Rising wages, rents, car prices, GST hike will have an impact (SINGAPORE) Even with rising oil and food prices, imported inflation will remain muted in 2008, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). But various domestic factors will impact on the consumer price index (CPI), it says. Wage pressures, for one, will persist in […]
Archive | October, 2007
Economy may take breather in 2008 with 4-6% growth
Oil prices and financial volatility are concerns but other drivers of growth still intact, says MAS (SINGAPORE) After four years of robust above-trend growth, Singapore faces a rather ‘more uncertain’ outlook next year, says the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), citing high oil prices and the chances of further bouts of financial volatility. And as […]
Rising inflation a major risk in emerging markets: economist
Currencies, property, stocks may become more attractive than debt for investors (SINGAPORE) Rising price inflation is fast becoming a major risk in emerging markets around the world due to surging food, oil and asset prices, according to a senior economist. For investors, the inflationary pressures building up in these countries and the likely response of […]
URA property auction attracts $37m of bids
Bidders included smaller developers, contractors and engineering firms THE mood continued to be buoyant at two property auctions yesterday held by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and DTZ Debenham Tie Leung. The URA auctioned 12 sub-divided landed housing plots near Sembawang Beach which can be developed into a total of 57 landed homes. The auction […]
HORIZON TOWERS SAGA – Majority owner raises fresh objections before STB
(SINGAPORE) If there’s one thing that has characterised the Horizon Towers saga, it’s the number of twists and turns that have emerged – and yesterday’s hearing before the Strata Titles Board (STB) was no exception. The session marked the start of the resumption of a previous hearing, which had stalled on Aug 3 when STB […]
CapitaMall to raise $500m in share sale
CAPITAMALL Trust, Singapore’s largest real estate investment trust (Reit), may raise as much as $500 million in a share sale to pay debt and fund acquisitions. CapitaMall will sell as many as 137.7 million new shares to institutional investors at between $3.63 and $3.70 apiece, it said in a statement late on Monday, representing a […]
Analysts see no property bubble
They’re mum on whether it’s a good time to buy, but agree S’pore fundamentals are pretty robust. PROPERTY: boom or bust? This was the intriguing question to which a capacity turnout of about 170 investors recently sought answers, at a dinner hosted by financial advisory firm ipac. The good news is that the experts at […]
An age of market resilience?
BIOLOGISTS believe that diversity increases stability and resilience in an ecosystem – a complex system where participants go about looking out for their own interest with the ultimate goal of surviving and thriving. What is true of a biological ecosystem may also hold good for the financial system, which, too, is complex. In which case, […]
Using HDB equity to pay for annuities
The median CPF member holds three times more in HDB housing equity than CPF cash holdings A NEW scheme making annuities compulsory for Central Provident Fund (CPF) members has been greeted quite negatively by the public. The scheme involves setting aside a small portion of the Minimum Sum to buy the annuity. When the individual […]
Acer Building in Jurong for sale
ACER Computer International is selling its building at International Business Park in Jurong East. The property is said to be worth about $75-80 million, or $337 to $360 psf of existing net lettable area (NLA). The property, a high- tech business park development, was completed about 10 years ago on a site leased from JTC […]
LATEST US DATA – Consumer confidence falls in Oct to lowest in 2 years
Slide due to concerns of weakening business conditions and impact on jobs (NEW YORK) A key barometer of US consumer sentiment dropped for the third month in a row, to its lowest level in two years, on growing concerns about weakening business conditions and the impact that could have on the job market as well […]
UBS hit by bigger than expected loss
First quarterly loss in 5 years, investment bank unlikely to break even in Q4 (ZURICH) UBS AG reported a higher-than-expected third-quarter loss after hefty writedowns on sub-primerelated investments, but said it expects to turn in a group profit in the last quarter. The Swiss bank, which took charges of 4.2 billion Swiss francs (S$5.22 billion) […]
A ‘reluctant’ Fed may cut rates at ongoing meeting after all
