The Embassy Quadron office complex in Pune, Maharashtra
In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, Blackstone reportedly holds talks with Bain Capital on the sale of a stake in Embassy Office Parks REIT, and China developer bonds snap back into shape on state-led support measures.
Blackstone in Talks With Bain to Sell $480M Stake in Top Indian REIT
Blackstone is in talks to sell around half of its stake in India’s largest REIT, Embassy Office Parks, to private equity firm Bain Capital, two sources said.
The deal could be worth up to $480 million at current prices and would mark US-based Bain’s first REIT investment in India, where office space is drawing in investors as workers return to offices amid the waning COVID-19 pandemic. For Blackstone, it would mean a further selldown of its Embassy stake as it adjusts its portfolio. Read more>>
China Property Bonds Rebound on Support Measures From Beijing
Bonds issued by China’s highly indebted developers have rebounded sharply over the past two months, in a sign that efforts by authorities to bolster the hard-hit real estate sector are bearing fruit.
China’s high-yield dollar bond index, which is dominated by the developers at the heart of a market meltdown over the past two years, has recovered almost 50 percent from the record low hit in early November. Bonds from higher-quality developers such as Country Garden have also recovered from distressed territory to trade close to their original value. Read more>>
Godrej Properties Said to Be Highest Bidder for 7.4 Acre Plot in Kolkata
Godrej Properties is understood to have emerged as the highest bidder for a 7.44 acre (3 hectare) plot near Tollygunge Phari in south Kolkata.
In an auction conducted by the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation, the Mumbai-based company offered to pay INR 230 crore ($28.2 million), or INR 30.9 crore an acre, for the plot, pipping local builders, real estate sources said. Read more>>
Twitter Sued Over Failure to Pay Rent on San Francisco HQ
Under new owner Elon Musk, Twitter quit paying rent on its San Francisco headquarters in December, according to a lawsuit filed by the landlord.
The social media company failed to pay the $3.36 million December rent for its offices at 1355 Market Street and the $3.42 million for January rent, Sri Nine Market Square, the owner of the building, said in a lawsuit filed Monday in a California court. Read more>>
China Reopening Brings Bounce to APAC Commercial Property
China’s decision to reverse its zero-COVID policies after close to three years cannot come at a better time for the global economy, which is reeling on the back of the US Federal Reserve’s fastest hiking cycle in decades.
China’s economic influence, particularly in Asia Pacific, remains outsized and there will be significant multiplier effects from the reopening of the country’s borders. Read more>>
Hong Kong Retail Faces ‘Slow Recovery’ Amid China COVID Surge
The recovery of Hong Kong’s retail market is likely to be slow and uncertain, as surging COVID-19 infections in mainland China and a huge supply glut limit any boost from the reopening of the border, according to industry leaders.
A recent uptick in the number of enquiries from potential shop tenants betting on a flood of mainland visitors returning will be short-lived, said John Lee, secretary general of the Hong Kong Industry and Commerce Elite Association, which has close to 200 businessmen and politicians as members. Read more>>
Surging Sentosa Golf Club Membership Price a Sign of the Times
Last year was a bloodbath in global markets. Every asset class, with the exception of commodities and the US dollar, took a beating. This year, a recession in parts of the world, including the United States, is a distinct possibility.
Yet, amid the wealth destruction, Sentosa Golf Club — Singapore’s most prestigious golf course — has never had it so good. The cost for an expatriate to join the exclusive club has more than doubled since the eruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to S$840,000 ($637,000). For citizens and permanent residents, the membership price has shot up to S$500,000, up 90 percent since the end of 2019, according to Bloomberg data. Read more>>
New Metro Lines to Help Moderate Steep Prices in Mumbai Real Estate
The newly launched Mumbai Metro lines 2A and 7 will help moderate the pricing in the city’s real estate market. As per real estate experts, improvement in convenience will bring arbitrary changes from location to location but will not increase real estate prices.
“In smaller cities like Ahmedabad or circular cities where there are conveniences and commutation is easy, prices have really not increased because there is an increase in the huge amount of land availability within the convenience distance,” said Pankaj Kapoor, founder and managing director of Liases Foras Real Estate Rating and Research. “So similarly in Mumbai, the Metro will help moderate the steep prices. We may see the city become flat-ish in terms of pricing in the real estate market.” Read more>>
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