DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 7 December 2021 (Tue)

Singapore Real Estate

Construction firms expect latest Covid-19 curbs by MOM to further delay projects
Singapore – Companies in the construction, marine shipyard and process sectors are expecting their projects to be delayed by a few months. This comes after employers in these sectors were no longer allowed to make new applications for workers holding S Passes or work permits to enter Singapore via the vaccinated travel lanes (VTLs).
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/construction-firms-expect-latest-covid-19-curbs-by-mom-to-further-delay-projects-by-up-to

Singapore Economy

New virus strains, above-target inflation key risks to financial stability in 2022: MAS
Corporates, households and banks in Singapore have remained stable over the year, buoyed by strong capital buffers, Covid-19 support measures and improving financial conditions. But even as economies have adapted to living with the pandemic, it continues to be a source of considerable uncertainty as the emergence of mutated virus strains threatens to derail progress, said the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in its annual Financial Stability Review on Monday (Dec 6).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/new-virus-strains-above-target-inflation-key-risks-to-financial-stability-in-2022
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/mas-warns-singapore-households-on-rising-mortgage-debt-ahead-of-potential-interest

Singapore is top investor in Vietnam for 2nd year running
Singapore leads foreign direct investments into Vietnam for the second consecutive year as firms continue to diversify their businesses, expand and capture new opportunities despite the Covid-19. Total foreign direct investments (FDIs) into Vietnam remain sizeable, amounting to US$28.5 billion in 2020 and US$23.8 billion in the first ten months of this year.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-is-top-investor-in-vietnam-for-2nd-year-running

Singapore a ‘natural partner’ for the UK in digital economy push
There is plenty of political will from the Singapore and UK governments to have a high-standard digital economy agreement (DEA) that is both ambitious and substantive. Making this point was British High Commissioner to Singapore Kara Owen, who noted that the negotiating teams from both sides have put in lots of resources since the talks began in late June, and there is that desire to reach a deal as quickly as possible.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-a-natural-partner-for-the-uk-in-digital-economy-push

Companies’ Brief

CapitaLand sells entire Ho Chi Minh City luxury residential development Define
CapitaLand Development has sold all 88 units of its luxury residential development Define at Ho Chi Minh City within 2 hours of its exclusive weekend preview on Saturday (Dec 4). The residences went at an average price of 125 million dong (S$7,424.74) per square metre (psm).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/capitaland-sells-entire-ho-chi-minh-city-luxury-residential-development-define

Pivoting to promising segments an increasingly important growth driver for Reits
Capitamall Trust (CMT) became Singapore’s first listed real estate investment trust (Reit) in July 2002. In its first five full years as a listed entity, DPU rose 66 per cent between 2003 and 2007 or a compound annual growth rate of nearly 14 per cent.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/pivoting-to-promising-segments-an-increasingly-important-growth-driver-for-reits

GIC in joint venture to buy Australian office building for A$335m
GIC and Australian-listed property group Charter Hall on Dec 6 announced their establishment of a joint venture to acquire the 50 Marcus Clarke office building in Canberra, Australia, for A$335 million (S$322 million).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/gic-in-joint-venture-to-buy-australian-office-building-for-a335m
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/gic-in-joint-venture-to-buy-office-building-in-australia-for-322-million

Keppel Land China to divest Nanjing development associate for 1.75 billion yuan
Keppel Land’s Chinese unit is divesting the associate company behind its first project in the eastern city of Nanjing, for 1.75 billion yuan (S$375.5 million), mainboard-listed parent Keppel Corp announced in a bourse filing on Monday (Dec 6).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/keppel-land-china-to-divest-nanjing-development-associate-for-175-billion-yuan

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Budget 2022: balancing growth priorities on the pandemic tightrope
When Singapore unveils its 2022 Budget, the world would have entered the third year of the Covid-19 pandemic. Planning for the Budget is well underway, but Omicron has now injected fresh uncertainty.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/budget-2022-balancing-growth-priorities-on-the-pandemic-tightrope

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

662 new Covid-19 cases in S’pore; 2 earlier imported cases now confirmed to have Omicron variant
SINGAPORE – A total of 662 new Covid-19 infections and four deaths were reported in Singapore on Monday (Dec 6). This is the fourth day in a row that new virus cases have fallen below 1,000.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/662-new-covid-19-cases-in-spore-2-earlier-imported-cases-now-confirmed-to-have

*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