SGX lists 34 REITs, 7 stapled trusts and 3 property trusts with a combined market cap of over S$100 billion. Of the 34 REITs, 10 report revenues to China, and have a combined market cap of nearly S$20 billion.
In Jan-May 2019, Singapore REITs garnered net institutional inflows of S$173.2 million, averaging a monthly return of 2.7% and YTD return of 13.6%. It was also the second top net buy sector in May.
These 10 China-related REITs averaged a total return of +15.7% in the YTD. Among them, the 5 best performers were: Sasseur REIT (+29.2%), Mapletree Logistics Trust (+24.9%), Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust (+22.9%), Ascott Residence Trust (+20.7%) and CapitaLand Retail China Trust (+17.1%).
Singapore Exchange lists 34 REITs, seven stapled trusts and three property trusts with a combined market cap of over S$100 billion. Two stapled trusts recently listed on SGX – ARA US Hospitality Trust on 9 May, and Eagle Hospitality Trust on 24 May.
REIT popularity in Singapore is exemplified in multiple ways – they comprise one-tenth of Straits Times Index (STI) constituents, all of the STI Reserve List stocks, approximately one-tenth of the total market capitalisation of stocks listed on SGX, and a quarter of the top 20 stocks by turnover on a day-to-day basis.
In the first five months of 2019, Singapore REITs garnered net institutional inflows of S$173.2 million, and averaged a monthly return of 2.7%. It was also the second top net buy sector in May.
Source: Bloomberg
Of the 34 REITs on SGX, 10 report revenues to China, and they have a combined market capitalisation of nearly S$20 billion. These 10 China-related trusts averaged a total return of +15.7% in the 2019 year-to-date, bringing their one-year and three-year total returns to +10.9% and +24.5% respectively. They also averaged a 12-month dividend indicated yield of 6.7% and a price-to-book ratio of 0.8.
In the YTD, the 5 best-performing REITs with China revenues were: Sasseur REIT (+29.2%), Mapletree Logistics Trust (+24.9%), Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust (+22.9%), Ascott Residence Trust (+20.7%) and CapitaLand Retail China Trust (+17.1%).
The tables below details the 10 REITs on SGX that report revenues to China, sorted by YTD total returns.
| Name | SGX Code |
Market Cap S$m |
Total Return YTD % |
Total Return 1 Yr % |
Total Return 3 Yr % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SASSEUR REIT | CRPU | 933 | 29.2 | 11.5 | NA |
| MAPLETREE LOGISTICS TRUST | M44U | 5,546 | 24.9 | 27.4 | 88.6 |
| MAPLETREE NORTH ASIA COMMERCIAL TRUST | RW0U | 4,327 | 22.9 | 23.0 | 68.8 |
| ASCOTT RESIDENCE TRUST | A68U | 2,740 | 20.7 | 20.8 | 38.3 |
| CAPITALAND RETAIL CHINA TRUST | AU8U | 1,538 | 17.1 | 4.5 | 22.2 |
| EC WORLD REIT | BWCU | 612 | 16.1 | 15.5 | NA |
| STARHILL GLOBAL REIT | P40U | 1,603 | 11.4 | 14.3 | 15.3 |
| OUE COMMERCIAL REIT | TS0U | 1,389 | 8.2 | -16.6 | 1.0 |
| DASIN RETAIL TRUST | CEDU | 487 | 4.8 | 7.9 | NA |
| BHG RETAIL REIT | BMGU | 356 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 11.2 |
| Average | 15.7 | 10.9 | 24.5 |
| Name | SGX Code |
Market Cap S$m |
12M Div Ind Yld (%) |
P/B (x) |
Greater China Revenues (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SASSEUR REIT | CRPU | 933 | 7.7 | 0.8 | 100 |
| MAPLETREE LOGISTICS TRUST | M44U | 5,546 | 5.2 | 1.0 | 30.5 |
| MAPLETREE NORTH ASIA COMMERCIAL TRUST | RW0U | 4,327 | 5.3 | 0.8 | 100 |
| ASCOTT RESIDENCE TRUST | A68U | 2,740 | 5.9 | 0.8 | 10.5 |
| CAPITALAND RETAIL CHINA TRUST | AU8U | 1,538 | 6.6 | 1.0 | 100 |
| EC WORLD REIT | BWCU | 612 | 8 | 0.8 | 100 |
| STARHILL GLOBAL REIT | P40U | 1,603 | 5.9 | 0.8 | 2.3 |
| OUE COMMERCIAL REIT | TS0U | 1,389 | 6.4 | 0.6 | 18.1 |
| DASIN RETAIL TRUST | CEDU | 487 | 8.2 | 0.6 | 100 |
| BHG RETAIL REIT | BMGU | 356 | 7.4 | 0.9 | 100 |
| Average | 6.7 | 0.8 |
Source: Bloomberg & StockFacts (data as of 6 June 2019)
China’s Growth Outlook
China’s economy has slowed in the wake of the ongoing Sino-US trade dispute, with both industrial output and retail sales growth declining sharply. In April, industrial output growth eased to 5.4% from 8.5% in March, while retail sales rose by 7.2%, well below the 8.7% increase in March, and the lowest in more than a decade. The country’s manufacturing activity also contracted more than expected in May, with the official manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) falling sharply to 49.4 from 50.1 in April.
While China registered a higher-than-expected 1.1% expansion in its May exports, following a 2.7% decline in April, many economists expect this to be a one-off phenomenon, driven by pre-existing orders and rushed shipments ahead of announced US tariff hikes. The outlook is for a further worsening in China’s trade performance the in coming months given the lack of clear direction for a resolution of bilateral trade tensions.
Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its growth forecasts for China’s gross domestic product to 6.2% from 6.3% in 2019, and to 6% from 6.1% in 2020, citing heightened uncertainty over the trade spat.
Both countries have blamed each other for the breakdown in talks in May. So far, frictions have shown no sign of easing, with the office of the US Trade Representative preparing to review imposing 25% tariffs on the remaining approximately $300 billion in imports from China.
Last week, Chinese central bank governor Yi Gang said in a media interview that there is “tremendous” room to adjust monetary policy if the trade war deepens, and also signalled that he is not committed to defending the nation’s currency at a particular level.
