Tripp Gantt, chief executive of Manulife US REIT
One of Singapore’s most troubled REITs leads today’s collection of real estate headlines from around Asia as investors swallow terms for a bailout of Manulife US REIT. Also in the news, Country Garden avoids its first domestic bond default and Lendlease sells a Cairns mall.
Manulife US REIT Unitholders Approve Recapitalisation Plan
Unitholders of Manulife US REIT on Thursday voted overwhelmingly in favour of a recapitalisation plan proposed by its manager.
Over 97 percent of the votes present at the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Thursday were in favour of each of the three inter-conditional resolutions. Read more>>
Country Garden Pays RMB Bond Just Weeks After Dollar Default
Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings, which defaulted on dollar bonds in October, paid off an onshore note in full Wednesday, the same day that a top housing official said the nation would avoid a cascade of missed debt payments by property firms.
The builder’s onshore unit, Country Garden Real Estate Group, repaid in full the RMB 800 million ($111 million) security with a put option that expired Wednesday, it said in a filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. Bloomberg News had reported earlier that company representatives told investors it had remitted funds to repay the outstanding principal and interest. Read more>>
Lendlease Fund Selling Cairns Complex for $261M
The big reset in the shopping centre market is hitting its straps with a fresh deal that will see a fund run by property company Lendlease sell its huge Cairns Central complex in Far North Queensland.
Funds house Fawkner has bought the centre at a headline price of A$390 million ($261 million), with the regional mall to finally sell after two higher bids made earlier this year fell away when interest rates were rising. Read more>>
Fitch Rates Hong Kong’s Link REIT at “A’
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Hong Kong-based Link Real Estate Investment Trust’s (Link REIT) Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and its senior unsecured rating at ‘A’. The credit agency also gave Asia’s largest real estate investment a stable outlook.
In a note Fitch said it based the rating on Link REIT’s prudent financial management and the continued resilience of its retail properties in Hong Kong. The ratings agency also saw Link’s March rights issue and high proportion of fixed rate debt as helping the REIT manage its interest-rate risk and replenish its rating headroom. Read more>>
Japan’s Cold Storage to Heat Up as Inventory Shrinks
Cold storage warehousing is expected to face dire market conditions in the coming years with demand to outstrip limited supply.
There is not enough new construction in the pipeline to replace the older facilities as they become obsolete. As of June 2022, 33.8 percent of cold storage warehouses were over 30 years old and only 14.1 percent were less than 10 years old. On a storage capacity base, 46 percent of the capacity in Tokyo is in buildings over 40 years old. Read more>>
Boustead Projects Inks Deal for Vietnam Industrial JV
KTG & Boustead Industrial Logistics Joint Stock Company, a joint venture of Boustead Projects, has entered a sale-and-purchase agreement for all the issued and paid-up shares of Minh Quang Industrial Development Joint Stock Company for $10.7 million.
Minh Quang had previously signed an in-principle land lease agreement to develop a land plot with an area of 136,450 square metres (1.4 million square feet) at Yen Phong District in Bac Ninh province. Read more>>
Hong Kong Stocks Slip as Longfor Leads Losses on China Policy Meeting
Hong Kong stocks retreated as investors fret over the lack of fresh stimulus from China’s key policy meeting this week, with no new statement about measures to fix the troubled property market.
The Hang Seng Index dropped 0.9 percent to 16,228.75 on Wednesday, approaching the lowest level in 14 months. The Tech Index declined 1.2 percent while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.2 percent. Read more>>
Chinese Official Vows to Prevent Collective Defaults of Developers
A top Chinese housing official pledged to avoid a cascade of debt defaults by developers, among the strongest comments yet to cushion an escalating real estate liquidity crisis.
China will “forcefully prevent developers from defaulting on their debts all at once,” Dong Jianguo, vice minister of housing and urban-rural development, said at a Wednesday conference, state broadcaster China Central Television reported. Read more>>
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