Blackstone Boss Predicts New China Views for Trump and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

At the top of today’s headlines, the head of private equity giant Blackstone sees America’s new president revising his views on China’s currency policies. Also in the news, Hong Kong’s housing-starved residents continue to line up for new homes, while down in Singapore, the government releases more land for housing development. Read on for all these stories and more.

Schwarzman Says Trump May Soften China Currency Accusations

President Donald Trump will likely temper his criticisms of China, including his campaign claim that the country manipulates its currency, one of his top economic advisers said.

“I don’t think that there’s going to be issues regarding China as a currency manipulator and some of the other things,” Steve Schwarzman, the chairman of Trump’s strategic and policy forum, said Sunday on CNN. Read more>>

11,000 Hopefuls Queue Up for 870 Hong Kong Homes

Buyers are still piling into the Hong Kong residential property market after more than 11,000 potential buyers signed up to buy flats in three new projects being released this week despite the likelihood that the US Federal Reserve will increase interest rates this week.

Riding high on the surge in demand for properties in the city, developers will be releasing more than 870 individual units, with an estimated value of more than HK$11 billion (US$1.4 billion), for sale this week. Read more>>

Singapore’s URA Opens Tender for 60,810 Sqm Condo Project

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) launched on Tuesday (March 14) the tender of a condominium site along Tampines Avenue 10. The 21,718 square metre site can potentially yield about 715 residential units. It has a maximum gross floor are of 60,810 sqm.

The 99-year leasehold plot comes under the Confirmed List of the 1st half of 2017 Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme. Read more>>

Baoneng Boss Forced to Resign From Insurance Subsidiary

Yao Zhenhua is no longer chairman and a board member of Foresea Life Insurance, the company said in a statement on Monday.

The statement said Yao handed in his resignation on March 1. The board met and agreed to his request on March 6. Deputy chairman Zhang Jinshun was appointed interim chairman. Read more>>

Baoneng Pledges 1.65% of Vanke to Finance Share Buyback

Baoneng Group subsidiary Jushenghua has pledged 182 million in China Vanke A-shares as collateral to Ping An Securities in a repurchase agreement, according to a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange by Chinese real estate company late on Monday.

The 182 million shares represent 1.65 per cent of Vanke’s total issued capital. Read more>>

Sogo Operator Pulls Back From Northern China

The operator of Hong Kong’s Sogo department stores will downsize its struggling business in northern China to focus on the eastern Yangtze River Delta, revealing the marked divergence in retail markets on the mainland.

As the Hong Kong franchisee of the Japanese store, Lifestyle International spun off its mainland Chinese businesses last July, including department stores and its high-end Jiuguang shopping malls, which saw an annual revenue decline of 4.6% last year. Read more>>

China’s Capital Controls Could Bring Big Trouble for Malaysia

China’s aggressive crackdown on capital flight could lead to a surge in abandoned projects in Penang, Johor and Kuala Lumpur, reported Free Malaysia Today citing veteran economist Hoo Ke Ping. “Chinese nationals who have purchased homes but haven’t finished paying for them may not be able to do so,” said Hoo.

This comes as China’s central bank may force those who acquired homes outside of the country to finish paying their loans within China. Read more>>

Tune in again tomorrow for more news, and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter for headlines as they happen.