Malaysia’s Sunway REIT Mulls Buy of EPF Malls and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, Sunway REIT confirms reports that it’s nearing a deal to buy retail assets from Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund, and the Silicon Valley Bank failure is seen giving an indirect lift to Hong Kong’s property market.

Sunway REIT Confirms Talks on Buying Retail Assets From EPF

The manager of Malaysia-listed Sunway REIT has confirmed that it is in talks to buy retail assets from the Employees Provident Fund, saying negotiation of terms is still in progress.

While it cannot confirm the terms of the agreement, the REIT said in a filing Monday that it expects — subject to agreement of terms and the board’s final approval — to enter into an agreement with the EPF “as soon as possible but we are unable to confirm the timing at this juncture due to ongoing negotiations”. Read more>>

After SVB Collapse, Hong Kong Could Gain From US Rate Hike Pause

Hong Kong’s property market — and overall economy — is expected to benefit from a potential pause next week in US interest rate increases, with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank triggering a crisis of confidence.

Five out of eight analysts in Hong Kong polled by the South China Morning Post said they expected the US Federal Reserve to not raise interest rates during a Federal Open Market Committee meeting on 22 March, a view shared by Wall Street lender Goldman Sachs. Read more>>

E-Commerce Firm Coupang Pulls Out of Japan to Focus on Korea, Taiwan

Coupang has decided to withdraw its e-commerce business from Japan, a mere 21 months after it began offering its online delivery service there, a company official confirmed Sunday.

The Japanese daily Nikkei reported Saturday that South Korea’s largest e-commerce firm would terminate its delivery service for fresh food and daily necessities in Meguro and Setagaya, Tokyo, on 21 March. Read more>>

Investor Group Tells Shareholders to Reject Boustead Offer

Boustead Singapore’s bid to acquire Boustead Projects at S$0.95 ($0.71) a share is being met with opposition, as the Securities Investors Association Singapore has advised shareholders to reject the listed acquirer’s offer unless the offer price is raised to a “fair and reasonable” amount.

This goes against the recommendation of Boustead Projects’ independent directors, who said shareholders should accept the offer, unless they are able to get a price that is higher than what the open market is offering. Read more>>

A Look at Evergrande’s Restructuring Scenarios as Key Date Looms

The clock is ticking for China Evergrande Group to announce a detailed debt restructuring plan.

The defaulted developer at the center of China’s broader property debt crisis faces a March 20 court hearing in Hong Kong on a winding-up petition. The judge had urged the firm last year to present “something more concrete” at the gathering. Read more>>

Investors Go Bargain Hunting in China’s Ailing Property Market

Discounted prices and government support are starting to restore appetite among foreign investors for real estate assets in China, analysts tell fDi. Asia Pacific investors already appear willing to go bargain hunting as the country’s ailing property market tries to stage a comeback, while US and European investors, swayed by geopolitical tensions, remain cautious.

On 20 February, Chinese regulators announced a pilot programme that encourages overseas institutional investors to create fixed-asset funds to invest in commercial, industrial and residential real estate. Read more>>

Foreign Buyers on Track to Spend More on Aussie Homes

Foreign buyers were cleared to spend a whopping A$4.3 billion (now $2.9 billion) on Australian residential real estate proposals in the final six months of 2022.

And they appear set to splash more this financial year than in any year since the COVID-19 pandemic, with A$7.6 billion spent in the full 2021-22 financial year and A$5.7 billion in the year before. Read more>>

Masatoshi Ito, Japanese Billionaire Behind 7-Eleven’s Rise, Dies at 98

Masatoshi Ito, the Japanese billionaire who turned 7-Eleven convenience stores into a global empire, has died aged 98, closing the chapter on one of Asia’s most storied retail entrepreneurs.

Seven & I Holdings, operator of 7-Eleven, confirmed the death in a Monday statement, adding that Ito died from old age on 10 March. Read more>>

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