There has been a number of unsolicited offers for Macquarie MEAG Prime (MMP) REIT, and one of them involves buying 100 percent of MMP REIT units and taking the trust private. The trust's manager, Macquarie Pacific Star, says it will now conduct a strategic review of the trust to maximise value for its unit-holders. MMP REIT has been trading at a substantial discount to its net asset value of S$1.61 a...
General
A last-ditch attempt by Dynamic Investments to thwart the Holland Hills Mansion en bloc sale was over in less than 20 minutes yesterday. In a Court of Appeal hearing, three judges, including Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, upheld last October’s High Court ruling that the Strata Titles Board had approved the $292-million sale in good faith. The issue in contention was the board’s approval of the sale...
Dynamic Investments, which owned the largest unit of Holland Hills Mansion, had tried to appeal against the Strata Titles Boards’ (STB) approval of the S$292 million sale, but its case was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on Tuesday. Dynamic Investments had argued that although the sales committee followed the guidelines set down by the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers, it did not assess if...
Singapore remains competitive in attracting key top talent despite the government's decision to keep personal income tax rates unchanged, according to tax experts. However, they say Singapore may be losing ground on the non-tax advantages it has been banking on, such as housing and education. The persistent air pollution in Hong Kong has sent expatriates to Singapore's shores. That is despite Hong Kong...
Parkway Holdings had its steepest decline in more than six years on concern the company’s $1.25 billion bid for a new hospital site was too high. The bid by Parkway, Singapore’s largest private hospital operator, is as much as five times the price offered by rival Raffles Medical Management, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said. Parkway will be able to build a hospital on the 1.7-hectare site in...
Parkway Life Reit, which derives its revenue from the rental of healthcare space, will make its own independent assessment whether to acquire a new hospital whose site its parent company Parkway Holdings made a record bid for. The $1.25 billion bid by Parkway Holdings - about five times that of rival Raffles Medical - for the Novena site on which the hospital will be built has raised concerns among...
There were just 278 flats offered but the Housing and Development Board received about 9,900 applications. This was the number recorded at the close of the application phase on Monday for the bi-monthly sale of four-room and bigger flats. HDB said it received such an overwhelming response because the flats offered are in established HDB towns which are popular. But the supply of new flats is tight as...
The government's move to defer another S$1 billion worth of construction projects beyond 2009 is being welcomed by industry players. They said it will help to ease pressures on the supply side, allowing for critical private sector projects to go ahead. Still, they expect construction costs to hold up - and even jump by 10 to 15 per cent in 2008. Work is already underway at the two integrated resorts at...
The bidding war for the tin-smelting and property firm, Straits Trading Company, continues to escalate. Tecity Group, controlled by the family of the late Tan Chin Tuan, has again raised its offer for Straits Trading. It is now offering to pay S$6.70 a share to take over the company. This is S$0.20 higher than its last revised offer. The latest bid values Straits Trading at S$2.18 billion. Tecity's...
The red-light area of Geylang is ‘ring-fenced’ through vigilant enforcement to control vice activities. National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said the Police has and will continue to undertake regular enforcement action in both the odd and even streets (Lorongs) of Geylang. Mr Mah was responding to questions by Marine Parade GRC MP Fatimah Lateef on strategies to ‘ring-fence’ Lorongs 22 to...