DAILY MARKET UPDATES 15th August 2008

Kwek Leng Beng: Property slowdown not widespread
City Developments (CDL) chief Kwek Leng Beng is not convinced that the property market slowdown is as widespread as it seems, despite the recent easing in home sales and prices. He said the lower prices may just be the result of 'panic-selling' by a few owners who bought their high-end homes cheap. A few lower-priced sales may not be representative of the overall high-end market. Mr Kwek also brushed aside concerns about a looming oversupply of homes in the market. He cited higher land and building costs, pressure on the construction sector that may result in completion delays, as well as possible financing difficulties faced by developers who want to build new homes.
- The Straits Times, B25 – also see The Business Times, P2 “One man's panic is another's bargain...
Frasers opens US$135m Beijing service residence
Frasers Hospitality, a unit of Frasers Centrepoint, the property arm of listed conglomerate F&N, officially opened a 23-storey service residence in Beijing, the sixth of up to 20 it hopes to open in China. The company owns or operates service residences in more than 14 cities in Asia and Europe and is targeting 8,500 apartments by 2010. The latest US$135 million project has 357 apartments and was completed earlier this year. Its newest residence is in the heart of Beijing's central business district and is already seeing 80% occupancy.
- The Business Times, P17
Property firms report weak set of Q2 numbers
Hit by fewer home sales, lower revaluation gains from investment properties, drops in divestment gains - and the stronger Singapore dollar - property companies largely reported weak results for the second quarter. Most listed developers have warned that the global slowdown and weakening market could hit their business in the third and fourth quarters. CapitaLand, City Developments and Keppel Land posted lower profits for Q2. For the residential market, Citigroup said prices of luxury homes could correct. A Citi analyst expects a 20-30% price correction for high-end properties from their recent peak, and reckons the mid-tier is likely to decline 10-20%.
- The Business Times, P4
Weak £, absence of tax credits pull down CDL Q2 profit 15.1%
City Developments (CDL) posted a higher profit from property development and rental properties in second quarter and first half. But the translation of earnings by its Millennium & Copthorne Hotels at a weakening exchange rate of the pound against the Singapore dollar, plus the absence of one-off tax credits in Q2 last year, resulted in a 15.1% year-on-year drop in Q2 net earnings to $165.2 million. For the first half, CDL managed a 3% year-on-year increase in net earnings to $330.1 million. CDL also said it will enter into Singapore's first Islamic Sukuk-Ijarah unsecured financing arrangement, through a proposed $1 billion Islamic multi-currency medium-term notes programme, to tap new markets and investors. CDL plans to launch 400 private homes in H2 this year. These homes comprise 200 units in the second phase of Livia, a 99-year leasehold condo at Pasir Ris, and 100 units each at The Arte at Thomson and The Quayside Collection at Sentosa Cove. The group has achieved average prices of $1,500 to $1,600 psf for Shelford Suites and $650-$670 psf for the first phase of Livia.
- The Business Times, P4
Mitsui may set up new phenol plant here
Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals - which has invested around US$700 million or S$1 billion in plants on Jurong Island - is looking at setting up another phenol plant here, likely to run into hundreds of millions of dollars. The Japanese chemicals company also announced that it was beefing up its R&D laboratory here by increasing its staff strength from less than 10 to over 30 in the near future. It will also be moving the lab from Jurong Island to the Kendall Building at Science Park III late next year.
- The Business Times, P12
Spicing up S'pore with US$200m war chest
India-based business group Spice Corp, with interests in the ICT (infocomm technology) sector, is setting up its global headquarters, Spice Global, here. The cash-rich US$500 million Spice Corp has set aside US$200 million for investment through the Singapore office. As part of the investment in Singapore, group company Cellebrum Technologies will set up a development centre in Singapore. The company has leased space at the Eunos Techpark II.
- The Business Times, P13
Indonesia's growth beats forecast
Indonesia's economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter with the help of strong commodity exports and investment. South-east Asia's biggest economy expanded 6.39% in April-June from a year earlier, picking up from Q1's revised 6.32% and topping the market's 6.1% forecast. But while some economists see a slowdown in the second half, they said full-year growth should still be around 6%.
- The Business Times, P16
Martin No. 38
Raw concrete, natural timbers, exposed bolt heads, zinc-galvanized metal finishing – just some of the imperfections that make a home at Martin No. 38 so perfectly appealing.
- Developer: SC Global
- Freehold
- Making its debut soon. To register interest, call 6100 2323 or visit www.martin38.com.
- The Business Times, P5 - advertisement

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