Chinese home buyers may be losing their appetites
In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, China’s bid to boost home sales during the Labour Day holiday week falls flat, Shanghai’s state-backed landlords suspend rent collection from tenants for up to six months, and Singapore-listed OUE Commercial REIT aims to acquire more overseas office assets.
China Stimulus Fails to Ignite Housing Sales Over Key Holiday
China’s embattled property market is struggling to generate a turnaround despite supportive pledges from the top decision-making body, underscoring Beijing’s challenge to revive one of the nation’s biggest growth drivers.
New home sales in 23 major cities tracked by China Real Estate Information fell 33 percent by area during a five-day national holiday compared with year-earlier levels. The drop adds to the pain this year after combined sales at the top 100 developers halved in the first four months. Read more>>
Shanghai’s State-Backed Developers Offer Rent Holiday to Tenants
China’s state-owned commercial landlords in Shanghai will exempt their tenants from rents for up to six months, handing a crucial financial lifeline to local businesses crushed by more than a month of citywide lockdown.
Lujiazui Group, a developer of shopping malls and office buildings in Pudong district, has offered to waive six months of rents for its clients, while the city’s investment arm, Shanghai Land Group, said it would forgo three months of payments for small business owners and double for those who incurred losses during the shutdown. Read more>>
OUE Commercial REIT Casts Wide Net for Overseas Office Acquisitions
Just one out of the seven assets in OUE Commercial REIT’s portfolio is outside Singapore, but there are plans to acquire more overseas assets to grow the trust, with a focus on office assets in Sydney, Melbourne and London.
“These are key gateway markets with a lot of liquidity for transactions in the S$200 million to S$400 million ($144 million to $287 million) range; so you can enter and exit the market fairly quickly,” said Han Khim Siew, CEO of OUE Commercial REIT Management. “The UK and Australia also have very good market transparency and governance.” Read more>>
Singapore Closes Tax Loophole of Transferring Residences to Living Trusts
An additional buyer’s stamp duty of 35 percent will be imposed on any transfer of residential property into a living trust, Singapore’s Finance Ministry announced late Sunday.
Under current regulations, ABSD may or may not be payable upon such a transfer, depending on the profile of the beneficial owner of the residential property transferred into the trust. Read more>>
India’s Phoenix Mills Takes Full Ownership of Classic Mall Development
Indian mixed-use developer Phoenix Mills has completed the acquisition of the 50 percent stake it didn’t already own in Classic Mall Development from Crest Ventures and Escort Developers.
Phoenix Mills previously owned 50 percent in Classic Mall Development, which is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the company. Read more>>
Tata Chairman Buys Mumbai Duplex for $12.6M
Tata Group chairman N Chandrasekaran and his family have purchased a duplex in a Pedder Road luxury tower in Mumbai for INR 98 crore ($12.6 million).
33 South, a 28-storey skyscraper, is a high-end condominium near Jaslok Hospital in south Mumbai, where the Chandras have been staying in the duplex on lease for the past five years. The unit on the 11th and 12th floors is spread over a carpet area of roughly 6,000 square feet (557 square metres). Read more>>
Britain’s Biggest Bank Is Caught in the US-China Crossfire
For years, HSBC and Ping An Insurance Group enjoyed a cosy relationship, from the turns they took financially backing each other to the easy rapport between their influential chairmen.
That’s why shock rippled through the top ranks of the $3 trillion British bank when it emerged that the firm’s biggest shareholder was pushing for the most dramatic split in banking history. Read more>>
WeWork India Aims for 33% Revenue Growth in 2022
Co-working major WeWork India is expecting 33 percent growth in revenue during this calendar year at about INR 1,000 crore ($129 million) as demand for flexible workspaces rises.
In an interview with PTI, WeWork India CEO Karan Virwani highlighted that the company became profitable for the first time during January-March 2022, with INR 25 crore in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. Read more>>
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