The whole world will find out next week whether The White House has got its way with the US Federal Reserve. The US central bank is widely expected to give in to the childish name-calling by cutting interest rates by a 0.25% to 2%. There are also interest rate decisions from the Bank of Japan, which doesn’t have much room to cut, and the Bank of England, which has been left high-and-dry by a directionless UK parliament. Meanwhile, Bank Indonesia could leave interest rates unchanged after it unexpectedly cut rates in August. China will release retail sales numbers for August. They are expected to show a pickup in growth from the previous month. In July, sales growth slowed for garments, cosmetics and home appliances. But there was growth in personal care and office supplies. Sin

Frasers Centrepoint Trust (SGX: J69U), or FCT, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) with a portfolio comprising of the following suburban retail properties in Singapore: Causeway Point, Northpoint City North Wing (including Yishun 10 Retail Podium), Anchorpoint, YewTee Point, Bedok Point, Changi City Point, and Waterway Point (one-third interest). It also holds a 31.15% stake in Hektar Real Estate Investment Trust (KLSE: 5121), a retail-focused REIT in Malaysia. There are two things to know about the REIT right now: its latest financial performance and valuation. Financial performance Here is a table showing important items from FCT’s financial performance for the third quarter of financial year ending 30 September 2019 (FY19). Source: FCT Result Presentation Overall, we c

Globally, real estate investment trusts (REITs) have performed well this year. The low-interest-rate environment and uncertainty surrounding geopolitical events have seen investors flock to the safe havens of REITs. It is, therefore, no surprise to see that two of the three best-performing constituents of the FTSE ST Mid Cap Index over the first eight months of 2019 were REITs. The two REITs were also rewarded with inclusion into key indices that will increase their profile to investors. Mapletree Commercial Trust (SGX: N2IU) will replace Hutchison Port Hldg Trust (SGX: NS8U) in the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI), while Frasers Centrepoint Trust (SGX: J69U) will become part of the FTSE EPRA/NAREIT Global Real Estate Index Series.  Here are some things to note about the Mapletree Com

Since I bought Frasers Logistics and Industrial Trust (SGX: BUOU) last year at an average price of S$1.05, its units have climbed around 15%. Despite the run-up in price, I still believe it remains an attractive investment. With that in mind, here are three reasons why I intend to hold on to this industrial-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) for now. Favourable leases Frasers Logistics and Industrial Trust, which is backed by property giant Frasers Property Ltd (SGX: TQ5), boasts a solid portfolio of properties with favourable leases. As of 30 June 2019, it had 59 Australian properties and 22 European properties.  The properties in Australia have a weighted average lease expiry of six years and negotiated annual rental increment of 3.1%. 92% of its European properties a

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) continues its uptrend after finding support at the uptrend support at about 890-900, changing from 895.14  to 927.94 (+3.67%). Uptrend is still intact as long as the uptrend line support line holds.  Previous chart on FTSE ST REIT index can be found in the last post Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on Aug 19, 2019. Based on the current chart pattern and and momentum,  the sentiment is BULLISH and the trend for Singapore REIT direction is still UP. The recent selling is a healthy correction before the REIT index can move higher.   Fundamental Analysis of 42 Singapore REITs The following is the compilation of 42 REITs in Singapore with colour coding of th

While most investors invest in REITs to obtain a steady stream of dividend income, the fact is that REITs also grow over time, either through organic means (through asset enhancement initiatives or renovations) or through mergers and acquisitions. Acquisitions are a favoured method because it will instantly provide a boost to both asset size (and value) and usually also comes with an increase in distribution per unit (DPU). Investors need to be discerning though – not all acquisitions are beneficial for the REIT. Some assets may be sub-par, and even for quality assets, REITs may also end up over-paying for them, resulting in value destruction for existing unitholders. Investors should carefully size up the facts and figures relating to each acquisition to assess if it boosts the ove

The tenant leases for commercial properties in China, Hong Kong and Singapore are rather unique in that they are shorter. There are no rental escalation. Typically, the tenure is less than 5 years. In Singapore and Hong Kong, the commercial offices and shopping centers have 3 to 5 year leases. When real estate investment trusts (REITs) that owned foreign commercial properties came over to Singapore, their leases looked pretty unique to the Singapore investors. The investors welcome the longer leases, which also usually comes with annual rental escalations. If there were no annual rental escalations, there are typically mid term reviews. However, we might have missed some of the drawbacks with these different lease structure as well. The Differences between USA and Singapore

With the REITs’ reporting season just over, investors who are searching for a strong REIT to invest in may be drawn to the stable of industrial REITs listed on the local stock exchange. Industrial REITs may make great investments if their portfolios consist of quality, well-located assets with long land tenure. Consistently strong demand for industrial space should prop up rental rates and ensure positive rental reversion over time, leading to higher distribution per unit (DPU) for investors. I decided to look at which industrial REIT offers the best investment prospects, choosing from five REITs that are well-known in the industrial space and have good historical track records. They are ESR-REIT (SGX: J91U), Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U), Mapletree Industrial Trust (SGX: ME

As one of the most popular investments in Singapore, we keep a close eye on the performance of S-REITs. After the corporate earnings announcements each quarter, we compile a comprehensive summary on our REITs Report Card column. How Singapore REITs Share Prices Have Fared In 2019, So Far Before we look at how individual REIT prices have moved, let’s look at the broad S-REIT indices in Singapore. There are two main indices – the iEdge S-REIT Index and the iEdge S-REIT 20 Index. The iEdge S-REIT Index comprises all the REITs listed in Singapore, while the iEdge S-REIT 20 Index, as its name suggests, only comprise the 20 largest and more tradeable REITs on the iEdge S-REIT Index. Read Also: Complete Guide To Investing In Singapore REITs The chart below depicts the iEdge S-REIT Index fluc

Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns 137 logistics properties around Asia and Australia. There are three good reasons for investors to like the REIT now. A solid track record One of the very first things to like about MLT is its solid historical financial performance. Over the last five years, MLT has grown its gross revenue from S$330.1 million in FY14/15 to S$454.3 million in FY18/19. Similarly, its distributable income grew from S$184.9 million to S$270.0 million during the period. Consequently, distribution per unit (DPU) grew from 7.500 Singapore cents in FY14/15 to 7.941 Singapore cents in FY18/19. Such numbers should be appealing to investors looking for investments with sustainable income, but can MLT sustain its historical

Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U) and Cache Logistics Trust (SGX: K2LU) are both real estate investment trusts (REITs) in Singapore’s stock market that focus on logistics properties. But over the past five years, the two REITs have given their investors very different experiences. In that time, Mapletree Logistics Trust’s shares have produced a dividend-adjusted return of 80% and significantly outperformed Singapore’s stock market benchmark, the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI), which climbed by 12% after including gains from dividends. Meanwhile, Cache Logistics Trust’s shares have delivered a 5% loss. Will Mapletree Logistics Trust continue to be the better investment compared to Cache Logistics Trust for the next five years? Let’s take a look. Busine

The Trade War is escalating.You can feel that coming as investors as you read the news that both Trump and Xi had continuously been playing a game of cat and mouse and it appears there's no way both could get a mutual agreement that might compromise one another.Last night was a bloodbath as Dow was down more than 600+ points while Nasdaq had fallen by 3%.It's pretty drastic in my opinion, but we are getting the hang of it with Trump.Up 2% on one night, down 3% the next day, and then up another 2%, and then down another 3%.Monday is going to be interesting especially for our STI index which is still at 3,110, and are still up by about 4-5% (inclusive of dividend) year to date.Not cool at all given we want a bigger drop like the ones we've seen most recently in 2016, at the very least.The ye

Here's why investors should be pleased about Frasers Logistics and Industrial Trust's (SGX: BUOU) recent private placement and acquisition.

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) broke out from the 10 years resistance at 875 with significant increase in trading volume. The REIT index is currently retracing from the high 941.77 to  895.14 (-4.95%). Next immediate support zone is between 870 to 875 for a healthy correction.  Previous chart on FTSE ST REIT index can be found in the last post Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on July 1, 2019. Based on the current chart pattern and and momentum,  the sentiment is BULLISH and the trend for Singapore REIT direction is still UP. The recent selling can be a healthy correction before the REIT index can move higher.   Fundamental Analysis of 42 Singapore REITs The following is the compila

Though Frasers Logistics and Industrial Trust (SGX: BUOU) has managed to grow its revenue and distributable income, exchange-rate woes continue to drag on its DPU.

Frasers Logistics and Industrial Trust (SGX: BUOU) has announced an acquisition of 12 properties located in Australia and Germany. Here are five reasons I feel the acquisition is attractive for unitholders.

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) broke out from the 10 years resistance at 875 with significant increase in trading volume. The REIT index increased from 858.67 to 916.95 (+6.78%) and  as compared to last post on Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on June 3, 2019. The REIT index is entering in an uncharted territory after breaking new high and may head towards to 1000 points based on projection of 161.8% Fibonacci level. Based on the current chart pattern and and momentum,  the sentiment is BULLISH and the trend for Singapore REIT direction is still UP. However, the REIT index may go for a short term pause before moving higher.   Fundamental Analysis of 39 Singapore REITs The following i

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are a favourite investment for Singapore investors. This is primarily due to its property-heavy investments and relatively high distribution yields. REITs Share Price Performance In 1st Half 2019 The first aspect of figuring out how REITs have done in the first half of 2019 is to look at how its share price has moved in the year-to-date (ytd) 2019. The chart below shows the price movements of the SGX S-REIT 20 Index, comprising the top 20 REITs listed in Singapore. As we can see, its share price has increased 10.3% since the start of the year, to 1337.3. However, looking at the past quarter, prices does look like it has taken a slight dip. Source: ShareInvestor In general, REITs have had a strong performance, in terms of just price appreciation, in th

There are 2 investment related events coming to you soon: REITs Symposium 2019 (PAID) MoneyOwl Symposium (FREE) REITs Symposium 2019 Shareinvestor, now a private entity and away from SPH, organized this event with REITAS almost every year. When: 18th May 2019, Saturday Where: Sands Expo and Convention Centre Marina Bay Sands, Level 4 Roselle Simpor Ballroom  REITs Symposium is always a paid event and 2 years ago, when I went I paid for it.  They asked me to market for this. So that I can earn from this.  I am really struggling for time writing so I did not take them up for it.  But I think as my readers you should know about this. This time round it seems bigger. One of the main benefits for the investor is for you to have a session to speak with the people behind

No.  Counters No. of Shares Market Price (SGD) Total Value (SGD) based on market price Allocation % 1. Starhill Reit 377,000 0.70 263,900.00 29.0% 2. Vicom   31,300 6.48 202,824.00 22.0% 3. Netlink Trust 236,000 0.795 187,620.00 21.0% 4. First Reit 152,000 0.995 151,240.00 17.0% 5. Manulife Reit   81,000 US$0.85   92,759.00 11.0% 6. Hobee Land        300 2.51        753.00   1.0% 7. Warchest     1,000     1,000.00   1.0% Total 900,096.00 100% Earnings season is finally over so we are back to this muted season where the share price is just gyrating along with the overall trend of the market.I've ma