DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 9th February 2017

Singapore Economy

Annual job creation over next 3-5 years to be 25,000-40,000: Swee Say
Singapore aims to create about 25,000 to 40,000 jobs annually over the next three to five years, said Minister for Manpower Lim Swee Say on Wednesday. Due to economic restructuring and an ageing workforce, the number of jobs created in the last two years had gone down significantly, he noted. “We won’t go back to the days of 100,000 to 120,000 jobs a year,” Mr Lim told the media on the sidelines of a career fair at Crowne Plaza Hotel in Changi Airport. “The number will stabilise at the new base.” His comments come a day after the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) released its job vacancies report for 2016. While more jobs in the coming years will be aimed at professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs), he said, there is a higher risk of mismatches between jobseekers and job openings.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/annual-job-creation-over-next-3-5-years-to-be-25000-40000-swee-say
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/spore-aims-to-lift-annual-job-growth-despite-challenges?login=true
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/annual-job-growth-of-25-000-to-40-000-expected-in-next-3-to-5/3501666.html
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/annual-jobs-growth-stabilise-25000-40000-next-3-5-years-lim-swee-say

Singapore Real Estate

URA appoints team led by KCAP Architects&Planners as consultant for Jurong Lake District
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has appointed a team led by KCAP Architects&Planners as consultant to develop the detailed master plan for Jurong Lake District. URA said on Wednesday that the team’s proposal received the highest score among those of the five teams shortlisted for Stage 2 of the Jurong Lake District Request for Proposal exercise.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/ura-appoints-team-led-by-kcap-architectsplanners-as-consultant-for-jurong-lake-district
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/vision-of-greenery-and-water-in-spores-2nd-cbd
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/sensitive-focus-on-nature-helps-kcap-win-jurong-lake-district/3501400.html

AECOM picked to conduct engineering study for HSR
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has appointed AECOM Singapore to conduct the advanced engineering study (AES) for the design of the High Speed Rail (HSR) infrastructure within Singapore. The study will include providing architectural, civil, electrical, mechanical and other design services required for the Jurong East terminus, tunnels, and the bridge across the Strait of Johor. The Kuala Lumpur-Singapore HSR is a strategic project between the governments of Malaysia and Singapore. It aims to provide seamless travel between the two capital cities. The 350 km line will have eight stations, including Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, cutting travel time between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur to 90 minutes.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/aecom-picked-to-conduct-engineering-study-for-hsr
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/hsr-study-246m-contract-awarded-to-aecom
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/us-engineering-firm-aecom-to-design-singapore-s-high-speed-rail/3501306.html
http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/us-firm-aecom-design-singapore-hsr-infrastructure

High Court clears owners’ panel over en bloc sale
The High Court cleared the sale committee behind the collective sale of Shunfu Ville estate, noting that the move was done in good faith and sparked by the inability of the ageing residents to keep up with maintenance payments in the ageing estate. Explaining the court’s decision to overrule the Strata Titles Board which had stopped the sale last September, Judicial Commissioner Aedit Abdullah held the committee had “properly made” the application, obtaining the requisite 80 per cent consent and complying with the Land Titles (Strata) Act.
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/high-court-clears-owners-panel-over-en-bloc-sale?login=true

Companies’ Brief

Impairment, revaluation dampen Perennial’s Q4
Perennial Real Estate Holdings reported on Wednesday a 37.8 per cent fall in its fourth-quarter net profit, dragged in part by impairment costs related to Eden Residences Capitol and revaluation of investment properties. It is bullish about prospects in China, and plans to expand into the healthcare sector in the world’s most populous economy. Net profit for the three months ended Dec 31, 2016 stood at S$25.6 million compared to S$41.1 million a year ago. Earnings per share for the quarter came up to 1.53 Singapore cents, down from 2.48 cents in the previous year.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/impairment-revaluation-dampen-perennials-q4

Ho Bee still keen on London properties despite Brexit
Property group Ho Bee Land’s chairman says the group is still keen on buying investment properties in London – despite announcing a sale of its Rose Court freehold office block in Southwark for £94.5 million (S$167.2 million) on Wednesday. “We believe its fundamentals as a global financial city remain sound despite Brexit,” said Chua Thian Poh, who is also Ho Bee’s chief executive. Explaining why the group decided to sell Rose Court, he noted that as the lease for the entire building with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will end in about 18 months’ time in September 2018, “we felt that it was timely to divest the property”. The annual rental under the lease is £4.346 million.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/ho-bee-still-keen-on-london-properties-despite-brexit

