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Welcome to China Property Press Digest
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AMB-Prologis Merger Complete - Firm to
Expand in Asi (RSA, June 6) |
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According to news reports on June 6th, the
merger between AMB and Prologis to form the
world's largest warehouse owner is now
complete. The new firm, to be known as
Prologis Ltd, will now own more than US$46
billion in warehouses and, according to
reports, aims to expand aggressively in
Asia. About 12 percent of the REIT¡¯s
holdings are in Asia now, and according to
an interview that Prologis Ltd's co-chief
executive, Hamid Moghadam gave to Bloomberg,
¡°We need to increase Asia¡¯s percentage over
time, and on the margin reduce the
percentage of U.S. and Europe. If you think
about growth rates, the emerging markets are
where all the action is.¡± |
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KWG Property's sales up 26% in May (CK, June
7) |
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KWG Property Holding Ltd, a real estate
developer based in Guangzhou, the capital of
Guangdong Province, has posted RMB 1.01
billion-contracted sales for May, up 26%
year on year. The contracted sales were a
litter lower than that of April, the company
said without disclosing the decline rate.
Last month, 43% of the firm's property sales
were derived from Guangzhou, 28% from Suzhou
of Jiangsu Province, 16% from Chengdu of
Sichuan Province and 13% from Beijing.
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Shimao Property's contracted sales up 16% in
Jan-May (CK, June 8) |
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Shimao Property Holdings Ltd, a
Shanghai-based property developer founded by
Chinese billionaire Xu Rongmao, has posted
RMB 11.05-billion contracted sales for the
first five months of this year, 16% more
than the RMB 9.55 billion recorded in the
same period of last year. During the period
from January to May, the real estate
developer sold around 847,494 square meters
of properties in contracted sales area, 2%
less than the 865,957 sq m recorded a year
earlier. Average price increased to RMB
13,036 per sq m. |
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China Vanke property sales up 76% in May
(CD, June 8) |
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China's Vanke, the country's largest
developer by sales, said its May property
sales jumped 76.4 percent from a year
earlier to 9 billion yuan ($1.4 billion),
rebounding from a slump the previous month.
Sales growth slowed to just 1.3 percent in
April, down from 47.8 percent in March,
following the government's clamp-down
against real estate speculation. |
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Blueprint for fair demolition compensation
(CD, June 9) |
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The central government is requiring that
compensation for properties reclaimed for
demolition equal at least the market price
to protect property owners' rights and
interests and reduce related conflicts. The
Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural
Development said on its website on Tuesday
that work on property evaluation must be
done by a qualified third-party rating
institution, chosen after consultation with
local residents. |
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YANGTZE RIVER DELTA & E. CHINA |
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Shanghai Auctions Residential Plots (ED,
June 5) |
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TWO residential plots were auctioned
yesterday for the first time in two months
in Shanghai. Shanghai Tongji Real Estate Co
and the Architectural Design and Research
Institute of Tongji University jointly won
the bid for a plot of land in Baoshan
District for 76.8 million yuan (US$11.85
million), 44.4 percent higher than the
starting price. The floor price is 12,766
yuan per square meter. The other plot in
Songjiang District was sold to a
three-company group led by Shanghai New
Huangpu Real Estate Co for 935 million yuan,
56.9 percent higher than the starting price.
The floor price is 11,293 yuan per square
meter. |
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City'super plans two more outlets in
Shanghai (SCMP, June 8) |
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Hong Kong retail chain city'super, an
operator of high-end supermarkets, plans to
open two more outlets in Shanghai next year
to compete with domestic and foreign rivals
in attracting mainland consumers. The
company, which mainly sells imported food
and drinks, is targeting the top 5 per cent
of income earners in Shanghai, looking to
create its own niche in the vast and
fast-growing market. |
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Agile Property's sales up 59% in Jan-May
(CK, June 9) |
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Agile Property Holdings Ltd, a Hong
Kong-listed developer of large-scale
residential projects, announced on Wednesday
that its contracted sales surged 59% year on
year to RMB 13.5 billion in the first five
months of this year. The figure accounted
for 36% of the company's sales target of RMB
37 billion for 2011. During the period from
January to May, the Hong Kong-listed
developer sold 1.16 million square meters of
properties, 39% more than in the
corresponding period of last year. Average
sales price was RMB 11,643 per sq m, up 15%
year on year. |
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Keppel Land China secures Shanghai site for
S$241m (CNA, June 9) |
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The property arm of Keppel Group in China
has secured a 7.2-hectare site in Shanghai's
Jiading District for S$241 million to
develop around 1,000 high-rise apartments.
