Mercatus Said Selling Singapore Retail Assets and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

One year after selling off a portfolio of shopping centres to Link REIT, Singapore’s Mercatus is said to be selling off a set of shops, with that story leading Mingtiandi’s holiday headline roundup. Also making the list on Santa’s big day is a profit warning from Singapore’s SLB Development and an India mega-lease.

Singpapore’s JBE Said Buying Mercatus HDB Assets for Under $63M

Singapore-based property group JBE is understood to have inked a deal to buy one of three bundles of commercial properties in Housing and Development Board estates that NTUC Enterprise unit Mercatus put on the market a few months ago. The pricing is in the low-S$80 million ($60 million) range, The Business Times understands.

Word in the market is that Evia Real Estate is in exclusive due diligence with a view to acquiring the other two bundles from Mercatus. It is said to be looking at a price slightly north of S$175 million. Read more>>

SLB Development Warns of Expected Loss on Higher Finance Costs, Fewer Projects

SLB Development says it expects to report a loss for the 1HFY2024 ended 30 November based on a preliminary review of the unaudited financial results for the full year period.

In a profit guidance filing, the company says the loss is mainly due to higher finance costs and lower contribution from the Group’s property development projects for which profits were largely recognised prior to 1H2024. Read more>>

India’s ICICI Securities Leases Five Floors in Mindspace Navi Mumbai Project

ICICI Securities, the financial services company of ICICI Bank, has picked up over 188,000 square feet (17,465 square metres) office space in information technology park Mindspace Juinagar in Navi Mumbai through a long-term lease of over 12 years.

The ICICI Bank subsidiary has leased the office space spread across five floors in one of the towers of the IT park from Newfound Properties & Leasing, a subsidiary of real estate developer K Raheja Corp. Read more>>

Shenzhen Luxury Housing Project Sells Out on First Day

A housing project in Shenzhen where apartments were priced at up to RMB 28.4 million ($4 million) was sold out on its first day on the market, mainly thanks to eased real estate policies and relatively cheaper pricing.

All the 270 apartments of a property project in Shenzhen’s Nanshan district were sold on 23 December, the first day of sales, according to Shenzhen Metro Group, the developer of the project. Some 553 potential buyers had paid a RMB 2 million deposit each as a pledge intention, with less than half of them finally got their wishes. Read more>>

Blackstone’s Horizon Industrial Parks Delivers Gurugram Warehouse 

Horizon Industrial Parks, a portfolio of Grade A logistics parks in India owned and managed by Blackstone Real Estate funds, has welcomed Flyjac Logistics to its new built-to-suit logistics space. Flyjac Logistics, a 3PL service provider company, will be maintaining leading electrical and electronics company V-Guard’s warehousing operations in Horizon’s facility at Farukhnagar, Gurugram.

Horizon Industrial Park Farukhnagar is a state-of-the-art, 108 acres (43 hectares) grade A facility near IMT Manesar and Gurugram. It is an emerging premier gateway to North India’s logistics and warehousing market. The new facility of Flyjac will encompass 330,000 square feet (30,658 square metres) in area alongside Amazon, LF Logistics, Rhenus and Reliance within the Industrial Park. Read more>>

Fosun Wins Approval for Potential IPO of Portugal Hospital Chain

Luz Saude, a Portuguese hospital operator ultimately controlled by China’s Fosun International Ltd., received approval from shareholders of its parent company to carry out a potential initial public offering.

Stockholders of insurer Fidelidade, the Fosun unit that holds Luz Saude, approved the plan at a meeting on Friday, a Fidelidade spokesman said. The company will meet with banks advising on a listing in mid-January and, if it decides to proceed with the listing, it will likely happen in the first quarter, he said. Read more>>

Warehouses Shine on Strong Logistics Demand; High Rents Face Resistance in 2024

Landlords holding modern warehouse assets had another standout year in 2023. But deteriorating business sentiment will weigh on high rents, and business parks could suffer from a flood of new supply.

Tricia Song, CBRE’s head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia, said: “Business sentiment in the industrial sector is relatively muted, as priorities shifted to managing costs amid high interest rates, concerns over geopolitical risks and China’s economic issues.” Read more>>

S-REITs Boost Balance Sheets Ahead of Financial Year-End

As 2023 draws to a close, some Singapore-listed REITs have been taking steps that will help boost their balance sheets ahead of the financial year-end. Over the past week, five REITs have announced various actions, including raising equity, paring down debt, as well as asset divestments.

Active capital management has been a priority for REIT managers this year, amid heightened investor attention on gearing levels, with higher interest rates putting pressure on valuations. Read more>>

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