If it disappoints traders, it risks upsetting markets and hurting economy (WASHINGTON) US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues sound as if they would prefer to just say no to an interest-rate cut this week. The financial markets may not let them. Policy-makers from Mr Bernanke on down have avoided signalling they want […]
US sub-prime losses slow BOC Q3 net growth
(SHANGHAI) Bank of China Ltd (BOC), the nation’s third-largest bank, reported third-quarter profit growth that trailed rivals as losses related to US sub-prime mortgages dented earnings. Net income climbed to 15.9 billion yuan (S$3.1 billion), or 0.06 yuan a share, from 13 billion yuan, or 0.05 yuan a year earlier, the Beijing-based bank said in […]
No certainty of Fed rate cut this week
(TOKYO) A Federal Reserve interest rate cut this week is no sure thing and officials are not seriously considering a half-point reduction in overnight rates, The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday without citing sources. The article by Greg Ip, the Journal’s Fed watcher who is known for sometimes reflecting the views of senior central bankers, […]
Horizon Towers sale: Battle resumes today at strata board hearing
Two-week session to give final word on en bloc sale application (SINGAPORE) The Horizon Towers saga goes back on the boil today when the majority owners’ application for a collective sale is again heard by the Strata Titles Board (STB). The hearing, scheduled for two weeks, will be the final word on whether the en […]
PM Lee pledges further action on property if necessary
He says Friday’s measure will inject some market reality (SINGAPORE) Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday said the government will continue to monitor property market trends closely and take further action if necessary. His remarks come shortly after Friday evening’s announcement on the scrapping of the deferred payment scheme for property purchases, which Mr Lee […]
Five properties put up for en bloc sale
TENDERS for collective sales continue to be launched. The latest offerings include Dunearn Gardens near the Newton/ Scotts roads area, The Village in Pasir Panjang, and Riviera Point along River Valley Road. CB Richard Ellis, which is marketing Dunearn Gardens, says the guide price for the 95,443 sq ft freehold site, is $578.5 million, which […]
Restoring a genuine property market
PROPERTY stocks were sent reeling yesterday following the government’s announcement to discourage speculative buying in the real estate market. In contrast, bank stocks rose. The divergence in stock performance between the two market sectors comes down to this: what is bad news for speculators may prove to be good news for banks. The scrapping of […]
Property shares take a beating
Developers with inventory in prime districts may face pricing pressure PROPERTY analysts were still busy yesterday predicting how the market will be affected by the end of the deferred payment scheme (DPS) as property shares received their expected drubbing when trading opened. A report by OCBC Investment Research forecast tough times for the residential sector […]
Q4 distributable income for Suntec Reit up 22%
SUNTEC Reit has reported fourth-quarter income available for distribution of $30.4 million, an increase of 22.2 per cent from $24.8 million a year ago. For the same July 1-Sept 30 period, Suntec Reit recorded gross revenue of $51.1 million, an increase of 13.7 per cent year-on-year. Net property income was up 12 per cent up […]
Indonesian firm to list retail Reit on SGX
Venture with M’sian firm to have 7 malls worth US$250m INDONESIA’S eighth largest real estate developer, PT Perdana Gapuraprima, part of the Gapuraprima Group, is looking to list a retail real estate investment trust (Reit) on the Singapore Exchange in early 2008. Speaking at a press conference here yesterday, president director Rudy Margono said that […]
HK wage rise expected to top 4% next year
Recent civil service pay hike puts pressure on bosses IN HONG KONG HONG Kong salaries are tipped to rise by 4 per cent next year as the city benefits from robust economic growth and rising consumer confidence. According to a joint survey by the Hong Kong People Management Association and Hong Kong Baptist University, workers […]
Sub-prime losses up to 30b yen: Mitsubishi UFJ
IN TOKYO EVIDENCE of increasing international fallout from the US sub-prime mortgage crisis mounted yesterday as Japan’s biggest bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, said it would need to write down the value of sub-prime-related investments by up to 30 billion yen (S$379 million) – six times more than previously announced. The bank is expected to […]
Affluent Asians buck downtown LA trends
