DAILY NEWS

Daily News – 6 July 2022 (Wed)

SINGAPORE REAL ESTATE

ABSD (Trust) not intended to be a wealth tax: Chee Hong Tat
Senior Minister of State for Finance Chee Hong Tat said on Tuesday (Jul 5) that the new stamp duties introduced in May are not intended to be a form of wealth tax; instead, they are part of the government’s raft of measures aimed at cooling down the residential property market.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/absd-trust-not-intended-to-be-a-wealth-tax-chee-hong-tat
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/additional-duties-on-property-transfers-into-trusts-are-not-meant-to-be-wealth-taxes-chee-hong-tat

Singapore retail sales up by 17.8% in May from year-ago low base
Singapore retail sales grew by 17.8 per cent year on year in May, picking up from the 12.1 per cent rise in the month before, against the low base of a year ago, when the borders were shut. On a monthly, seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales were up by 1.8 per cent to S$3.9 billion, with online transactions making up about 12.0 per cent of sales.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-retail-sales-up-by-178-in-may-from-year-ago-low-base
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/singapore-retail-sales-grow-at-faster-pace-of-178-in-may

H1 property investment sales double to S$20.2b from year ago: Knight Frank
The property investment market recorded some S$8.2 billion worth of transactions in Q2 2022, bringing the half year’s total to S$20.2 billion — an 88.7 per cent improvement or almost double the S$10.7 billion in transactions registered in H1 2021.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/h1-property-investment-sales-double-to-s202b-from-year-ago-knight-frank
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/property/spore-property-investment-sales-nearly-double-to-202b-in-first-half-of-2022-knight-frank

GuocoLand’s Midtown Modern introduces ‘Sky-Bungalows’ at S$15.5m to S$17m each
GuocoLand has launched a collection of 6 large, double-storey homes at its Midtown Modern condominium in Bugis priced at S$15.5 million to S$17 million each or S$4,287 to S$4,701 per square foot (psf).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/guocolands-midtown-modern-introduces-sky-bungalows-at-s155m-to-s17m-each

People’s Park Centre up for collective sale with S$1.8b reserve price
Mixed-used development People’s Park Centre has been put up for collective sale via public tender with a S$1.8 billion reserve price, ERA Realty Network announced on Wednesday (Jul 6). This translates to a land rate of about S$2,620 per square foot per plot ratio, including the differential premium and the premium to top up the land tenure to a fresh 99 years lease, ERA added.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/peoples-park-centre-up-for-collective-sale-with-s18b-reserve-price

Five-room Marine Parade flat sold for $1.01m; first million-dollar flat in estate
Singapore – A five-room Housing Board flat at Block 28 Marine Crescent changed hands for $1,010,888 this month, marking the first million-dollar HDB resale transaction in the Marine Parade estate.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/housing/five-room-hdb-flat-in-marine-parade-sold-for-101-million-in-one-week-first-million-dollar-hdb-in-the-estate

SINGAPORE ECONOMY

Singapore’s household debt ‘remains healthy’ even with latest rise in interest rates: Tharman
Singapore’s household debt situation “remains healthy”, Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said on Tuesday (Jul 5) in reply to parliamentary questions on rising interest rates and inflation.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapores-household-debt-remains-healthy-even-with-latest-rise-in-interest-rates

MAS mulls tighter regulations on crypto platforms
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is considering tighter measures on cryptocurrency trading platforms, said Tharman Shanmugaratnam, minister in charge of the regulator, in a written answer to a parliamentary question.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/mas-mulls-tighter-regulations-on-crypto-platforms

Jamus Lim, Alvin Tan on inflation, SGD moves and latest support package
Through the use of monetary policy, Singapore’s central bank has strengthened its exchange rate by “at least 5 per cent” on an annualised basis in a bid to manage rising inflation, said Minister of State for Trade and Industry Alvin Tan on Tuesday (Jul 5).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/jamus-lim-alvin-tan-on-inflation-sgd-moves-and-latest-support-package
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/jamus-lim-and-alvin-tan-spar-over-response-to-cost-of-living-issues
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/parliament-from-the-gallery-cost-of-living-again-on-the-agenda

