General

CDL China acquires 4.5 hectare site in Suzhou

City Developments Limited China, a wholly-owned subsidiary of City Developments Limited has successfully acquired a 4.5-hectare site in Suzhou, China with a permissible gross floor area (GFA) of approximately 3.2 million square feet. CDL China will construct 750 high-end residential apartments, an office tower, a retail mall and a luxury hotel on the site located in the heart of Suzhou Industrial Park...

Surbana buys residential site in Chengdu for US$105m

Surbana Corporation, jointly owned by Temasek (60 per cent) and CapitaLand (40 per cent), said it has acquired a residential site in Chengdu China, for about US$105 million. The 804,000 square feet site was purchased through a public auction. Surbana said it will yield a potential gross floor area of over 300,000 square metres. This translates to about 3,200 apartments. Construction is expected to start...

Market watchers expect lower tender bids for GLS

Market watchers are observing lower tender bids for government land sales (GLS). According to OCBC Investment research, recent GLS tenders imply breakeven prices that are as much as 26 per cent below market prices. It said this is likely due to the policy changes in the housing market after May 2011. Average winning tenders for recent 99-year GLS condominium sites translate to a breakeven average selling...

Jurong area to offer more retail options

The retail scene in the Jurong Gateway area is set to become more vibrant with the addition of Jem, developed by Lend Lease. Many expect its retail traffic to be supported by the heavy concentration of people living and working in the west. Suburban malls have always been a bit dowdy compared to the fancier malls in the city. But with Singapore growing rapidly, the retail landscape is also changing. The...

Serangoon residential site launched for sale

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) is launching a residential site at Upper Serangoon Crescent and Upper Serangoon Road for sale by tender. Slated for condominium development, the site - located near Buangkok and Hougang MRT stations - can potentially yield 860 apartment units. HDB said the land parcel has a site area of over 24,600 square metres, with a maximum gross floor area of over 86,000...

CDL Hospitality Trusts posts 15.2% rise in Q2 DPU

Mainboard-listed CDL Hospitality Trusts on Wednesday announced a 15.2 per cent rise in its distribution per unit (DPU) to 2.96 Singapore cents for the second quarter ended June 30. That is up from 2.57 Singapore cents in the same period last year. The company said that the improvement was mainly attributed to better gross revenue - which grew 12.6 per cent on-year to S$34.6 million - as well as a one-off...

Green corridor master plan sought

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said a competition will be organised for architects and design planners to come up with a master plan for the green corridor. The corridor refers to the former Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) railway land. URA said more details on the competition will be announced at a later date. Also commenting on the corridor, the Minister of State for National Development, Tan...

Banyan Tree opens its first spa in Singapore

Banyan Tree has opened its first spa in Singapore - at the 55th level of Marina Bay Sands. The hospitality group said the location is just right for its new venture. Banyan Tree has spent the past 17 years opening spas and resorts in more than 20 countries around the world. China is a key market, with some 20 to 30 projects already signed. However, Banyan Tree said it does not want to be China-centric,...

OUE Bayfront office 77% leased

Overseas Union Enterprise (OUE) has secured over 77 per cent of the building's office net lettable area for OUE Bayfront. The group has also refurbished the former Change Alley Aerial Plaza Tower and Change Alley Link Bridge, renaming them OUE Tower and OUE Link respectively. Net lettable area have been fully taken up. In a press release yesterday, OUE unveiled new tenants at OUE Bayfront include...

Ibis Novena sold for $118m

Cockpit International group has sold the 241-room Ibis Novena located at the corner of Balestier and Irrawaddy Roads for $118 million or $489,626 per room. The freehold hotel opened in April this year. The buyer is said to be Singapore-based Grand Line International, controlled by the Kum family. Market watchers say the pricing achieved for Ibis Novena reflects the steady appreciation in transaction...