Justin Loh Singapore Real Estate

Savills sees over 20% drop in luxury home prices
Savills is predicting price drops of more than 20 per cent in the next five quarters for high-end and super-luxury private homes. This would follow declines of 14.3 per cent and 12 per cent respectively for these two segments in the first nine months of 2008 from the peak in Q4 last year. The average capital value for high-end (non-landed) residential homes fell to $2,065 per square foot in Q3 2008 while in the super luxury league, the average capital value slipped to $3,240.40 psf in Q3. Savills expects mass- market home prices to fall 5 to 8 per cent in the next five quarters - arguing that a price drop in this segment will be cushioned by continued support from HDB upgraders and other buyers picking up private homes for their own occupation. Savills also said that 10,923 leasing deals were recorded for private homes (excluding ECs) in the July to September quarter this year, the highest Q3 figure since 2000.

- The Business Times, P2
(Also see, The Straits Times, D16 “Private home rents may fall 15%”)

Office space returns seen in year ahead
Savills reckons that some 450,000 square feet of Grade A office space - or 3.5 per cent of existing space in this sector - could be returned by tenants in the next 12 months. The figure fell from a high of $15.10 per square foot (psf) in Q2 this year to $14.92 psf in Q3. The decline was on a 3.3 per cent drop in asking rent in Tanjong Pagar and a 0.91 per cent drop in the Orchard area. But asking rents held firm in Q3 for

, City Hall/Marina Bay and

. And in

, they actually rose 2.2 per cent. The average Grade A office capital value slid 4.3 per cent quarter-on-quarter to $2,680 psf in Q3.
- The Business Times, P2

3 S'pore firms ink deals in Shandong
’s fast-growing ties with Shandong, 's No.2 province in economic terms, got a fresh boost yesterday as three local firms signed agreements with businesses in the coastal province. Hyflux was one of the three companies to sign an MOU - with Linyi local government to cooperate in municipal water projects. The second agreement involved Singapore Cruise Centre working with the Qingdao City Construction Investment (QCCI) Group to explore possibilities to provide consultancy and management services for QCCI's cruise terminal operations and management project. Third, soya bean specialist Jollibean will team up with Soya to open Jollibean speciality stores in Shandong . The SSBC meeting also identified key areas of collaboration between Shandong and next year - namely, infrastructure and environmental services, and educational services with a focus on vocational and technical education
- The Straits Times, D14

's biggest employer still hiring
Amid the rounds of corporate layoffs, 's biggest employer - the civil service - is still hiring. The Ministry of Education (MOE), for instance, is looking for teachers and school counsellors, among others. Also recruiting is the Ministry of Home Affairs. 'Ministries are still recruiting talent to meet organisational needs,' the Public Service Division (PSD) said and its guidelines for managing excess employees include encouraging bosses to consider measures such as flexible work arrangements, temporary layoffs, a shorter work week, sending employees for training and upgrading courses, and adjusting salaries. Retrenchment is 'the last resort' in dealing with surplus manpower arising from restructuring or best-sourcing, the PSD said.
- The Straits Times, A16

Aviation turmoil may delay S'pore Rolls-Royce plant
The timetable for the construction Rolls-Royce's $320 million Trent aero-engine plant at Seletar Aerospace Park may be a casualty of the dramatic downturn in the global aviation operating environment. Faced with the challenging operating environment, Rolls-Royce is moving quickly to slash capacity and jobs worldwide. Yesterday, it announced plans to cut up to 2,000 jobs next year in the face of slumping demand. UK-based Roll-Royce officials were tight-lipped when contacted yesterday, but alluded to the impact of announced programme delays by customers.
- The Business Times, P2

Upside in property S-chips?
The price of Centra- Land shares at IPO is likely to have priced-in various poor economic data at the time. Even so, its IPO offer price of 50 cents has fallen only 4 per cent since, while share prices of most Singapore-based property developers are more likely to have fallen upwards of 60 per cent. Less exotic property S-chips like Yanlord, New Town Development (CNTD) and Sunshine Holdings are traded more heavily. Their share prices have also fallen dramatically, in line with market movements. But the paradox is that unlike (and much of the world) some markets in , where some of these S-chips have projects, are actually seeing property prices recovering. Each city appears to react to different micro-economic factors like land scarcity, high levels of speculation, or even the efficiency of local governments to implement policy changes.
- The Business Times, P5

tackles massive risks posed by unemployment
is racing to avoid a massive unemployment crisis and deal with mounting social unrest across the country over jobs. Social security officials yesterday declared that stabilising employment was a top priority, as they revealed a recent spike in the number of jobless. The policies range from setting up a fast-track system to nip labour disputes in the bud, providing financial aid to firms to help them retain workers, improving job search services for rural workers and clearing a backlog of sensitive court cases. Unemployment was most severe in 's southern manufacturing and export hub where thousands of labour-intensive firms which employ migrant labour have collapsed due to weakening external demand

- The Straits Times, A1
(Also see, The Business Times, P13 “New system to take edge off labour unrest”)

Johor unveils plans for education hub
Newcastle University will open a medical faculty in Iskandar by 2011, while Malaysian education group Cempaka Schools is to open an international boarding school for boys in the next few years, it was announced yesterday. Both institutions will be located in Iskandar's education hub, Educity, which is near the Second Link at Tuas. The development corridor is about three times the size of and is expected to be completed in 20 years. A major advantage for international students, officials say, is the lower cost of getting an education in . Educity plans to eventually house eight tertiary faculties on one campus. They will share facilities like a library, hostels and a sports complex. A major core of the Iskandar region is located near the Second Link, which aims to become an international metropolis, officials say. Apart from Educity, a marina for yachts, a theme park, hotels and residential villas are part of the blueprint.
- The Straits Times, B1

rupiah hits decade low
The Indonesian rupiah tumbled yesterday to its weakest level since the Asian financial crisis a decade ago and trading almost ground to a halt as forward markets indicated the currency would slump further. Investors in the offshore non-deliverable forwards markets were pricing in a 12 per cent depreciation in the rupiah in one month and 25 per cent in a year. Yesterday, the Korean won slumped to its lowest close in nearly 11 years, reflecting investor concerns that a recession in the developed economies will hammer export demand while the Indian rupee dropped to a record low in opening trades as investors took fright at another sharp fall in global stock markets.
- The Straits Times, D11