The acquisition of the site at Nanxiang Town
marks Keppel Land China's fifth residential
development in Shanghai, a news release
said. The deal was completed through two
subsidiaries of the Keppel Land Group,
namely Merryfield Investment Pte Ltd and
Shanghai Pasir Panjang Land. |
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PEARL RIVER DELTA & S. CHINA |
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New rule to curb property speculation
(Shenzhen Daily, June 10) |
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Shenzhen¡¯s local taxation authority will
start levying taxes according to property
values instead of the contractual prices in
pre-owned housing transactions starting July
11. The property tax was another measure to
control housing speculation and tighten
taxation control over speculative
transactions, Yang Long, vice chief of the
local taxation bureau, told a news
conference Thursday. Property values would
be updated every six months according to
changes in the market and be confirmed by
financial and land resources authorities. |
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Beijing home prices feel the chill of
cooling measures (CD, June 7) |
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New-home prices plummeted by more than 20
percent year-on-year in the capital city in
May, and analysts said other cities will
follow the trend in the second half of this
year. In Beijing, the average price of a
newly constructed unit dropped to 23,467
yuan ($3,400) a square meter (sq m), a
month-on-month decrease of 7.19 percent, and
21.06 percent lower than the same period
last year, according to SouFun.com, the
largest property website in China.
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Luxury unit builder under probe (ED, June 5)
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Residential buildings are seen at the
Diaoyutai No. 7 complex in Beijing's Haidian
District. The Beijing Municipal Commission
of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has
halted sales of 23 units in the luxury
apartment project and started an
investigation against the developer, a
company affiliated with Sinobo Group, which
is suspected of profiteering, a commission
official said yesterday. These units were
priced between 180,000 yuan (US$27,754) and
300,000 yuan a square meter, making it the
most expensive apartment project in Beijing. |
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Italy's RDM Group opens first outlet in
China (China Daily, June 10) |
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The Italian luxury real estate developer and
fashion retailer RDM Group in partnership
with the US Waitex Group opened its first
outlet store, Florentia Village, in China on
Thursday. The store, located in Wuqing,
which lies between Beijing and Tianjin, is
the first Chinese development in RDM's
international portfolio of retail assets.
The investment totaled more than 1 billion
yuan ($154.4 million). The development will
house nearly 200 international fashion
brands by the end of the year, including
Giorgio Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo,
Bulgari, Tod's, Versace, Burberry, Celine,
Zegna and Gucci. The internationally
renowned brands will sell at discounted
prices averaging 50 percent and as much as
70 percent off normal domestic retail
prices. |
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Beijing halts sales of apartment complex
(FT, June 7) |
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The Beijing government has halted sales of
the most expensive luxury apartment complex
in the Chinese capital and launched an
investigation into the developer for its tax
records. The price of the most expensive
apartments in the development reportedly
jumped from about Rmb100,000 per sq m in the
middle of last year to Rmb300,000 this year.
