Alibaba is finding out that bricks and mortar can be hard
The offline struggles of China’s biggest e-commerce company lead today’s collection of real estate headlines from around the region, as Alibaba is said to be looking for the exit from a department store bet. Also in the news, Singapore puts a leash on a “wumao” and Frasers Property says its gearing has climbed to 78 percent.
Alibaba Explores Sale of Intime Department Store Unit
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is considering selling its InTime department store arm, suggesting the Chinese internet company is rethinking a years-old ambition of dominating physical and online retail as it undergoes a broad restructuring.
Alibaba has reached out to several firms to tap their interest in acquiring the nationwide chain of more than 100 stores and malls, people familiar with the matter said. It initiated discussions around the time Joseph Tsai replaced Daniel Zhang at the helm of the e-commerce company in 2023, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private deal considerations. Read more>>
Singapore Invokes Foreign Interference Against Hong Kong-Born Real Estate Investor
Singapore businessman Philip Chan Man Ping, 59, has been served notice that local authorities intend to designate him as a politically significant person under the country’s foreign interference laws.
This is as Chan, a naturalised Singapore citizen who has been a vocal supporter of China and who was invited to the mainland’s Two Sessions parliamentary meetings last year, has been assessed to have shown susceptibility to being influenced by foreign actors, and willingness to advance their interests, the country’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said on 2 February. Read more>>
Frasers Property Reports $1.8B in Pre-Sales, Gearing Rises to 78%
Frasers Property achieved pre-sold revenue of S$2.4 billion ($1.8 billion) across Singapore, Australia, Thailand and China in the final three months of 2023, with “steady progress” for its residential development portfolio, it said in a Friday business update.
The SGX-listed developer’s net gearing ratio increased to 78 percent as at 31 December, up 2.2 percentage points from end-September. But the group said it continues to focus on proactive debt management, and is well-positioned to repay and/or refinance all of its debt due in the financial year. Read more>>
Malaysia’s Khazanah in Talks to Lead $400M Funding Round for Softbank’s Oyo Hotels
Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the sovereign wealth fund of Malaysia, is in discussions to lead a $400 million funding round in Oyo Hotels & Homes Pvt., according to people familiar with the matter.
The Indian hotel-booking company backed by Softbank Group Corp., is seeking to raise funds for expansion and cutting debt, the people said, asking not to be named as the information is not public. Avendus Capital Pvt. is advising the company on the fund raise, they said. Read more>>
China’s Country Garden Says Over 30 Projects Have Government Support
Cash-strapped developer Country Garden said on Saturday that more than 30 of its projects had been listed by Chinese local governments as suitable for financing support, as authorities aim to inject liquidity into the crisis-hit sector.
China’s largest private property developer said in a statement to Reuters that its projects were included on the so-called “white lists” of the provinces of Heinan, Hubei, Sichuan, Shandong and the municipality Chongqing. The developer, which defaulted on its offshore debt late last year, hopes to enter the lists of Guangdong and Hunan provinces among others. Read more>>
Analysts Doubt China Plan for Government Whitelist to Boost Residential Projects
China aims to ramp up financing for home projects in the coming days as part of its support measures, but banks’ reluctance to lend to the crisis-hit sector will remain a major obstacle for the distressed developers who need fresh funding the most.
Under the “project whitelist” mechanism, governments of 35 cities across the country are gearing up to recommend to banks residential projects that need financial support. Distressed developers are hoping the new mechanism will bring succour with some of their projects getting included in the whitelist. Read more>>
Australian Office Vacancy Hits Highest Levels Since 1990s
Office vacancy rates have soared to levels not seen since the mid-1990s as landlords confront a slow economy, sluggish demand for space and new towers hitting the market.
The nation’s office vacancy rate increased over the past six months from 14.1 per cent to 14.8 per cent. Most of the pain has been felt in suburban and fringe markets as overall vacancies hit the highest level since January 1995. Read more>>
Vandals Arrested for Graffiti on Stalled China Oceanwide Project in Los Angeles
Two men suspected of spray-painting dozens of floors of the abandoned Oceanwide Plaza project in downtown Los Angeles were arrested. Floor after floor has been tagged on several sides of the empty three-tower complex near Crypto.com Arena and L.A. Live.
Los Angeles Police Department officers from the Central Division responded to a vandalism call Tuesday in the 1200 block of South Figueroa Street, between Pico and Olympic boulevards, after a tactical flight officer with the Air Support Division saw over a dozen suspects in the building, trespassing and possibly spray-painting on the building, according to the LAPD. Read more>>
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