WEB PBS JULY 17
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT<br />
where I used to work.”<br />
Much of the Chinese growth has<br />
been due to a steady flow of Chinese<br />
IPOs hitting the local markets.<br />
At the same time foreign banks<br />
are retreating with fewer jobs<br />
available and more staff chasing<br />
them. Packages have become<br />
less attractive and many expats<br />
are returning home or chasing<br />
jobs with lower pay and fewer<br />
perks.<br />
Chen Shuang, chief executive of<br />
China Everbright Ltd, the Hong<br />
Kong investment arm of stateowned<br />
China Everbright Group,<br />
was quoted as saying, “When I<br />
first joined the company 14 years<br />
ago, we could barely recruit the<br />
right people as we couldn’t offer a<br />
good salary,” adding, “But now, it’s<br />
much easier to recruit top talent,<br />
even those from large Wall Street<br />
banks, which was unimaginable in<br />
the past.”<br />
Singapore property market<br />
shows confusing signs.<br />
In Singapore, prices of property<br />
are still moderately falling, and<br />
supply is certainly not tight. Yet<br />
developers are paying ever-higher<br />
prices for land and the volume of<br />
transactions has picked up. On<br />
the one hand the property market<br />
looks to be still in a downturn, but<br />
on the other a recovery looks to<br />
be starting.<br />
Winston Lee, regional head of<br />
special projects for property website<br />
PropertyGuru and a Singapore<br />
landlord, was quoted as saying,<br />
“Usually in a property cycle, in<br />
a down-cycle, the indicator of a<br />
bounce back does not start with<br />
price. It actually starts with the<br />
volume,” adding, “So that volume<br />
bounce back sent a certain signal<br />
and also gives a confidence<br />
booster to the property developers<br />
that the market in Singapore<br />
might have bottomed out.”<br />
Land holdings on the part of developers<br />
are at quite a low level<br />
and supply of new land is being<br />
held back. Some developers are<br />
looking to buy older buildings to<br />
demolish and them and rebuild on<br />
the existing site.<br />
One driver of end user demand<br />
is the spectre of interest rate rises.<br />
While further downside in<br />
prices can’t be ruled out, buyers<br />
are keen to lock in low long-term<br />
mortgage rates. This may be driving<br />
the demand and it could be<br />
that supply will get tighter again in<br />
the near future.<br />
Email: ben.hightowerltd@gmail.com<br />
www.Thailand-Business-Supplement.com
Change language