Pollux Properties acquires Geylang Rd property

Dec 27, 2011 - PropertyGuru.com

Pollux Properties, through its indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary, Pollux Treasures, has acquired a property at Geylang Road for S$25 million.

The company said the property comprises a residential-cum-commercial building situated on a 1,350.2 sq m plot of freehold land. It has a maximum plot ratio of 2.8 for residential development and a maximum plot ratio of three for commercial development, and is currently zoned as part-residential / part-commercial / institution.

Pollux noted that the group plans to redevelop the property, subject to approval from the relevant authorities. It added that the acquisition, which is expected to be completed in 12 weeks, will be funded through internal resources and bank borrowings.

Blumont Group cancels planned acquisition of Heritage Residences

Dec 28, 2011 - PropertyGuru.com.sg

Investment holding company Blumont Group Ltd announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Raintree Rock Sdn Bhd, has agreed with Bluwater Developments Bhd to terminate the planned acquisition of the latter’s Heritage Residences, a serviced residence development in Selangor, Malaysia.

The company said the termination was due to Bluwater Developments Bhd being unable to fulfil one of the material conditions precedent for the acquisition.

In September 2010, Raintree Rock had agreed to acquire 11 units of The Heritage Residences from Bluwater, and Heritage Lakeside Developments Sdn Bhd was appointed as the manager and operator of the property.

More local investors look to offshore properties

Dec 28, 2011 - PropertyGuru.com.sg

With the bleak outlook on local property prices, more local investors are eyeing offshore properties, said industry watchers and real estate agents.

According to a PropertyGuru survey, 19 percent of over 1,737 respondents polled were “tempted” to invest overseas, up from 14 percent in June.

The poll — conducted before the government’s recent cooling measures — also cited that Malaysia was the top overseas investment destination, with 32 percent interested, followed by Australia with 24 percent, while the Philippines and New Zealand both landed in third spot with nine percent.

As the residential market in Singapore is expected to slow, PropertyGuru also expects the number of foreign and local investors looking overseas to increase in the next six months.

Malaysia-based developer Eastern & Oriental noted a 20 percent increase in inquiries from Singaporean home hunters about its Penang projects.

Analysts believe that the cooling measures have taken some of the heat out of the luxury residential market and this will likely continue next year, as investors turn to opportunities in Western markets. This could affect demand for luxury homes in Singapore, Beijing, Hong Kong and Shanghai, where prices have risen by approximately 25 percent in recent years.

“While we saw very strong activity by high-net-worth investors, particularly from the Asia-Pacific region…the course might change in the next 12 months, where we see more outflow in terms of money going into markets like in Europe, in key markets in the US, by high-net-worth Asian investors,” said Donald Han, Vice-Chairman of Cushman & Wakefield.

Cebu Pacific mounts additional Cebu flights

By Mary Ann Ll. Reyes (The Philippine Star) Updated December 27, 2011 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Budget carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) has mounted additional flights to and from Cebu, in time for the arrival of its brand-new Airbus A320 aircraft from the Airbus facility in Toulouse, France.

On Feb. 8, 2012, CEB will add flights from Cebu to the following destinations: Manila (11 weekly flights), Boracay (four weekly flights), Dipolog (three weekly flights), Legazpi (four weekly flights), Pagadian (two weekly flights), and Siargao (one weekly flight).

It will also increase seat capacity from Cebu to Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo and Gen. Santos on the same dates. These routes will now utilize Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft.

CEB will also introduce thrice-weekly Cebu-Kalibo flights starting Feb. 24 and add four times weekly Iloilo-Cagayan de Oro-Iloilo flights starting Feb. 8.

“CEB is the largest airline operating in Cebu, and our passengers have the fastest access to key cities in the Philippines and Asia. With even more flights starting February 2012, CEB continues to offer them the most number of flight options and the lowest fares,” CEB vice president for marketing and distribution Candice Iyog said.

The airline flew 2.56 million passengers in and out of its Cebu hub from January to November 2011. CEB flies the most number of passengers and operates the most number of flights, routes and destinations from Cebu.

“With the addition of the Cebu-Kalibo route in February, CEB offers flights to 20 domestic and four international (Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, Pusan) destinations from Cebu, greatly contributing to the access of foreign tourists to the Central Visayas area,” Iyog added.

CEB flew close to 11 million passengers from January to November 2011, a growth of 14 percent as compared to the same period last year. It also succeeded in flying one million passengers each for the months of April, May, October and November, a first for any Philippine carrier.

For bookings and inquiries, guests can go to www.cebupacificair.com, or call the reservation hotlines (02) 7020-888 or (032) 230-8888. The latest seat sales and promos can also be found on CEB’s official Twitter and Facebook pages.

CEB currently operates 10 Airbus A319, 19 Airbus A320 and eight ATR-72 500 aircraft. Its fleet of 37 aircraft – with an average age of 3.6 years – is one of the youngest aircraft fleets in Asia. Between 2012 and 2021, it will take delivery of 23 Airbus A320 and 30 Airbus A321neo aircraft orders, and two Airbus A320 aircraft on operating lease agreements.

Abacus Consolidated sees 2012 as banner year on mining, real estate boost

By Zinnia B. Dela Peña (The Philippine Star) Updated December 27, 2011 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Listed holding firm Abacus Consolidated Resources & Holdings Inc. said it expects 2012 to be a banner year for the company as it steps up activities in mining and real estate.

In a disclosure to the stock exchange, Abacus president Leonardo Gayao said revenues to be generated from new business decisions would boost its profitability next year.

Gayao said the company approved the assignment or transfer of gold mining rights to fully-owned unit Abacus Goldmines Exploration & Development Corp. The move is in preparation for the entry of a joint venture partner – a Chinese group with whom Abacus has been in talks with.

The assignment, together with the necessary procedure of estimating and appraising the mining rights, is expected to result in an income of P300 million for Abacus.

Aside from this, Abacus is going full blast in its selling efforts in its real estate venture in Batangas as it has already received from the Housing & Land Use Regulatory Board the permit to sell for its MonteMaria real estate project and its condominium units, all located in Batangas City.

Abacus also decided to consolidate the company’s operation, focusing on operations of a non-bank financial institution. It consolidated its investment house subsidiary Philippine Regional Investment Development Corp., which has under its wings a mutual fund, Philippine International Infrastructure Fund, and various real estate development companies.

In line with the consolidation, the real estate holdings will be re-appraised to reflect current values, thereby generating an appraisal increase that is estimated to reach no less than P200 million.

Moreover, Abacus approved the reclassification of its investment in Pacific Online Systems Corp., which will result in book value of the shares by at least P100 million.