GIC Sets Up India Retail Platform With Phoenix Mills and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In Mingtiandi’s latest roundup of regional news headlines, Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC partners with Indian mall developer Phoenix Mills on a retail-led real estate platform, the manager of Singapore’s Sabana REIT hits back at allegations of unusual voting procedures, and China’s major cities report their lowest housing rents in nearly two years.

GIC Sets Up India Retail Platform With Phoenix Mills

Mall developer Phoenix Mills Ltd (PML) and its subsidiaries have signed a term sheet with an affiliate of Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC to set up a retail-led mixed-use platform. The transaction comes at a time when shopping malls are returning to normalcy, though footfall and customer sentiment remain low amid the ongoing pandemic.

GIC will invest in the PML subsidiaries through a mix of primary infusion and secondary purchase of equity shares. It will initially acquire an equity stake of 26 percent and may further increase its stake up to 35 percent within a year from closing the transaction, subject to certain terms and conditions. Read more>>

Sabana REIT: ‘Nothing Unusual or Improper’ About Merger Voting

There is “nothing unusual or improper” about the voting procedures adopted for the proposed merger of Sabana Shari’ah Compliant Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (Sabana REIT) and ESR-REIT.

Sabana REIT’s manager made that point in a bourse filing on Wednesday morning in response to concerns raised by the deal’s key opponents, adding that the procedures apply equally to all unitholders of the trust. Read more>>

Rents in 40 Major Chinese Cities Lowest in Nearly Two Years

China’s average home rental prices in 40 major cities fell to their lowest last month in nearly two years, a private survey published late on Tuesday showed, in a sign of deepening weakness in the market.

Average home rental prices in November stood at RMB 34.71 ($5.29) per square metre, down from RMB 42.65 in October, data from Zhuge House Hunter showed. That is the lowest since January 2019, the Chinese property data provider said. Read more>>

Embassy REIT’s Profit Flat, Revenue Up 4% in Q2

Embassy Office Parks REIT on Monday reported a flat consolidated net profit of INR 232.56 crore ($31.5 million) for the quarter ended September and a 4 percent rise in revenue from operations of INR 540.10 crore, and said it is looking to acquire large office parks for inorganic growth.

Net profit stood at INR 232.23 crore and revenue at INR 520.6 crore in the year-ago period, the Bengaluru-based firm said in a regulatory filing. Read more>>

Foreign Buyers Back More Aussie Commercial Property Deals

The percentage of commercial property transactions involving foreign investors has jumped in the past year, although overall sales volumes are well down on 2019.

Offshore groups have accounted for approximately 44 percent of total investment volumes across the office, retail and industrial property markets, according to new figures from JLL.

This compares with foreign investment in 2019 which represented 34 percent of total transaction activity. Read more>>

Canada Plans New Tax for Foreign Homebuyers

Canada is readying a new tax on foreign homebuyers to help tamp down on speculative purchases from overseas, cited as a factor behind sharp rises in housing prices in some markets that have left many Canadians unable to afford homes.

The new tax was mentioned in a fiscal document published on Monday, though few details were given. The timing and scope of the measures would likely be outlined in the spring budget, expected in March or April, a senior government source said. Read more>>

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