Shimao Seeks Extension on $947M in Trusts and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, cash-strapped Shimao Group reportedly seeks a multi-year extension to repay over $900 million owed on high-yield trust products, Hong Kong boss Carrie Lam asks the city’s big developers to provide space for isolating COVID-19 patients, and a rash of auditor resignations at Chinese property firms raises fresh concerns.

Shimao Seeks Repayment Extension on Trust Debts of $947M

Shimao Group Holdings, a bellwether for financial contagion in China’s embattled property industry, is seeking to extend repayment on about RMB 6 billion ($947 million) worth of high-yield trust products over three years, according to people familiar with the matter.

Shimao told investors Wednesday that it has about RMB 1.3 billion of these short-term investments due this month and RMB 4.7 billion maturing between April and August, said the people, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter. The developer proposes to repay 25 percent of the principal in 2022, 35 percent next year and the rest in 2024, the people said. The products were issued through Citic Trust, the nation’s largest trust firm. Read more>>

Hong Kong Asks Property Tycoons to Help House COVID Patients

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam asked major property developers to find 10,000 hotel rooms for isolating people who test positive for COVID-19, as the city’s biggest outbreak yet challenges its zero-tolerance approach to the virus.

On a video call Wednesday, Lam urged hotel owners to provide “much-needed accommodation” to isolate positive patients with mild or no COVID symptoms, according to a government statement. Officials had already secured some 4,400 rooms before the meeting, of which 1,700 will be available before the end of this week and the rest by the end of next week, according to the press release. Read more>>

Auditor Resignations at Developers Trigger Alarm Bells Over Hidden Debt

A spate of auditor resignations at Chinese property companies is reigniting concerns about financial transparency in an industry facing a credit squeeze and more than $60 billion in bond redemptions this year.

PwC quit its role at Hopson Development on 27 January, citing inadequate access to necessary information, while Deloitte stepped down at China Aoyuan a day earlier, exchange filings showed. Shimao Group’s mainland unit will change its auditor, Shanghai Certified Public Accountant, for the first time in 27 years on 24 January. Read more>>

Shinsegae Makes Second Bid for Seoul’s IFC Mall

Shinsegae, one of Korea’s major retail groups, made a second bid recently to acquire IFC Mall in Yeouido, Seoul as part of its plan to secure a new growth engine for its retail business, according to industry officials Tuesday.

Unlike Starfield, a large-scale shopping complex chain located on the outskirts of Seoul catering to families, Shinsegae has been hoping to build a smaller urban shopping centre for office workers in downtown Seoul. Read more>>

Goodman Delivers $1.4B Profit as Industrial Funds Expand

Industrial property powerhouse Goodman has ridden through the storm of the pandemic and believes the switch to digital living is here to stay, helping to drive an earnings upgrade as its first-half profit cracked A$2 billion ($1.44 billion).

The company is on track to grow its funds empire to $70 billion and has boosted growth in operating earnings per security to 20 percent for this financial year. Read more>>

CapitaLand Said Pondering Bid for AMP’s Collimate Capital in Australia

Singapore-based CapitaLand has emerged as another party conducting due diligence on AMP’s Collimate Capital Funds Management, along with EIG, which has tapped JPMorgan.

DataRoom understands that CapitaLand is looking at buying the entire real estate and infrastructure manager, previously known as AMP Capital. Read more>>

Sime Darby Property Expanding Revenue Streams Beyond Development

Sime Darby Property, Malaysia’s largest listed property developer by landbank size, aims to achieve a 30 percent recurring income stream as part of its ongoing efforts to diversify its business and broaden income streams beyond property development.

SDProp aspires to be a sustainable real estate development firm by 2025. According to Hong Leong Investment Bank analyst Nazira Abdullah, the group’s property investment segment has a reasonable take-up rate. Read more>>

MTR, Link REIT, Swire Offer Mall Tenants Rental Relief Amid COVID Surge 

Several of Hong Kong’s largest property landlords said they would offer their retail tenants rental relief and concessions, stepping up to help businesses that had been decimated by plunging foot traffic amid the city’s resurgent COVID-19 outbreak.

MTR Corporation, the city’s sole mass transit railway operator, said it would offer rental concessions across its network of 97 subway stations and at the 13 shopping centres it owns. Tenants of scheduled premises that had been ordered to close under the government’s anti-pandemic rules will also get help. Read more>>

Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.