Singapore: World's second freest economy this year
Singapore was ranked the world’s second freest economy this year, just behind Hong Kong and above Australia, scoring 87.2 in the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom.According to the Index prepared by the Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation, Singapore’s score this year rose 1.1...
Continue Reading • 14 Jan 2011
Changes to Residential Property Act kick in Monday
The Residential Property (Amendment) Act 2010, which was enacted by Parliament on November 22, is set to come into effect on January 17.One of the major changes to the Residential Property Act (RPA) is the requirement for individuals who renounce or lose their Singapore Citizenship or Permanent...
Continue Reading • 14 Jan 2011
New measures to ease home loans
Many bankers in Singapore are preparing for a slowdown in home loans, as the government has implemented another series of property measures to curb the market.“The new property measures will have an impact on new housing loan applications, as we expect potential homebuyers to be more...
Continue Reading • 14 Jan 2011
Singapore property firms down on new measures
Shares of Singapore-listed property companies dropped on Friday after the government announced new cooling measures to curb home prices.Shares of Wing Tai Holdings fell 5.1 percent, while City Developments Ltd retreated 4.6 percent. Keppel Land and CapitaLand both declined 2.9 percent...
Continue Reading • 14 Jan 2011
Government raises seller's stamp duty to 16%
The government has announced a new and stronger set of demand-side cooling measures, the third in less than a year.The seller’s stamp duty for private homes will rise up to 16 percent from as high as 3 percent previously, while tighter mortgage restrictions will be implemented.Analysts said...
Continue Reading • 14 Jan 2011
Australian mortgage market remains resilient
Home loan demand in Australia was defied by the “super-sized” interest rate increase set by banks in November, but pundits said the unexpected resilience of borrowers will not prevent the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) from imposing another increase next month.Home loan offers rose...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
Average room rates for Singapore hotels climb
The average occupancy rate in Singapore hotels gained 3.9 percentage points year-on-year to 89 percent in November 2010, while average room rates climbed 10.5 percent year-on-year to S$220.“In light of the demand for hotel rooms, we are likely to see other well-located sites on the reserve...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
Construction demand to remain positive in 2011
Construction demand in Singapore is projected to hit S$22 billion to S$28 billion this year, as continued workload from last year saw demand reaching s$25.7 billion, up 14 percent from 2009.Demand from the public sector is expected to be the main factor this year, contributing between S$12...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
Four new MRT stations to be ready by 2016
Four new MRT stations are expected to be ready on the East-West line by 2016, extending the rail system’s operations into the Tuas industrial estate. “When completed, it will improve accessibility and connectivity for people who work in the Jurong and Tuas industrial areas. The Tuas...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
Lian Beng's net profit doubled in H1 2011
Lian Beng Group has announced that its net profit for the first half of its 2011 fiscal year doubled to S$22.6 million, from S$11.3 million in 2010, driven by higher revenue from its core construction business.The company’s strong bottomline improvement came on the back of a 58.2 percent...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
Ascott to redeploy S$1b capital into new investments
The Ascott Limited, CapitaLand’s service apartment unit, intends to redeploy capital worth S$1 billion into new investments in 2011.Ascott is seeking to strengthen its market leadership position in Asia, said Lim Ming Yan, Chief Executive of Ascott. The group also plans to expand in Europe,...
Continue Reading • 13 Jan 2011
UK mortgage lending to stay subdued
Banks in the UK are unlikely to step up mortgage lending in 2011, as a lack of funds and increased regulations restrain access to credit and concerns on the economy persist, according to Hometrack Ltd.Mortgage lenders will probably approve only 1.2 million loans, the same as the number approved...
Continue Reading • 12 Jan 2011
Wing Tai wins prestigious China award
Singaporean luxury residential and commercial real estate developer Wing Tai highlighted its commitment to China when it bagged the “Hurun’s Recommended Singapore Luxury Property Developer” award at the 2011 Hurun Best of the Best Awards Ceremony, held at the Pudong Ritz Carlton...
Continue Reading • 12 Jan 2011
Mapletree Commercial Trust preparing for $1bn IPO
Mapletree Commercial Trust, a unit of Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd, has hired banks for a $1 billion initial share sale in the first quarter, according to a source with knowledge of the matter.The trust hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Deutsche Bank AG, DBS Group Holdings Ltd and CIMB Group...
Continue Reading • 11 Jan 2011
TCT's property portfolio value up 4.61% in 2010
Singapore-listed Treasury China Trust (TCT) has announced that property portfolio value reached RMB9.61 billion in the 12 months ended 31 December 2010, up 4.61 percent or RMB423 million over the same period in 2009.“TCT experienced strong operating performance across its portfolio during...
Continue Reading • 11 Jan 2011
US mortgage costs to skyrocket this year
Though home prices in the US are down, mortgage costs are heading up, according to a memo released by Fannie Mae in late December.The government-controlled GSE has implemented a new schedule for higher add-on fees since the new year, similar to what Freddie Mac imposed since Thanksgiving 2010....
Continue Reading • 10 Jan 2011
CEA misplaced 125 applications
The Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) said it had not yet updated some registration applications as it had misplaced them.There were 125 affected applications, which have not been updated in the Public Register of the CEA, it said in a statement."CEA is working with the affected salespersons...
Continue Reading • 10 Jan 2011
US mortgage applications soar from 12-month low
Mortgage applications in the US increased from a 12-month low last week, as refinancing rose for the first time since early November, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) index.The index also showed that loan applications rose 2.3 percent after declining 3.9 percent in the...
Continue Reading • 7 Jan 2011
AIT launches IPO for property ownership in India
Singapore-based Ascendas India Trust (AIT) has launched the first ever initial public offering (IPO), which raised funds on the Singapore Stock Exchange, aiming to own property in India.The size of the IPO was S$500 million, while the offer price was S$1.18, said officials of JPMorgan, the joint...
Continue Reading • 7 Jan 2011
CCL appoints new CEO
CapitaLand Commercial Ltd (CCL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CapitaLand Limited, has appointed Chong Lit Cheong as the new chief executive officer, effective 10 February 2011. He will replace Mr. Ee Chee Hong, who will assume a new appointment within the CapitaLand Group upon his return from a...
Continue Reading • 7 Jan 2011