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HKMC Shenzhen venture to only offer bridging guarantees

HONG KONG (May 8, 2009): The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation said its Shenzhen joint venture will begin business by acting as guarantor for the unsecured mortgage loans of mainland banks, with fees as its main income.The business is expected to break even in 18 months, HKMC chief executive James Lau said.Lau shrugged off expectations that the firm will enter the mortgage insurance business soon because Beijing does not allow any top-up financing for mortgages.”The company will only offer high loan-to-value ratio mortgage insurance to mainland individuals when government policy allows,” he said.HKMC holds a 90 percent stake in the Shenzhen joint venture, set up last month with the clearing house run by the Shenzhen branch of the People’s Bank of China.The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation said its Shenzhen joint venture will begin business by acting as guarantor for the unsecured mortgage loans of mainland banks, with fees as its main income.The business is expected to break even in 18 months, HKMC chief executive James Lau said.Lau shrugged off expectations that the firm will enter the mortgage insurance business soon because Beijing does not allow any top-up financing for mortgages.”The company will only offer high loan-to-value ratio mortgage insurance to mainland individuals when government policy allows,” he said.HKMC holds a 90 percent stake in the Shenzhen joint venture, set up last month with the clearing house run by the Shenzhen branch of the People’s Bank of China. (source: www.thestandard.com)

CapitaLand collects payment for 98% of sold RiverGate apartments

SINGAPORE (May 7, 2009): Property developer CapitaLand has collected payment for 98 per cent of the 542 units of RiverGate apartments which have been sold since it obtained the Temporary Occupation Permit in March 2009. CapitaLand said the progress payments and deferred payment receivables for the sold units were securitised through special purpose vehicle Okeanos Investment Corporation. Okeanos issued US$477 million (S$731 million) of floating rate notes in January 2007.

The notes are due in 2011 and CapitaLand expects to fully redeem them by the maturity date in June 2009 with the proceeds collected for RiverGate to date. RiverGate is a joint venture project by CapitaLand and Hwa Hong Corporation. The development comprises 545 freehold residential units and is located in Singapore’s Robertson Quay area. (Source: www.channelasianews.com)

Roxy-Pacific reports 53% rise in Q1 net profit to S$6.4m

SINGAPORE (May 8, 2009) : Property developer Roxy-Pacific has posted a 53 per cent on-year rise in its first quarter net profit, to S$6.4 million. Revenue increased by nearly two-thirds to S$38 million. The jump was mainly due to the progressive recognition of revenue from five development projects in the quarter.

The firm also saw an increase in rental yield from the renewal lease for some of the shop units at its Roxy Square Shopping Centre since the second half of last year. But looking ahead, Roxy-Pacific said it expects its property development segment to be affected by cautious buying sentiments, which is expected to persist for the rest of the year.

Still, the firm said the balance amount of pre-sale revenue of approximately S$315 million from its development projects is expected to contribute positively to its performance from 2009 to 2011. (Source: www.channelnewsasia.com)

Damac announces Dh2bn worth construction contracts for 2009

DUBA (May 6, 2009): Damac Properties has announced plans to award Dh.2bn worth construction contract this year, with an aim to deliver an additional 7100 units by the end of next year. Damac also announced successful completion of 500 storey across all its projects in Dubai.

The Chairman of Damac Holding, Hussain Sajwani, said “Our focus for 2009 and 2010 is construction and delivery. We plan to give away Dh.2bn worth contracts for construction of ten new projects. Damac has already achieved a milestone by completing 500 floors of residential, commercial and retail units so far, and we plan to double this number soon.”

Last year, the company had awarded Dh.2.5bn worth of contracts. This year, majority of the contracts awarded will be main contracts. Damac has already delivered about 2300 units during the past six months and is considering an aggressive delivery plan during the next two years. This includes plan to deliver 25 towers by the end of 2009.

