Shanghai’s four-day land sale saw more than 50 developers bid for sites (Getty Images)
In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, some of China’s biggest developers bag plots in Shanghai’s maiden land sale of the year, and Fitch withdraws its ratings on Blackstone-backed data centre firm VNET. Also making the list is an industrial deal in Singapore and a Hong Kong investor buying a Melbourne project.
Builders Shell Out $7.5B for 19 Lots in Shanghai’s First Land Auction of 2023
Shanghai concluded its first land auction this year with the sale of all 19 plots on offer for RMB 51.9 billion ($7.5 billion), up 7 percent from their estimated value, signalling keen interest from major developers and suggesting a strong step towards recovery for the country’s property market.
The four-day land sale, which ended late Friday, saw more than 50 developers engage in intense bidding that resulted in 15 plots selling for higher than their floor price. State-owned Poly Developments emerged as the auction’s biggest winner, obtaining three parcels, followed by Vanke and China Railway Construction Corp with two each. Read more>>
Fitch Affirms Blackstone-Backed VNET at B- but Withdraws Ratings
Fitch Ratings has affirmed China-based carrier-neutral data-centre operator VNET Group’s long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings at B- with a stable outlook. At the same time, Fitch has withdrawn the ratings.
VNET’s ratings reflect our view that its liquidity and access to capital are weak and it does not have the funds to meet its potential obligations over the next 12 months. Fitch has chosen to withdraw the ratings of VNET for commercial reasons. Read more>>
Evergrande’s Woes Continue With Failure to Deliver Annual Report on Time
Debt-ridden developer China Evergrande said it will not be able to deliver its 2022 annual report on time, citing major changes in the company’s operating conditions since the second half of 2021.
Evergrande made that disclosure on Friday in a Shenzhen Stock Exchange filing. The company said a large number of procedures have been added to its audit process, leading to the expected delay in completing its annual report by the end of April. Read more>>
AIMS APAC REIT Divests Industrial Park in Singapore for $9.7M
The manager of AIMS APAC REIT on Monday announced the divestment of 541 Yishun Industrial Park A in Singapore at a sale price of S$12.88 million ($9.7 million).
The sale price represents an 8.2 percent premium to the property’s valuation as of March. Net proceeds from the divestment will be used to repay debt initially and may be recycled to asset enhancement initiatives, redevelopment opportunities and selective acquisitions. Read more>>
HSBC Investors Hold Talks as Proxy Advisors Oppose Asia Spinoff
HSBC’s most vocal individual activist shareholder, Ken Lui, on Monday said he had spoken for the first time with the bank’s largest investor, Ping An, about their controversial proposals to spin off the lender’s Asia business.
Top management executives of Ping An Asset Management, an investment unit of the Chinese insurer, exchanged views on the proposals with Lui and reaffirmed its support, Lui told Reuters in an interview on Monday. Read more>>
Insurers AIA, Ping An Pour Billions Into Chinese Commercial Property
Insurers including AIA and Ping An Life Insurance are investing billions of dollars in mainland China properties, which are expected to remain an attractive asset class for insurers despite the market downturn, analysts said.
Physical property can be a good match for life insurers, which have been expanding their healthcare and retirement businesses, Moody’s analysts said in a note on 12 April. Read more>>
Hong Kong Firm Files Plans for Mixed-Use Project in Melbourne’s Box Hill Area
A Hong Kong company, currently the owner of Australian clothing brand Jeanswest, has filed plans for a mixed-use project in Melbourne’s Box Hill.
The project plans were first filed with the City of Whitehorse for the 3,068 square metre (33,024 square feet) site at 810-812 Whitehorse Road in November 2021 but have only recently been advertised. Read more>>
IREIT Secures 15-Year Lease With Government for 25% of German Campus
Singapore-listed IREIT Global has clinched an anchor lease with a German federal government body to take up 6,200 square metres (66,736 square feet) of office space and 1,400 square metres of storage space at Darmstadt Campus, representing 25 percent of the total lettable area at the property.
The new tenant is a wholly owned agency of the state of Hesse that performs construction and property/facility management on behalf of Hesse. The lease will commence on 1 June and has a duration of 15 years and two prolongation options of five years. With rents secured at market levels, the new lease will generate an annual rental income of €1.2 million ($1.3 million). 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.
Leave a Reply