IREIT says Il·lumina in Barcelona has been underperforming the rest of the portfolio (Image: Google)
The dismal outlook for an office property in sunny Barcelona leads today’s roundup of headlines from around Asia Pacific, with Singapore’s IREIT Global selling an office asset in the Spanish city. Also in the news, a 1970s Singapore housing project could be in line for preservation and a London office building seized from China’s Cheung Kei Group may be worth less than the rent still owed on the property.
SGX-Listed IREIT Global to Sell Barcelona Office for $26.9M
IREIT Global will divest Il·lumina, an office building in Barcelona, Spain, for €24.5 million ($26.9 million), its manager said Friday.
Although it has provided recurring income since acquisition, income yield has been lower compared with the rest of the real estate investment trust’s portfolio, the manager noted. Its weighted average lease expiry of 2.8 years could result in higher vacancy as leases expire, as the location of the property may pose challenges in leasing. Read more>>
Singapore’s People’s Park Complex Studied for Conservation
People’s Park Complex, built in the 1970s as Southeast Asia’s first multi-use complex, may be proposed for conservation in view of its high heritage significance, said Singapore’s urban planning authorities.
The move was welcomed by heritage groups, which have urged that the building be saved, but it may impact a second attempt at a collective sale launched by its owners in March 2023. Read more>>
Cheung Kei’s Unwanted London Office Block Shows More Pain Coming for Lenders
Some bids for 5 Churchill Place, an office project seized from China’s Cheung Kei Group which is being sold on behalf of its lenders, are so low that they work out to less than the amount of rent still owed by tenant JP Morgan, according to people familiar with the situation.
The difficulties in liquidating the ageing office building align with a series of sales in which lenders are facing painful losses in London’s office market. Read more>>
Powerlong Signs Restructuring Deal With Creditors
Distressed Chinese developer Powerlong Real Estate Holdings unveiled the preliminary terms of a restructuring agreement with an ad hoc group of creditors late on Thursday, a deal which is expected to give the Shanghai-based company a brief respite from the ongoing debt crisis.
The builder said it had agreed with the creditor group on restructuring its offshore bonds, which gave bondholders options such as swapping their holdings for shares in the company’s subsidiary Powerlong Commercial Management Holdings or for convertible bonds of the company, according to a filing made to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Read more>>
Warburg Pincus Taps Apollo for $1B Loan to Bypass Banks
Warburg Pincus turned to investment giant Apollo Global Management for a $1 billion loan to pay down bank facilities involving an older fund.
The loan was secured by a portion of investments in a $15 billion fund that Warburg launched in 2018, according to people familiar with the matter. The private equity firm had been in talks with several lenders as it considered taking out this unorthodox yet increasingly popular type of borrowing known as a net asset value loan. Read more>>
Fitch Cuts Wanda Commercial to Restricted Default, Then Upgrades to CC
Fitch Ratings downgraded Dalian Wanda Commercial Management Group to restricted default from C on completion of a distressed debt exchange, and simultaneously upgraded the firm to CC from RD to reflect its post-restructuring profile.
Fitch said Thursday that the same rating actions applied to Wanda Commercial Properties (Hong Kong), also a unit of Dalian Wanda Group, China’s largest commercial developer. Read more>>
Shanghai, Beijing Home Sales Surge After Policy Easing
Two of China’s biggest cities posted a jump in home transactions, following the latest policy easing efforts to improve sector sentiment.
The transaction area of Shanghai’s second-hand homes increased by 25.7 percent from 15 December to 18 December, compared with the previous week, according to an HSBC report on Wednesday. The average daily sales of new home units in the city rose nearly 41 percent, while that of Beijing jumped 122 percent. Read more>>
Mainland Developer Longfor Issues Fourth Batch of Medium-Term Notes
Chinese developer Longfor Group has completed the issuance of its fourth batch of medium-term notes since August of last year.
The notes, worth a total of RMB 1.2 billion ($168.1 million), have a term of three years and a coupon rate of 3.66 percent, the Beijing-based company recently announced. Read more>>
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