-streetsine-to-place-456k-security-for-costs

Shared offices up the ante
Once thought of as cramped, lowcost shared offices for aspiring start-ups and freelancers, co-working spaces have gotten snazzier, more photogenic and more customised along the way. Increasingly, small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) and global companies looking to set up a branch in Singapore can be found in these trendy spaces, say experts.
https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/shared-offices-up-the-ante