DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 7th February 2018

Top Story

Safeguards already in place against en bloc sale of newer projects
The en bloc fever got an airing in Parliament on Tuesday, with a member of parliament (MP) asking whether the government should consider setting a minimum age for developments seeking to go for a collective sale. In response to the question from MP Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC), Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said other safeguards are already in place. For instance, the collective sales framework requires newer developments to achieve higher consent thresholds. The Land Titles (Strata) Act requires buildings under 10 years old to obtain consent from at least 90 per cent of the owners for a collective sale to go through; older developments need to amass 80 per cent consent.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/safeguards-already-in-place-against-en-bloc-sale-of-newer-projects

Singapore Economy

Singapore-Malaysia stock link breaks new ground for Asean markets
Investors in Singapore and Malaysia will have seamless trading access to the two neighbours’ 1,600 public-listed companies, worth more than US$1.2 trillion, by the end of the year. Singapore and Malaysian regulators said on Tuesday that they would work together to set up a stock market trading link between Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Bursa Malaysia (BM).
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/stocks/singapore-malaysia-stock-link-breaks-new-ground-for-asean-markets
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/asian-markets-plunge-but-analysts-remain-calm

EDB moves from being investment-led to innovation-driven
One of Singapore’s oldest government agencies is reinventing the way it does things in a bid to keep pace with digital disruption and mould Singapore into Asia’s digital capital. The Economic Development Board (EDB), set up in 1961 to undertake investment promotion and bring foreign companies into Singapore, is pivoting from its long-time strategy of being “investment-led” to being “innovation-driven”.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/edb-moves-from-being-investment-led-to-innovation-driven

Singapore Real Estate

3,664 flats for sale in 2018’s first BTO exercise
The Housing and Development Board (HDB) on Tuesday launched 3,664 Built-To-Order (BTO) flats for sale in four estates, in its first exercise of the year. This is the first tranche of some 17,000 BTO flats expected in 2018 and also the inaugural batch of units to be built with an open kitchen concept whenever possible. There are five projects in the February 2018 BTO Exercise, with units ranging from two-room Flexi to five-room flats, HDB said in a statement.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/3664-flats-for-sale-in-2018s-first-bto-exercise
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/3664-bto-flats-up-for-sale-in-four-towns
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/hdb-launches-4381-flats-february-2018-bto-and-rof-exercise

Scope for short-term private home rentals in Singapore: Lawrence Wong
There is some scope to allow short-term accommodations in Singapore that are subject to the proper safeguards and controls, said National Development Minister Lawrence Wong in parliament on Tuesday. He was responding to a question by member of parliament Henry Kwek (Nee Soon GRC), who asked if Mr Wong’s ministry would consider working with operators like Airbnb to find a way to regulate private homes being rented out.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/scope-for-short-term-private-home-rentals-in-singapore-lawrence-wong

Pacific Mansion seeks S$938m en bloc price
The owners of Pacific Mansion have put the River Valley condominium up for public tender with a reserve price of S$938 million or S$1,728 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), said CBRE, their appointed property agent. Built in the mid-1970s, the development is located in River Valley Close on a freehold residential site with a land area of approximately 128,352 square feet.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/pacific-mansion-seeks-s938m-en-bloc-price
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/pacific-mansion-up-for-collective-sale-at-938m

13 of 40 properties sold en bloc in last three years were less than 30 years old
Nearly one in three developments that went en bloc in the last three years – or 13 out of 40 – were less than 30 years at the point of sale, said Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong in Parliament on Tuesday (Feb 6). Most of the developments were, however, more than 20 years old at the point of sale and were small developments with fewer than 20 units each, he said.
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/13-40-properties-sold-en-bloc-last-three-years-were-less-30-years-old