The developer is currently focussing on full-fledged construction. Damac has already completed enabling works at the Lincoln Park at Arjan, Dubailand. The XL Tower at Business Bay has reached the third storey, while the Smart Heights has reached half-way point of construction at 15 floors. External cladding and painting has already begun at Emirates Garden in Jumeirah Village, while the company has completed the enabling works for Executive Bay development at Business Bay. (Source: www.estatesdubai.com)

Qatar’s Fund to Invest in Asian Property, U.S. Assets

ABU DHABI (May 6, 2009): Qatar Investment Authority, the Persian Gulf country’s $60 billion sovereign wealth fund, plans to invest in real-estate projects in Asian cities and said it’s considering buying distressed U.S. property assets.

“We are focusing on prime cities in India, China, Singapore, Korea, Vietnam and Malaysia, cities around the world where there is strong GDP growth and fundamental unmet demand for high quality real estate,” Navid Chamdia, head of real estate at Qatar Investment, said in an interview at a wealth funds conference in Abu Dhabi late yesterday. “About 40 percent of our real-estate investments will be in Asia.”

The Qatar Investment Authority has been investing in property in the past 2 1/2 years to diversity its holdings. The investments, either in developing new property or renovating existing buildings, will be made mainly through joint ventures with local partners, and they will have a long-term holding period of at least seven to 10 years, Chamdia said.

With a population of less than 1 million, Qatar owns the world’s third-biggest natural-gas reserves and 1.3 percent of global crude-oil reserves. The emirate’s sovereign wealth fund manages $60 billion for the state, Citigroup analysts including Carsten Stendevad estimated in an October report. It holds stakes in the London Stock Exchange and Credit Suisse Group.

Qatar Investment Authority last week bought a 27 percent stake in a Vietnamese property fund, Dragon Capital, which will buy into offices and serviced apartments in Ho Chi Min City. It may also look to invest in individual projects with the fund.

The Qatari fund in February bought a 15 percent stake in an Indian office complex being built at the Bandra Kurla complex in Mumbai by the Chatterjee Group and U.S. firm Starwood Capital. It also owns 49 percent of one of one of the largest shopping malls in Malaysia, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. The fund is evaluating buying commercial properties in the U.S. that are financially distressed. (Source: Bloomberg)

ADB forecasts mild Asia recovery in 2010

BALI (May 6, 2009): The Asian Development Bank (ADB) called yesterday for a fundamental “rebalancing” of regional economies in response to the global crisis, as regional markets soared amid hopes of recovery.

Bank president Haruhiko Kuroda said the region would record only 3.4 percent growth this year but could expect a “mild recovery” of around 6 percent growth in 2010.

“With strong national and regional efforts and a mild recovery expected in the global economy next year, developing Asia and the Pacific should bounce back to about 6 percent growth in 2010,” he said. “These are positive signs, therefore this should not be a time of despair,” he added as he opened the ADB’s board of governors annual meeting in Bali.

Asian share markets rallied strongly yesterday on the back of improving indicators across the region and gains on Wall Street suggesting the US economy may be turning the corner.

“Our economist thinks that Asia has passed the worst of the economic contraction,” DBS Vickers strategist Yeo Kee Yan told Dow Jones Newswires in Singapore, where shares approached seven-month highs.

Kuroda outlined a huge expansion in the ADB’s lending plans after shareholders agreed last week to triple the bank’s capital base in response to the global downturn.

The bank will increase its overall lending assistance to the region’s poorest countries by more than US$10 billion (US$1 = RM3.53) in 2009 and 2010, including US$3 billion to meet “urgent needs stemming from the crisis,” he said.

Some of that new lending would aim to help Asian economies adjust to plunging demand for their exports to markets such as Europe and the US.

“The transfer of savings from one part of the world to another worked well when advanced economies could absorb production from developing economies, but the current state of the global economy suggests that era has passed,” Kuroda said.

“By rebalancing export-driven growth with a greater reliance on domestic demand and consumption, Asia can lead the way in charting a new, globally beneficial development course.” (Source: The Business Times)

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