The land where the luxury apartments are
being built formally belongs to the Chinese
military and the site has been designated
for a ¡°national key comprehensive scientific
and research project¡±, according to the
Beijing government. |
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COFCO to develop Joy City in Yantai
(Guandian, June 9) |
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COFCO successfully bided for a plot in
Yantai, Shandong Province for RMB210
billion. A 130,000 sqm Joy City shopping
mall as the first phase of the project on
the plot is expected to be completed in
2013. A 160,000 sqm twin tower complex
building will be developed later. |
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Beijing will trial test a second house
transaction platform in Haidian District
(Guandian, June 12) |
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The first second hand housing transaction
platform set by municipal government will
begin trial test on July 1st, in Haidian
District. House owners who want to sell
their house can release the house
information by themselves or through one
specific brokerage. The platform required
one house can only be appointed to one
agent. The government will monitor the
transaction information to avoid the
transaction parties providing false
information. If the trial test operated
successfully in Haidian District, it will be
promoted to whole city. |
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Beijing home prices feel the chill of
cooling measures (China Daily, June 7)
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New-home prices plummeted by more than 20
percent year-on-years in the capital city in
May. In Beijing, the average price of a
newly constructed unit dropped to 23,467
yuan ($3,400) a square meter (sq m), a
month-on-month decrease of 7.19 percent, and
21.06 percent lower than the same period
last year, according to SouFun.com, the
largest property website in China. Prices
fell partly because more developers offered
discounts to counter the cooling effect of
the government's tightening property
policies. |
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ECONOMICS, DEMOGRAPHICS, INFRASTRUCTURE &
COMPANY EXPANSIONS |
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China under great inflationary pressure:
NDRC (CD, June 8) |
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China is under great pressure amid imported
inflation triggered by soaring international
grain prices and oil prices, a senior
economic planning official said on
Wednesday. The country has taken a series of
measures to control climbing prices since
the second and third quarters of last year,
Xu Xianping, vice minister of the National
Development and Reform Commission (NDRC),
said at a press conference. |
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Fendi Adds More China Stores (RL, June 8)
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Luxury Italian fashion house Fendi will open
more stores in China, increasing its stores
from 16 to 20 by the end of 2012. The new
stores will be in tier-one and tier-two
cities, including Beijing, Tianjin (east of
Beijing), Shenyang (northeast industrial
city), and Guangzhou. Fendi is not going
down the path of mega-stores. Rather, its
new stores, which will be no more than 6,500
square feet, are about service and unique
products. |
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Prada aims for slice of China market (RA,
June 8) |
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The French have had a go and now the
Italians are joining the race for a slice of
China's lucrative consumer market as Hong
Kong awaits the USD2 billion public share
offering from Milan-based fashion house
Prada, which will be marketed to investors
this week. The fashion giant said it
intended to open 70 directly operated stores
by 2014, with 30 in China. |
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China defines functions of regions to
sustain development (CD, June 9)
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China's top economic planner, the National
Development and Reform Commission (NDRC),
said Wednesday that the central government
has carefully defined the functions of
regions at local levels with differentiated
policies to sustain the country's
development. Xu Xianping, vice minister of
NDRC, said at a press conference that local
governments must optimize, accelerate,
restrict or prohibit industrial development
in different regions according to the
defined nature. |
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De Beers Diamond Jewellers launches 1st
store in China (RNA, June 9) |
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De Beers Diamond Jewellers, the ultimate
destination for diamond jewellery, opened
its first China store on 31 May at Beijing,
marking its highly anticipated entrance into
one of the world¡¯s fastest growing jewellery
markets. World renowned for creating the "A
Diamond is Forever" slogan, De Beers brings
over 120 years of peerless diamond expertise
and passion to China. The new store features
some of De Beers¡¯ most beautiful and
important collections, including solitaires,
classics and high jewellery creations.
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YANGTZE RIVER DELTA & E. CHINA |
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Yangshan adds depth to planned Shanghai hub
(CD, June 7) |
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Yangshan Deep-water Port's throughput volume
will grow by at least 40 percent, on the
back of Shanghai's ambition to become an
international shipping hub, said a senior
executive from the port's development
company. Yangshan Port, part of the Port of
Shanghai, is situated at the estuary of
Hangzhou Bay and is the nearest deep-water
port to Shanghai. Since starting operations
in late 2005, it has consistently expanded
to cope with the increasing volume of goods.
Over the past five years, the annual growth
rate of its container throughput volume
reached 32.5 percent. |
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Chemtura Plans to Build Multi-Purpose
Manufacturing Plant in China (RSA, June 8)
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Chemtura Corporation, a leading global
specialty chemicals company, today announced
plans to build a new multi-purpose
manufacturing facility in Nantong, China, to
support its growth strategy. ¡°This project
lays the groundwork for growth through
investment in the world¡¯s most rapidly
expanding market. It will enhance our
ability to satisfy customer demand in China
and the wider Asia-Pacific region,¡± said
Craig A. Rogerson, Chemtura¡¯s chairman,
president, and chief executive officer. |
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PolyOne Distribution Announces Global
Expansion into China (RSA, June 9)
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At the MD&M East exhibition, PolyOne today
announced that it will open a new polymer
distribution warehouse and sales facility on
July 1 in Shanghai, China. The new
distribution center will be focused on
serving healthcare customers in the area.
