China Merchants Shekou Files for $800M REIT IPO and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

The Garden City Centre shopping mall in Shekou is one five properties in the CMC REIT

A Shenzhen-listed developer of industrial estates leads the way in Mingtiandi’s roundup of real estate headlines today as it files paperwork to float a real estate investment trust in Hong Kong, with sources expecting up to $800 million to be raised.

In other news around the region, a mainland developer’s debt continues to mount up, while redundancies at property companies in China are reported to be increasing as curbs squeeze the market.

Elsewhere, an India hotel chain has acquired a Copenhagen-based data science firm for $10 million, and a Hong Kong-listed developer has bought a piece of an island in Japan for $9.5 million.

China Merchants Shekou Files for $800M REIT IPO

China Merchants Shekou Industrial Zone Holdings, which engages in the development and operation of industrial estates, communities and cruise businesses, said in an exchange filing on Monday night that it was launching a share offering of its real estate investment trust on the Hong Kong stock exchange’s main board.

Much of the listing details for China Merchants Commercial Real Estate Invest Trust (CMC REIT), such as the amount to be raised and profit forecast of the assets in the REIT, were redacted. But Bloomberg has previously reported the listing could raise about $800 million. Read more>>

Evergrande Faces $53M Debt Pile Falling Due in Next 10 Months

China Evergrande Group, the property developer with dreams of becoming an electric-car powerhouse, is finding it’s picked an inopportune time to load up on debt.

The firm’s total borrowings swelled almost $20 billion in the first half to an eye-watering $113.7 billion – about equal to the market value of BHP Group, the world’s biggest miner. That’s spooked investors given about $53 billion of that falls due in the next ten months and 75 percent within the next two years. Read more>>

Mainland Developers Lay off Staff as Curbs Bite

Some developers may not be admitting as much but there are increasing signs that times are tough in real estate in China.

All three of the country’s biggest residential property firms reported a drop in the number of full-time employees in their first-half results, the first simultaneous downsizing since 2015. Real estate companies in the world’s most-populous nation are facing a triple whammy of increased home-buying curbs, a more stringent credit environment and a slowing economy. Read more>>

Dasin Retail Trust Calls for Trading Halt

Singapore-listed Dasin Retail Trust on Tuesday morning requested an immediate trading halt, pending the release of announcements.

It had previously proposed to purchase Doumen Metro Mall in China for RMB 1.37 billion yuan ($190 million), funded with a mix of debt and equity. Unitholders then approved this purchase and the proposed issue and placement of new units to controlling unitholder Aqua Wealth Holdings, during an extraordinary general meeting on 16 August. Read more>>

Oyo Acquires Danish Data Science Firm for $10M

India’s Oyo said on Monday it has acquired Copenhagen-based data science firm Danamica as the fast-growing lodging startup works to expand its business in Europe.

Neither of the parties disclosed financial terms of the deal, but a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch that Oyo paid about $10 million to acquire the Danish firm. Read more>>

Suncity Pays $9.5M for 51% Stake in Okinawa Island Hotel Plot

Hong Kong-listed Suncity Group has acquired a 108,799 square metre (1.2 million square foot) land plot in the Japanese prefecture of Okinawa with the purpose of developing a future hotel resort.

According to a Hong Kong Stock Exchange filing, the group purchased a 51 percent share stake for $9.5 million from a Japanese investment holding company named MSRD Corporation Limited, which holds the land plot in Miyako Island, Okinawa. Read more>>

Costco Plans More Stores after Shanghai Debut Success

Costco Wholesale is planning to open a second store in Shanghai next year or in 2021 after hordes of shoppers forced its first big box to close early on opening day last week, according to the membership-only retail chain’s chief financial officer.

The State of Washington-based firm hopes to start construction as soon as possible and is also looking at opening stores in other Chinese cities, but all in good time, Richard Galanti told National Business Daily yesterday. Costco will need to make sure its first few stores can prove successful in the long run, he added. Read more>>

Tune in again tomorrow for more news, and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.

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