Property

China developers’ survival fight gets litmus test

15 Nov 2024

Sunac has given investors four options for restructuring $2 bln of onshore bonds, including an 82% haircut and a debt-for-equity swap. How they vote will reveal their views on both the $3.1 bln firm’s chances of survival and Beijing’s attempts to end the property slump.

China is reshaping, not choking, private business

30 Oct 2024

Tech giants and property developers have tumbled, while party support lifted electric carmaker BYD and solar powerhouse Longi. A blurred line between state-backed and private firms does not preclude innovation or competition in the $18 trln economy. Disdain for market forces can.

Murdoch leaves Rightmove little room for error

1 Oct 2024

The Australian tycoon’s REA Group walked away after four rejected bids for the UK property listings portal, prompting the latter’s shares to slump. Rightmove can get to the offer price if it grows revenue at 11% a year and keeps its 75% margin. But that’s not simple to do.

China plays perilous game of pump the stock market

30 Sep 2024

Shares in consumer and real-estate firms have jumped more than a fifth after the latest round of state support raised hopes of a broad recovery. The risk is that when policymakers in Beijing flesh out their plans, the details will fall short of what investors are expecting.

Hong Kong property tycoons enter brave new world

26 Sep 2024

Embattled developer New World may replace its CEO, the third-generation scion of the founding Cheng clan, amid a deepening real estate slump. Such a move is nearly unheard of in the city dominated by family-run conglomerates. It will put peers like Henderson Land on notice.

Murdoch’s UK property bid may yet get even sweeter

23 Sep 2024

Rightmove is mulling an improved $8.1 bln offer from Australia’s REA Group, owned by the media tycoon. A chunky premium and other UK refuseniks’ share price slumps are reasons for the listing portal’s board to say yes. But the buyer’s latest bid implies an ability to pay more.

China mortgage cut is start of confidence rebuild

13 Sep 2024

Beijing may significantly lower rates on existing home loans, per Bloomberg. That might convince property owners that there are better alternatives than stepping up mortgage repayments. It is a step toward fixing a $1 trln headache for officials, and improving consumer sentiment.

Diaspora gives wings to India luxury housing boom

12 Sep 2024

New launches of pricey properties jumped 48% in financial year 2024. Real estate is hotting up as an investment choice, especially for non-resident Indians. Their purchases prop up growth in the world's fifth-largest economy. It's a new spin on the power of its global citizenry.

China’s banks have a nasty case of indigestion

11 Sep 2024

For decades, Beijing leaned on lenders to fuel growth in the $17 trln economy. But it will take years for them to digest problem IOUs from firms and local governments. Officials will have to find new ways to boost GDP, or the financial dyspepsia could turn into something worse.

Murdoch’s UK property gambit has a price ceiling

2 Sep 2024

Australian property listings site REA Group is eyeing $6 bln UK peer Rightmove. The News Corp-backed suitor can use cash and higher-valued shares to pay a 30% premium. Beyond that, Rupert Murdoch’s outfit might struggle to combine a successful bid with keeping him in control.

UK’s housing mess requires costly fix

29 Aug 2024

PM Keir Starmer has pledged to build many more houses. Yet homebuilders’ shares are not pricing in a boom. Private players may prefer to sell fewer, pricier properties. More government funds would help, at the risk of further squeezing Britain’s finances.

China is fixing housing market with a long gaze

29 Aug 2024

Only 4% of a $42 bln lending scheme to help mop up excess inventory has been drawn upon since May. Other new policy shifts, such as ditching housing presales, could extend the property slump. Beijing is determined to remodel the sector, even if it requires more time and pain.

China’s PwC slap may yet pack a punch

22 Aug 2024

The auditor may get a record fine and a six-month ban for its role in the Evergrande scandal, per the FT. It'll sting, but won't kill the business. Yet hobbling a big foreign player can speed up Beijing's push to have domestic accounting firms take on a more prominent role.

Sapporo might get half-drunk on efficiency

18 Jul 2024

After the $3 bln beer maker agreed to rejig its property holdings, activist 3D has detailed exactly how the company should go about it. Japan Inc is warming up to the idea of realising gains on real estate. But there's plenty of room for missteps, even in a seller's market.

Latest UK builder M&A may yet have completion date

14 Jun 2024

Crest Nicholson rejected bigger rival Bellway’s $828 mln all-share offer. While Crest’s new profit warning is a turnoff, falling returns mean housebuilder mergers generally make sense. Bellway may not need to offer much more to convince its target’s shareholders.

UK building plans will fail to get off the ground

6 Jun 2024

Rivals in the July 4 election promise 300,000 new houses a year to ease shortages and lower prices. A lack of builders makes that unlikely. More than 346,000 construction jobs have disappeared since 2019. Without immigration or training, Britain will remain cramped and expensive.

ESR buyout showcases depths of Hong Kong misery

27 May 2024

The $6 bln Asian real estate fund manager is mulling a take-private bid. While its complex business has been hit by high interest rates, a 60% fall from the stock's 2021 peak looks harsh amid a promising turnaround. Shareholders like OMERS can push for a high premium.

China goes on a $1 trln apartment-buying spree

16 May 2024

State-owned firms and local authorities will answer Beijing's call to purchase up to 3.6 bln square feet of unsold homes. The bold move will ease the property crisis, which has weighed on growth. But this will weaken already strained government and corporate balance sheets.

China property fix aims to restock speculation

6 May 2024

Reducing unsold inventory is Beijing’s latest directive and replaces the mantra “houses are for living in, not for speculation”. It’s a prelude to removing some investment curbs. Allowing people to get rich off the sector is a necessary evil to restore overall confidence.

Hurricanes threaten to stir perfect economic storm

1 May 2024

Warmer oceans portend an unusually fierce 2024 season in the Atlantic, with two states already propping up their home insurance systems. The nightmare scenario is $200 bln of losses. Insolvencies would be a problem, but not as big as exorbitant premiums and lower property values.