Hotel Properties Ltd co-founder and managing director Ong Beng Seng
Singapore law enforcement officials are nearing a decision on the fate of property tycoon Ong Beng Seng, with that story leading Mingtiandi’s headline roundup. Also making the list, BlackRock says it will refrain for the time being from further real estate investment in China, where the central bank has cut rates in a bid to spur the economy.
Singapore Authorities Expected to Take Action on HPL’s Ong Beng Seng Soon
Singapore’s Attorney-General’s Chambers will “take a decision” on property tycoon Ong Beng Seng “soon” after former transport minister S Iswaran pleaded guilty to bribery and obstruction of justice charges Tuesday, the Business Times reported.
The report didn’t specify what the AGC decision would be about, nor the precise timeline of it. The AGC had said in January that it would decide on Hotel Properties co-founder Ong and others after Iswaran’s case had been completed. Read more>>
BlackRock ‘Long Way’ From Investing More in China’s Real Estate
BlackRock will refrain from investing more in China’s real estate market until it sees a significant return in investor confidence and an improvement in supply-demand fundamentals for the property sector there.
“It feels like we are a long way away from actually investing in that market,” said Hamish MacDonald, head and chief investment officer of Asia Pacific real estate at the world’s largest asset manager. “China’s not part of our investment strategy at the moment because we are not convinced of a deep liquid exit right now,” he said at a news briefing Tuesday in Singapore. Read more>>
China Cuts Interest Rates as Stimulus Effort Ramps Up
China’s central bank lowered the interest rate charged on its one-year policy loans while net withdrawing liquidity via the lending facility, as the monetary authority shifts toward a short-term tool in an overhaul of its policy framework.
The People’s Bank of China cut the rate of the medium-term lending facility to 2 percent from 2.3 percent, according to a statement on Wednesday. It also withdrew a net RMB 291 billion ($41.4 billion) via the MLF, the biggest drainage since December 2021. Read more>>
Sun Hung Kai Selling Homes at Discount After Rate Cut
Sun Hung Kai Properties, Hong Kong’s biggest developer, is marketing a new project at a 20 percent discount to lure buyers after a recent interest-rate reduction.
The company’s Cullinan Sky project in the former airport Kai Tak area was priced at HK$19,668 ($2,526) per square foot on average for its first batch, it said. That is about 20 percent lower than the stock in new projects nearby, according to Midland Realty. Read more>>
Sino-Ocean Creditors Raise Alarm Over UK Restructuring Tactic
Some creditors of Sino-Ocean Group expressed concerns about the Chinese builder’s pursuit of a restructuring tactic in UK courts, seeking to avoid a potential ruling that they fear would be unfair to them.
Sino-Ocean, which was sued in Hong Kong by a bondholder group seeking liquidation, convinced a judge in the city on Monday to adjourn a hearing on the matter until 23 December. The adjournment is needed partly to assess Sino-Ocean’s plan to pursue “parallel” restructuring processes in the city and the UK, Judge Linda Chan said Monday. Read more>>
Hong Kong Residential Rents Near Record High on Mainland Influx
Hong Kong’s rents are poised to reach a record high, buoyed by an influx of mainland Chinese and foreign nationals to the city.
Rents have risen for six consecutive months to a five-year high and are just 1.2 percent below a historical peak achieved in 2019, according to data from Midland Realty. The increase is being driven by mainland students arriving for the new academic school year and foreigners entering under various immigration programmes, said Midland chief analyst Buggle Lau. Read more>>
Singapore Second-Hand Home Sales Dip Ahead of Rate Cuts
Singapore’s condo resale volume inched down in August, a decrease in sales that analysts attributed to buyers waiting for a potential interest rate cut.
Based on flash estimates from SRX and 99.co released Tuesday, 1,080 units were resold, representing a 1.7 percent dip from the 1,099 units transacted in July. Volume was 16.8 percent higher year-on-year and 5.2 percent higher than the five-year average volume for the month of August. Read more>>
IOI to Launch Malaysia Industrial Park in 2025
IOI Properties Group expects to launch IOI Industrial Park in Banting, Selangor with a gross development value of more than MYR 1.5 billion ($363.7 million) in the second quarter of next year, says group chief operating officer Teh Chin Guan.
The industrial park will be sited on 130 hectares (321 acres), he said. In its first 28 hectare phase it will have 53 clusters, semi-detached and bungalow factory units plus land parcels for sale. Read more>>
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