News Highlights Wednesday 12 March 2008

Space crunch in Orchard pushes docs to Novena
Private doctors are flocking to the Novena area as the squeeze on clinic space in the Orchard Road belt tightens. In the space of 2 years, Far East Organization has already sold or leased 92 per cent of the 145 medical suites at its new Novena Medical Centre (NMC). Foreign patients number more than 400,000 a year and come mainly from Indonesia and Malaysia, with increasing numbers from China, the Middle East and developing countries. Spending on medical tourism averaged about S$1.3 billion in 2006 and is expected to double by 2012. The demand for medical suites has been pushing rents up with prices in Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre rising from S$8 psf to about S$18 psf in the past 4 years. A suite in the same location was last sold for S$5,000 psf up from S$4,017 last March.

- The Straits Times, H4



Singapore tops ranking as least corrupt in Asia again
The Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (Perc) expects corruption to emerge as a hot-button issue in Asia this year, as slowing growth rising food prices and political campaigns feed a groundswell against graft. Singapore though, is unlikely to be tainted as slated by expatriates surveyed, due to its “no-nonsense approach to corruption”.

- The Straits Times, H6



Foreigners snap up homes as rents start to bite
A record number of foreigners have opted to purchase homes instead of renting due to ever-climbing rental rates. According to DTZ Debenham Tie Leung, foreigners bought 6,536 non-landed homes from the secondary market in 2007, with purchases made by foreigners in the secondary market on a whole increasing by 105 per cent in volume as compared to 2006. Indonesians and Malaysians remain the biggest foreign buyers here, accounting for 23 and 17 per cent of all foreigners in 2007 respectively, with Indians (12 per cent), British (8 per cent), Chinese (7 per cent) and Koreans (7 per cent) also well represented. DTZ also believes that speculation is less rampant with most buyers being owner occupiers. Future supply of landed homes is also expected to be relatively low at 3,100 units over the next few years.

- The Business Times, P1


Top bid for landed housing plot comes in at just S$78 psf
A landed property housing parcel in Jurong West drew only 2 bids and a low top bid of S$11.8 million – or just S$77.80 psf. The higher bidder, put in by Boon Keng Development was significantly below want was expected, with analysts reckoning the plot would fetch about S$200-S$250 psf. The 99-year leasehold site on Westwood Avenue has a land are of 151,759 sq ft, and an estimated 50 – 60 houses can be built on the plot. Market watchers believe the government might not award the site referencing from the decision to not sell a short-term office site in Aljunied due to a low priced bid.

- The Business Time, P10



Guocoland dives on options lapse
Shares of Guocoland fell victim yesterday to news that a fund company managed by Kuwait Finance House (Malaysia) Berhad (KFHMB) did not exercise option to buy S$814.8 million worth of property. The stock dived 13 cents or 3.4 per cent to close at S$3.70 with 420,000 shares changing hands. The median price of S$3,200 psf that the KFHMB fund agreed on earlier was seen as the benchmark pricing for the area. DBS Vickers has lowered its target price to S$4.14 from S$5.60 after revising downwards its average selling price estimates for Guocoland’s mid-tier and high-end projects ascribing a 15 per cent discount to Guocoland’s revalued net asset value.

- The Business Times, P5



MSIM wins regional award for 2nd year
For a second straight year, Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) Morgan Stanley’s asset management arm has been named The Best Asian Real Estate House of the Year by Asia Asset Management, a leading asset management publication in the region.

- The Business Times, P10