AA Reit’s Q3 DPU down 2.8% to 2.77 cents
AIMS AMP Capital Industrial Reit (AA Reit) on Thursday announced a 2.8 per cent decrease in distribution per unit (DPU) to 2.77 Singapore cents for its third quarter ended Dec 31, 2016, down from 2.85 Singapore cents a year ago. This came on the back of a 6.7 per cent fall in gross revenue from S$32.5 million last year to S$30.4 million this year, due mainly to lower rental contributions for the properties at 27 Penjuru Lane, 8 &10 Pandan Crescent as well as the loss in revenue due to the redevelopment of 8 & 10 Tuas Avenue 20.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/aa-reits-q3-dpu-down-28-to-277-cents

GLP’s Q3 profit down 7.3% to S$170.7m
Global Logistic Properties (GLP) on Thursday posted a 7.3 per cent fall in net profit to S$170.7 million for its third quarter ended Dec 31, 2016 – attributable to a one-time US syndication gain a year ago and higher forex losses in this quarter. Revenue rose by 16.9 per cent to S$232.5 million, due mainly to the completion and stabilisation of development projects in China with increasing rents; revenue from financial services in China; and an increase in management fee income from its fund management platform.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/glps-q3-profit-down-73-to-s1707m
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/glps-q3-profit-drops-73-reviewing-non-binding-proposals-from-several

HL Global Enterprises secures extension of loan repayment date till July 2018
Singapore-listed HL Global Enterprises (HLGE) has entered into an agreement with a unit of China Yuchai International to extend a S$68 million loan by another one year to July 2, 2018. This unsecured loan stemmed from the conversion of zero-coupon unsecured bonds of HLGE due in 2009 into an unsecured loan by Venture Lewis, a unit of China Yuchai. The loan was subsequently extended every year from 2010 to 2015. In January 2016, the loan was extended for a further one year term until July 2 this year.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/hl-global-enterprises-secures-extension-of-loan-repayment-date-till-july-2018

LH Group renamed Pacific Star, transfers to Catalist Board
Singapore-listed LH Group was renamed Pacific Star Development Limited on Wednesday, having obtained shareholders’ approval the same day for the proposed reverse takeover of Pacific Star Development. At the extraordinary general meeting held on Wednesday, a special resolution on the proposed transfer of the listing status from the mainboard to Catalist was also passed. The effective transfer date is Feb 13.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/lh-group-renamed-pacific-star-transfers-to-catalist-board

Sabana Reit investors go on offensive, ask for EGM
Disgruntled investors have ignited a process that could unseat the board of Sabana Real Estate Investment Management and remove it from managing Sabana Shariah-compliant Reit. A group of 66 investors who hold a combined 0.6 per cent stake in the industrial property trust has asked the Reit manager to convene a meeting to vote on the firm’s removal. They feel the manager is paid too much and want the firm replaced with an in-house management.
http://www.straitstimes.com/business/sabana-reit-investors-go-on-offensive-ask-for-egm

JLL research head leaves to join ARA
Property consulting group JLL’s head of South-east Asia research Chua Yang Liang is understood to have quit and will be moving over to ARA Asset Management’s private funds arm. Dr Chua, 47, is expected to be head of research and strategies at ARA Private Funds, which is headed by Ng Beng Tiong. ARA Private Funds is one of Asia’s leading private equity real estate managers and its portfolio of funds includes the ARA Asia Dragon Funds series, ARA Harmony series, Morningside Investment Partners and ARA China Investment Partners (which has California Public Employees’ Retirement System as the main investor).
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/jll-research-head-leaves-to-join-ara

Views, Reviews & Forum

Stamp duty hike an effective cooling measure, says HK housing secretary
The Hong Kong government has pronounced its November 2016 increase in stamp duty on residential property transactions to a flat rate of 15 per cent as an effective cooling measure. The declaration by Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, Secretary for Transport and Housing, on Wednesday was the first public evaluation by the government of the stamp-duty hike. It was the second time this duty has been raised in three years to cool soaring real-estate prices in the city often acknowledged as the world’s least affordable. The 15 per cent stamp duty for all residential purchases – except for those by first-time buyers who are permanent residents – was a significant increase from the previous highest levy for residents, at 8.5 per cent.
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/stamp-duty-hike-an-effective-cooling-measure-says-hk-housing-secretary