Singapore rules out pump price caps amid rising fuel costs
Singapore will not consider controls on petrol and diesel pump prices, even as fuel costs here climb on the back of higher global crude oil prices, Minister of State for Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling said in Parliament on Tuesday (Jul 5).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-rules-out-pump-price-caps-amid-rising-fuel-costs
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/govt-wont-cap-fuel-prices-as-it-distorts-market-will-consider-other-ways-to-ease-cost-pressures

Work Injury Compensation Act may be applied to ’employee-like’ gig workers: Koh Poh Koon
An advisory committee set up last year to better protect platform workers is looking at whether the Work Injury Compensation Act (WICA) can be applied to them to provide greater financial protection when they are injured.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/work-injury-compensation-act-may-be-applied-to-employee-like-gig-workers-koh-poh

Changi Airport saw 8.9m passengers in first half; aviation workforce nears 80% of pre-Covid levels
Changi Airport handled about 8.9 million passengers in the first 6 months of 2022, buoyed by strong traffic over the June school holidays that averaged around 50 per cent of pre-pandemic weekly figures, said Transport Minister S Iswaran in a written reply to parliamentary questions on Tuesday (July 5).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/transport/changi-airport-saw-89m-passengers-in-first-half-aviation-workforce-nears-80-of-pre-covid

Amro cuts Singapore economic growth forecasts on war in Ukraine, China slowdown
Singapore – Singapore’s economy will grow less this year than previously estimated and may expand at a much slower pace in 2023, said a report by the Asean+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (Amro).
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/economy/amro-cuts-its-singapore-economic-growth-forecast-on-war-in-ukraine-china-slowdown

VIEWS, REVIEWS, FORUM AND OTHERS

Ultra-rich families – the faceless force in startup funding
There is a special breed of investors behind some of the biggest rising stars in South-east Asian tech. At times, they lie behind layers of corporate structures that end in the Cayman Islands. Their websites are sparse — if they even have one at all. When they co-invest in startups, it is often called “shadow capital”.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/garage/ultra-rich-families-the-faceless-force-in-startup-funding

Monkeypox cases top 5,000: WHO
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that 5,322 laboratory-confirmed cases of monkeypox had been reported to it in the current outbreak, 85 per cent of which are in Europe. Though case numbers are rapidly increasing, the United Nations health agency has not set a date for its emergency committee on monkeypox to convene for a second meeting.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/monkeypox-cases-top-5000-who

Mass vaccination against monkeypox not recommended: Ong Ye Kung
Singapore – Singapore will not hold a nationwide vaccination drive against monkeypox as the public is at low risk of being infected, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung. Globally, there are now more than 5,000 cases of monkeypox.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/mass-vaccination-against-monkeypox-not-recommended-ong-ye-kung

UPDATE ON COVID-19 (CORONAVIRUS DISEASE 2019) SITUATION

Singapore records 12,784 new Covid-19 cases; most number of infections since March 22
There were 12,784 new Covid-19 cases recorded in Singapore on Tuesday (July 5), around double the 5,946 cases on Monday. This exceeds the 11,504 cases recorded last Tuesday (June 28), which had been the highest daily number of infections since March 22, when it was over 13,000.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/singapore-records-12784-new-covid-19-cases-most-number-of-infections-since-march
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/spore-records-12784-new-covid-19-cases-most-number-of-infections-since-march-22

More than 12,000 new Covid-19 cases expected, but current wave likely less severe: Ong Ye Kung
The current Omicron wave is likely to not be as severe as the first one that hit Singapore earlier this year, with more people gaining stronger immunity through boosters or recovery from infections, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in Parliament on Tuesday (July 5).
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/more-than-12000-new-covid-19-cases-expected-but-current-wave-likely-less-severe
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/spore-near-or-at-peak-of-current-covid-19-wave-with-cases-expected-to-cross-12k-ong-ye-kung

Curbs on hospital and residential care home visits as Covid-19 cases rise: MOH
There will be limits on the number of visitors at all hospital wards and residential care homes for a month starting Thursday (July 7). The move is to protect healthcare workers and the vulnerable as the number of Covid-19 cases rise in Singapore, the Health Ministry (MOH) said.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/curbs-on-hospital-and-residential-care-home-visits-as-covid-19-cases-rise-moh

*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