In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, Hong Kong’s Fortune REIT moves to acquire a CK Asset-built project in northeastern Singapore, two Chinese developers garner support from state-backed firms, and America’s Chapter 15 bankruptcy process hints at a way forward for some of the mainland’s troubled property firms.
Fortune REIT Buying CK Asset Singapore Project for $64M
Hong Kong-listed Fortune REIT said Sunday that it has agreed to acquire CK Asset’s mixed-use Stars of Kovan project in Singapore for S$88 million ($63.8 million).
The price represents a 7.4 percent discount from an independent valuation made on 30 June. Read more>>
Greenland, Yango Get State Support as Beijing Appeases Homebuyers
China’s Greenland Holdings said a unit has secured loans from state-owned shareholders, and the parent of Yango Group signed a debt relief agreement with a state-backed bad-loan company, as the government steps up efforts to aid the country’s struggling real estate sector.
Amid a wave of buyers refusing to make mortgage payments on delayed housing projects, Beijing last month vowed to increase support to private developers and ensure that buyers can take delivery of their homes. Read more>>
Koh Brothers H1 Net Profit Rises 151% on Revived Construction Activity
Koh Brothers Group posted a 151 percent year-on-year increase in net profit to S$5 million (now $3.6 million) for the first half of 2022.
Revenue for the six-month period rose 13 percent to S$158.9 million — driven mainly by increased construction activities and sales of Koh Brothers’ Van Holland private residential project in Singapore, the property group said Saturday. Read more>>
Hongkongers Snap Up Bargain Flats in New Territories
The first weekend of August recorded the largest weekend property sale in Hong Kong in two years, with 666 units split between two projects hitting the market on Saturday, marking the most units for sale in a single drop since 814 units went up in September 2020.
Henderson Land launched 318 units at One Innovale-Archway in Fanling, selling 102 of the units within the first two hours. Just one unit was left by 5pm, according to property agents. The 310 square foot (29 square metre) one-bedroom flats sold out first, according to Thomas Lam, general manager of Henderson’s sales department. Read more>>
Central China’s Zhengzhou Plans $1.5B Real Estate Fund
The city of Zhengzhou in China’s Henan province has announced a real estate fund worth up to RMB 10 billion ($1.5 billion) to leverage social funds and default mortgage risks. This is the first Chinese city to implement a regional real estate fund after a number of Chinese homebuyers decided to suspend loan repayments for unfinished projects since July, the China Times reported on Sunday.
According to the plan, the real estate fund of Zhengzhou will be set up and operated under the guidance of the government and will follow market-oriented operations. Read more>>
China Junk Bond Arranger Predicts More Chapter 15 Bankruptcies
A top arranger for Chinese junk dollar bonds says that a type of filing under the US bankruptcy code will play an important role for China’s distressed developers to restructure debt, buying them time to pay back creditors until markets recover.
About 10 Chinese real estate companies could use so-called schemes of arrangement to restructure debt in a holistic fashion this year, Chen Yi, head of global capital markets at Haitong International Securities, said in an interview. As part of the process they could use Chapter 15 filings to bind the terms in the US, preventing creditors from suing them there. Read more>>
China High-Yield Bonds Set for Record Low as Debt Crisis Grows
China’s riskiest borrowers are sliding to record lows in global credit markets as a debt crisis in the country’s property sector spreads, fuelling defaults and effectively blocking developer refinancing just as more bond deadlines loom.
Average prices of high-yield Chinese dollar notes, most of which are issued by real estate firms, fell 0.5 to 1 cent, according to traders. That leaves them set for their lowest-ever level, below a 56.5-cent end-of-day nadir reached in March, according to a Bloomberg index. Read more>>
Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.
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