Koreans and others helping fuel resurgence of area as a place to live, not just work (LOS ANGELES) Architect Christopher Pak understands what upwardly mobile Koreans want and that’s why his latest project, a 22-storey residential tower, has no apartments on the fourth and fourteenth floors. The number 4 sounds like the word ‘death’ in […]
7,750 homes could still be sold using deferred payments
Units are in projects that had approval; developers may opt not to do so though UP TO 7,750 unsold homes could still be available for purchase under the deferred payment scheme, even though it was scrapped last week. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said these units are in developments that already have approval for the […]
Real estate stocks hurt after end of payment plan
THE axing of the deferred payment scheme for homebuyers hit home with a vengeance yesterday when property shares dived while the rest of the market soared. The big guns felt the most pain. City Developments fell 50 cents, or 3.1 per cent, to $15.80. Allgreen Properties was down nine cents, or 5.1 per cent, to […]
URA releases Novena site for private hospital
1.7ha plot of land is part of govt plan to meet patients’ future needs A 1.7HA site in Novena to build a private hospital was yesterday released for tender by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It is the first time in 31 years such a site has been put on the market, since the site […]
WARRANT WATCH – Property contracts in the limelight
WARRANTS of property counters drew the attention of investors yesterday, following the withdrawal of the deferred payment scheme last Friday. Homebuyers in Singapore will now have to make progressive payments in step with the construction process, instead of deferring payment till the property is completed a few years later. The most heavily traded CapitaLand contract […]
First decline in British home prices in 2 years
LONDON – BRITISH house prices fell for the first time in two years this month, led by declines in central London, a survey showed. The average cost of a home in England and Wales fell by 0.1 per cent to £176,100 (S$527,400) from September, a poll of 6,000 real estate agents by Hometrack found. Prices […]
Exit of deferred payments not a fatal blow: Goldman
Mid to mass market may be hardest hit as some projects see 50% opt for scheme (SINGAPORE) The withdrawal of the deferred payment scheme (DPS) for property purchases may quell demand in the short term, but will not deal a fatal blow to Singapore’s residential market, says Goldman Sachs. The investment bank also expects negative […]
Inflation fears mar Vietnam’s economic boom
(HANOI) Vietnam’s blistering economic growth is attracting foreign investors, but the boom is proving costly for households, which face big rises in the price of basic products such as rice. Consumer prices rose 9.34 per cent year-on-year in October, after an 8.8 per cent increase in September, according to the General Statistics Office. Inflation is […]
HK monetary chief warns of bubble
He urges investors to act with caution as Hang Seng surges over 40% in 2 mths IN HONG KONG HONG Kong’s monetary chief Joseph Yam has added a cautionary voice to a growing chorus of warnings in the city by observers who fear a bubble market has formed as stocks remain at giddy highs. The […]
Central bank unlikely to change interest rates
But RBI may raise lenders’ reserve requirement again (MUMBAI) India’s central bank is expected to maintain steady interest rates in a quarterly review this week, but may ask lenders to set aside more cash as reserve to cut a surge in money supply, economists say. They said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), slated to […]
Australia faces turbulence from US meltdown: PM
(SYDNEY) Australia, one of the best-performing advanced economies, faces looming economic turbulence from the sub-prime lending meltdown in the United States, Prime Minister John Howard warned yesterday. Last Friday, Australian Treasurer Peter Costello had warned of an approaching international financial ‘tsunami’, with China at its epicentre. ‘We are entering a more difficult time of economic […]
US retail stocks hit by housing, credit crisis
(NEW YORK) When home builders’ stocks plunged in 2006, Wall Street was confident that the problems would not spill over into the larger economy. Exhibit A – department store stocks rose steadily despite the housing woes. Not this time around. Housing stocks have fallen again and this time, the department store stocks have marched down […]
two cents’worth – Investing in property may be less profitable than buying shares
SHARE markets have generally produced higher investment returns than residential property over the long term. Theoretically, then, those who rent a property and invest their money in quality shares should be wealthier than those who concentrate on paying off their homes. However, the discipline of meeting regular mortgage payments and gradually taking ownership of a […]
