DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 8 Jan 2021 (Fri)

Singapore Real Estate

82 HDB resale flats sold for at least S$1m in 2020: SRX
The number of Housing and Development Board (HDB) resale flats sold for at least S$1 million hit a new high last year, amid a strong showing by the market despite the Covid-19 pandemic, flash data from real estate portal SRX indicated on Thursday. There were 82 million-dollar flats transacted in 2020, up from 64 the year before, with December adding 10 more of such transactions.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/82-hdb-resale-flats-sold-for-at-least-s1m-in-2020-srx-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/82-million-dollar-hdb-resale-flats-sold-last-year-in-new-high

House at centre of Yang Yin saga on sale again, for $25m
The house that former China tour guide Yang Yin nearly cheated from a rich Singaporean widow is up for sale again, at a lower price of $25 million, or about $785 per sq ft (psf) on land area. The property was put up for sale by real estate consulting firm Edmund Tie yesterday, nearly three years after the previous tender in February 2018. Madam Chung Khin Chun’s bungalow in Gerald Crescent, off Yio Chu Kang Road, sits on a 31,882 sq ft plot of land – about the size of half a football field. It has a 999-year lease that began in 1879.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/house-at-centre-of-yang-yin-saga-on-sale-again-for-25m

Singapore Economy

7 things to watch for in Singapore’s 2021 economic growth story
Singapore is poised for a slow and gradual economic recovery from the worst recession since independence, and these are the forces that could shape its trajectory.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sites/default/files/attachment/2021/01/08/BT_20210108_SSECONYRX8_4398154.pdf

WEF annual meeting in S’pore moved to May 25 to 28
The World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting will now take place in Singapore from May 25 to 28, nearly two weeks later than previously stated. This is according to an update on the WEF’s website. The conference, which gathers top political, business and academic leaders to discuss pressing global issues, was originally scheduled to be held from May 13 to 16.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/wef-annual-meeting-in-spore-moved-to-may-25-to-28

Companies’ Brief

BlackRock raps Top Glove board over worker safety
BlackRock has criticised Top Glove’s board for failing to see to the health and safety of workers living in the glovemaker’s dormitories. The asset manager voted against seven of the 12 resolutions tabled by Top Glove at its annual general meeting (AGM) convened on Wednesday, according to a Vote Bulletin published late Wednesday.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/blackrock-raps-top-glove-board-over-worker-safety-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/blackrock-raps-top-glove-board-over-covid-19-safety-lapses

CDL exec chair defends new independent board directors
City Developments (CDL) executive chairman Kwek Leng Beng has come out to defend recent appointments to the board and reassure investors after an exodus of directors put the spotlight on bitter internal divisions over the group’s investment in Chinese real estate developer Sincere Property Group.
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/cdl-exec-chair-defends-new-independent-board-directors

C&W’s Christine Li to join Knight Frank; Colliers hires JLL’s Joseph Yee
Singapore’s property circles have been seeing several executive moves of late, involving industry veterans. Christine Li, head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia at Cushman & Wakefield (C&W), will be leaving the New York-listed real estate services firm after close to two years in that role, The Business Times (BT) has learnt.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/cws-christine-li-to-join-knight-frank-colliers-hires-jlls-joseph-yee-0

Soilbuild Construction appoints new CEO
Soilbuild Construction Group has appointed Tan Hee Wee as chief executive officer (CEO) of the construction business. In a bourse filing on Thursday, the mainboard-listed firm said Mr Tan “possesses the requisite experience and capabilities” to assume the responsibilities of a CEO.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/soilbuild-construction-appoints-new-ceo

Three Eagle Hospitality Trust directors resign
Three Eagle Hospitality Trust (EHT) independent directors – Tarun Kataria, Lau Chun Wah and Kelvin Tan – who were among those previously arrested and released on bail, have resigned from the firm’s board. Last October, EHT announced that six of its former and current Singapore-based directors had been arrested on “reasonable suspicion” that disclosure requirements may have been breached.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/three-eagle-hospitality-trust-directors-resign-0
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/3-eagle-hospitality-trust-directors-resign-following-arrests-last-year

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

New chapter in Singapore-Portugal ties
The year 2021 presents an opportunity for both countries to work together on enhancing Asean-EU relations, as Portugal helms the presidency of the EU Council for the first semester, while Singapore is the Asean Country Coordinator for Asean-EU Dialogue Relations.
https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/new-chapter-in-singapore-portugal-ties-0

The rise and rise of livestreaming retail
Those of us of a certain vintage will know of the loud, chatty and very persuasive “aunties and uncles” who would pop up around wet markets and in supermarkets, hawking new-fangled pots and pans, magic cleaners and other gizmos and offering food tastings and cooking demos. Well, surprise: They’ve gone online too. A new phenomenon has taken the retail world by storm – live-streaming e-commerce.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/weekend/the-rise-and-rise-of-livestreaming-retail

Curtain falls on CoAssets crowdfund platform, but no systemic risk seen in P2P lending
Singapore-based crowdfunding platform CA Funding – formerly known as CoAssets – has thrown in the towel and is in the process of winding down, but there is no sign it is a harbinger of the collapse of others in the peer-to-peer lending space, said industry watchers.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/curtain-falls-on-coassets-crowdfund-platform-but-no-systemic-risk-seen-in-p2p
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/banking-finance/bitter-wait-for-coassets-noteholders-as-investments-turn-sour

Update on COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) Situation

Crowne Plaza Changi Airport closed for two weeks after 2nd case emerges
Crowne Plaza Changi Airport will be closed for two weeks from today after a second unlinked Covid-19 case – a Malaysian working at the hotel’s Azur restaurant – emerged. The Ministry of Health (MOH) yesterday said it is closing the hotel until Jan 21 as a precautionary measure, as it cannot rule out the possibility that transmissions could have occurred at the hotel.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/crowne-plaza-changi-airport-closed-for-two-weeks-after-2nd-case-emerges
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/crowne-plaza-changi-airport-closed-for-two-weeks-after-second-covid-19-case

Covid-19 and young people: What the experts know so far
Those below the age of 16 will not be getting the Covid-19 vaccination any time soon because not enough is known about the side effects for this group. Children and young people have a much lower risk of contracting the virus, and studies have shown that they are less likely to be active spreaders of it too. Here is what we know so far:
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/covid-19-and-young-people-what-the-experts-know-so-far
*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