Companies’ Brief

JTC inks MOUs on Seletar Aerospace Park with GE Aviation, Hawker Pacific, PPG
National industrial-estate developer JTC signed a series of memoranda of understanding with three global aerospace companies, Hawker Pacific, GE Aviation and PPG, at the Singapore Airshow on Tuesday. GE Aviation and PPG are moving into Seletar Aerospace Park, a JTC industrial park, while Hawker Pacific is expanding its facilities there.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/transport/jtc-inks-mous-on-seletar-aerospace-park-with-ge-aviation-hawker-pacific-ppg

Manulife US Reit aims to double AUM in 2 years
Manulife US Reit is looking to double its assets under management (AUM) to US$2.6 billion in the next two years. To achieve that aggressive target, nothing is off the table. Its Reit manager is open to acquiring accretive assets from its sponsor Manulife Financial Corp or from third parties, or partnering others to acquire a portfolio of assets.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/manulife-us-reit-aims-to-double-aum-in-2-years
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/manulife-us-reit-aims-for-34b-in-assets-in-2-years

Capital World posts Q2 net profit of RM17.4m
Malaysian property developer Capital World posted a net profit of RM17.4 million (S$5.9 million) for its second quarter ended Dec 31, 2017, up 90 per cent from RM9.2 million a year ago, on the back of an increase in revenue due to higher percentage of works completed.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capital-world-posts-q2-net-profit-of-rm174m

Yoma’s Q3 profit surges to S$16.8m after tour business spin-off
Mainboard-listed Yoma Strategic Holdings on Tuesday announced a third-quarter net profit of S$16.75 million, about 50 times more than its net profit of S$334,000 in the year-ago period. With about 1.84 million shares outstanding, this translates to an earnings per share of 0.91 Singapore cent for the quarter ended Dec 31, up from 0.02 Singapore cent a year ago.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/yomas-q3-profit-surges-to-s168m-after-tour-business-spin-off

Frasers Hospitality to develop new serviced residence in Ginza, Tokyo for S$250m
Frasers Hospitality, a division of Frasers Centrepoint, announced after market hours on Tuesday that it is pumping S$250 million to develop a new serviced residence in Tokyo’s Ginza district. This will be launched under the group’s millennial-focused hotel residence brand Capri by Fraser and is expected to open around 2020.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/frasers-hospitality-to-develop-new-serviced-residence-in-ginza-tokyo-for-s250m

Sinway-led consortium’s holdings reach 90.19% of CWG International
Elidom Investment, jointly owned by Sinway Investment, H&H Wealth and Floriland Co, announced it currently owns or controls some 597.12 million shares in international real estate group CWG International representing 90.19 per cent of the total number of issued shares, and is taking steps to delist the company from the Singapore Exchange’s mainboard.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/sinway-led-consortiums-holdings-reach-9019-of-cwg-international

ESR-Reit trustee to divest Bukit Batok property for S$23.9m
ESR-Reit announced on Tuesday that its trustee, RBC Investor Services Trust, has entered into an option to purchase with MSS Bukit Batok for the sale of 9 Bukit Batok Street 22 for S$23.9 million. The sale consideration, excluding divestment costs and applicable goods and services tax, is 1.3 per cent above the property’s current book value of S$23.6 million, ESR-Reit said, and is subject to approval by JTC Corporation. The transaction is expected to take place in the first half of 2018.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/esr-reit-trustee-to-divest-bukit-batok-property-for-s239m

Views, Reviews & Forum

Transforming business through artificial intelligence
In A 2016 survey commissioned by software giant Microsoft, the company discovered that business leaders in Singapore are showing urgency in embracing the “Fourth Industrial Revolution”, defined as the use of technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), advanced data analytics, and mixed reality, all powered by cloud computing.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/hub/empowering-enterprise/transforming-business-through-artificial-intelligence

Optimism over manufacturing
Singapore’s factory activity is still going strong, with January marking the 17th straight month of expansion and a new high. With manufacturing making up a fifth of the economy, this continued momentum should support overall growth. And though electronics manufacturing growth is slowing, the non-electronics sectors are picking up the slack – a promising sign.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/optimism-over-manufacturing