PROPERTY – Penang’s luxury homes market plays catch-up
Home values set to rise as big-name players race to build high-quality developments on Malaysian island WHEN it comes to Malaysian property, foreign investors seldom set their sights beyond Johor, Kuala Lumpur (KL) and Malacca. But the island of Penang in the north is starting to come into its own. Malaysia’s foreigner-friendly policy means that […]
No delaying payments, so home hunters turn cautious
Move may have initial dampening effect but experts say it will chase away only speculators MARKETING manager Simon Loh has put an abrupt halt to his house hunting. The 38-year-old had been looking for a new place for the last six months, but now that he cannot defer payments until the new apartment is ready, […]
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Deferred payments scrapped in bid to cool property fever
Market players expect blip, not crash, to follow the exit of the buy-now-pay-later scheme (SINGAPORE) In a surprise move yesterday, the government said that it was withdrawing the deferred payment scheme (DPS) for the sale of uncompleted private properties in a bid to discourage speculative buying and cool the property market. Market players said that […]
Situation very different now: Mah
MINISTER for National Development Mah Bow Tan hopes that withdrawing the deferred payment scheme could cool the overheating market and discourage excessive speculation. Pointing out that the scheme was introduced in 1997 when property prices were depressed, he said that the situation was very different now. The move could temper the market which ‘has shown […]
Median COV for HDB resale flats up 140%
But number of resales falls 11% in Q3 to 7,700 (SINGAPORE) Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats are re-selling on the open market for a median of $17,000 above valuation. HDB said that 80 per cent of resale flats in Q3 required cash over valuation (COV). HDB only started to release data on COV recently […]
Specialists’ Centre project gets the green light
Go-ahead for several projects to ease space crunch (SINGAPORE) OCBC Bank and its insurance subsidiary Great Eastern Holdings are poised to redevelop the Specialists’ Shopping Centre and Hotel Phoenix complex, together with shopping mall Orchard Emerald just across the road. And when works are complete, the new project could have some 314,000 square feet of […]
CapitaLand Q3 net more than doubles to $563.9m
Boost from fair-value and portfolio gains and China devt projects CAPITALAND said yesterday that its net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30 more than doubled from $272.41 million a year ago to $563.93 million, driven by fair value gains from its investment properties, portfolio gains and higher sales of development projects in China. […]
M’sian US$200m Reit may list in Q12008
IN KUALA LUMPUR A US$200 million real estate investment trust (Reit) of regional malls by Malaysia’s Amanah Raya and Indonesia’s Gapura Prima Group is likely to list on the Singapore Exchange in the first quarter of 2008, rather than by year-end. Amanah Raya director Ahmad Kamal Abdullah Al-Yafii says Macquarie has been hired to look […]
Deferred payment scheme for homebuyers scrapped
THE Government last night scrapped the deferred payment scheme that allowed homebuyers to postpone payments on new property. It said the strong economy and property market allowed it to axe the scheme. This would also deter speculators and force people to be more prudent when committing to pricey real estate. It was a response to […]
HDB resale flat prices surge 6.6%
Private homes see 8.3% rise; strong demand filtering to suburban areas THE Hungry Ghost Festival did little to cool the property sector last quarter with prices of HDB flats and private homes continuing to soar. New data yesterday also reinforced a trend that emerged from early figures – intense demand is filtering out from prime […]
Buyers paying way above valuation for HDB flats
IF YOU are looking to buy an HDB resale flat, make sure you have plenty of cash on hand. Due to soaring home demand, an average HDB resale flat now costs $17,000 above its valuation from $7,000 just three months ago. This figure, called the cash-over-valuation amount, has to be paid in cash by a […]
Office rents still up, rising 15% in 3rd quarter
OFFICE rentals, a major business cost, continued their relentless rise – up nearly 15 per cent in the third quarter – as the official vacancy rate for prime office space fell to just 2.8 per cent. Recent uncertainty in global financial markets has had no discernible impact on office space demand, said property agency CB […]
