Keppel’s CEO and Executive Director, Loh Chin Hua
Singapore’s Keppel reported record earnings for 2023, thanks to the one-off sale of a major subsidiary, with that story leading today’s headline roundup. Also in the news, a pair of SGX-listed REITs report lower payouts and Beijing is providing more cash to boost struggling developers.
Keppel Earnings Jump to $2.5B on Sale of Offshore Unit
Singapore’s Keppel Ltd posted a more than four-fold rise in its full-year profit on Thursday, primarily bolstered by a one-off gain from the divestment of its offshore and marine (O&M) unit.
Keppel, which was founded 56 years ago and traces its roots to a shipbuilding yard, recorded a S$3.3 billion ($2.46 billion) gain after the disposal of its O&M business last February. The sale, along with strong performances at its infrastructure segment helped Keppel post a record full-year net profit of S$4.07 billion, compared with a profit of S$927 million a year earlier. Read more>>
CapitaLand Ascendas REIT Distributions Slide 6.1%
Rising interest rates weighed on CapitaLand Ascendas REIT, as the business and industrial property player saw distribution per unit (DPU) fall 6.1 percent year on year to 7.441 cents for the six months ended 31 December 2023.
The DPU decline came even as the REIT’s gross revenue for the second half of the year rose 11 percent to S$761.7 million, while net property income (NPI) was up 4.6 percent to S$514.3 million. Read more>>
LendLease Global Commercial REIT Payout Drops 14.5%
Lendlease Global Commercial REIT’s distribution per unit (DPU) fell 14.5 percent to 2.1 cents for its first half ended 31 December 2023, from 2.45 cents the year before.
The lower DPU was primarily driven by higher borrowing costs amid the higher interest rates as compared with a year ago. This was even as gross revenue was up 17.9 percent on the year to S$119.9 million for the half-year period, from S$101.7 million in the year-ago period. Read more>>
China’s Central Bank Adds $21B in Cheap Housing Funds
The People’s Bank of China provided RMB 150 billion ($21 billion) worth of low-cost funds for lending to housing and infrastructure projects last month, stepping up support for the economy.
The outstanding amount of the PBOC’s Pledged Supplemental Lending programme to policy-oriented banks was RMB 3.4 trillion at the end of January, according to a central bank statement on Thursday. Read more>>
Singapore Bank Home Sale Listings Tripled in Fourth Quarter
The Singapore property auction market ended the fourth quarter of 2023 with the number of bank sale listings tripling compared with year-earlier levels. According to a market report by Knight Frank Singapore, 31 mortgagee sale listings were on the market in the quarter.
The local auction market also ended the year with 24 properties sold under the hammer, raking in total sales value of S$34.8 million ($26 million). Read more>>
Hong Kong Property Deals Surge to Highest Since August
The number of property transactions in Hong Kong surged 17 percent in January to 4,399 deals from a month ago, with total sales rising 12.5 percent to HK$37.79 billion ($4.83 billion), according to data compiled by Centaline Property Agency.
The surge comes amid the US Federal Reserve’s decision to hold interest rates steady on Thursday morning, the fifth time since September. Read more>>
Fraser Hospitality Trust Results Improve on Tourism Rebound
Frasers Hospitality Trust saw an increase in revenue per available room across its portfolios in the first quarter ended 31 December 2023, as tourism demand continued to show “remarkable resilience”.
FHT is a stapled trust comprising Frasers Hospitality Real Estate Investment Trust and Frasers Hospitality Business Trust. The group observed “sustained recovery” in its markets of Singapore, Australia, Britain, Japan and Malaysia, the trust’s managers said in a business update on Thursday. Read more>>
Henderson Land to Launch Residential Project in Hong Kong’s Cheung Sha Wan
Henderson Land plans to launch a project in Cheung Sha Wan in the first quarter of this year with a total of 700 homes.
The news came as Wheelock Properties executive director Ricky Wong forecast that the Hong Kong property market would stabilise in the first half and rise in the second half of the year. Read more>>
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