This marks the first entry point for PolyOne
Distribution into Asia . |
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PEARL RIVER DELTA & S. CHINA |
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Population control (Shenzhen Daily, June 10)
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Shenzhen¡¯s permanent resident population
would be kept to within 11 million by the
end of 2020, according to the Shenzhen
Overall Development Plan released Wednesday.
The result of the sixth national census
released last month showed that the
permanent resident population was 10.3
million. |
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High-speed railway to cut travel time to
Beijing from Shenzhen (Shenzhen Daily, June
08) |
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The travel time from Shenzhen to Beijing by
train is expected to be cut to eight hours
after the Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed
railway opens at the end of the year.The
announcement was made after the steel
structure of Zhengzhou East Railway Station
in Henan Province was completed Monday. The
high-speed railway between Beijing and
Wuhan, which will also open at the end of
the year, will connect with the
Wuhan-Guangzhou high-speed railway, an
important section of the Beijing-Guangzhou
high-speed line. |
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Landmark squares of Sino-Singapore knowledge
city completed (News GD, June 09)
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On June 7, there was great news from Luogang
that the first 18 key construction projects
in the Knowledge City have been developing
at full speed. Jiulong Industrial Park has
finished its first phase of upgrading and
transformation and landmark squares at the
north and south entrances had been basically
completed. Likewise major follow-up
construction projects such as the exhibition
hall and the construction of the temporary
public service center have all entered the
closure phases. |
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Beijing's fixed-asset investment up over 20%
(Xinhua, June 7) |
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Beijing invested 127.06 billion yuan ($19.25
billion) in fixed assets in the first four
months of this year, an increase of 21
percent on the same period of last year,
according to the city's statistical bureau.
The total included 119.49 billion yuan in
urban areas, up 22.1 percent year-on-year,
and 7.57 billion yuan in rural areas, up 6.1
percent. Of investment in urban areas, 64.51
billion yuan went to real estate development
projects, up 22.5 percent year-on-year, and
20.2 billion yuan to industrial projects, up
150 percent. |
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Liaoning's foreign trade up nearly 20% (Xinhua,
June 7) |
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Northeast China's Liaoning province
generated $15.98 billion in foreign trade in
the first four months of this year, a rise
of 19.71 percent over the year-earlier
level, according to the local customs house.
The province exported $2.11 billion worth of
goods to the European Union, up 36.63
percent year-on-year. The growth rate was
eight percentage points higher than the
month-earlier level. Its exports to Japan
went up 25.73 percent year-on-year, and its
exports to the Republic of Korea up 14.81
percent. |
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Tax-free Tianjin zone touted (China Daily,
June 7) |
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Tianjin is joining a number of coastal
cities, including Shanghai and Shenzhen,
that have announced their plans to set up
the country's next tax-rebate zone. That's
after the tropical Hainan Island was given
the green light to provide tax-refunds on
products in April. In the city's three-year
plan, the Dongjiang Free Trade Port Zone of
Tianjin will be transformed into a tax-free
island offering tax refunds to tourists,
once its application has been approved. The
zone, located at Binhai New Area, a
government-designated economic zone 45
minutes' drive from downtown Tianjin, is the
country's largest bonded port by size.
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Chicony to start factory construction in
western China (DigiTimes, June 8)
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Taiwan-based PC peripheral maker Chicony
Electronics will kick off construction of a
factory in Chongqing City, western China, in
late June, with the factory to supply
keyboards and power supplies for notebook
ODMs initially, followed by notebook camera
modules. Before its own factories are
completed, Chicony will rent factories to
conduct some backend work such as printing
the letters on keys and will supply only a
small volume of shipments to clients with
front-end of production to still be
conducted at the company's plants in coastal
areas. |
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