Retail News CRM

Author: Mei Ling Tan

  • Less than Half of Filipinos are Fully Satisfied with the Valentine’s Day Gifts they Receive

    Less than Half of Filipinos are Fully Satisfied with the Valentine’s Day Gifts they Receive

    In an online survey of over 300 respondents, only a third (36%) of Filipinos are really happy with their Valentine’s Day gifts. Less than half (46%) said that they were satisfied while 3% expressed absolute dissatisfaction.

    The survey, conducted by Lazada, explored the processes and reasons for the lack of contentment over Valentine’s Day gifts.

    Avoid Cliché’s but Never Forget the Essentials

    Almost one in four respondents (23%) expressed that chocolates and couple’s shirts are cliché, but the most cliché gifts are picture frames with over 40% of people agreeing they are passé.

    On the other hand, over 30% of respondents agree that flowers are a must have, beating out chocolates (19%), stuffed toys (9.6%). Surprisingly, more and more people (15%) see gadgets as an essential gift for the month of romance.

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    Ask and You Shall Receive

    It seems surprise gifts are falling out of fashion as an overwhelming 86% of respondents prefer to express to their partners what they want. This transparency between couples extends to finding deals. 65% of respondents said they don’t mind sharing that they got their gifts on sale. The implicit learning is that if you get your partner the gift they want, it doesn’t matter if you got it on discount.

    Digital Love
    The survey also explored love in the digital space. Overtly expressing affection over social media or “Online PDA” seems acceptable with 52% of respondents saying they practice social media PDA themselves. 

    However, when it comes to meeting love interests online, half of the respondents had hesitations with online dating. 51% agreed with the statement:  “Online shopping never hurt anyone, people do.” Talk about #hugot.

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    Love to Shop and Shop to Love

    As our Valentine’s Day gifting habits evolve and improve, it is important for Filipinos to discover more convenient and cost effective ways to find the perfect gift. That’s why Lazada’s Valentine’s Day promo makes it the perfect place to get the gifts your partner wants in ways you can easily afford.

  • BrewDog launches Hong Kong bar and eatery

    BrewDog launches Hong Kong bar and eatery

    Maverick beer maker BrewDog has opened the doors to its latest bar, promising Hong Kong residents and visitors a “mega soul food menu” alongside a line-up of craft ales. The Aberdeenshire brewer, founded in 2007 by business partners James Watt and Martin Dickie, now runs more than 40 bars in the UK and overseas, as well as exporting to 55 countries.

    The opening of the Hong Kong outpost marks BrewDog’s second bar in Asia, following the launch of BrewDog Rappongi in Tokyo.

    Locally sourced beers from artisan brewers Young Master, Moonzen and Kowloon Bay Brewery will feature alongside BrewDog stalwarts such as Punk IPA.

    Watt said: “Hong Kong is an incredibly multicultural, fast-paced assault on the senses.”

     

  • Baccarat crystal opens in Beijing

    Baccarat crystal opens in Beijing

    French fine crystal manufacturer Baccarat has opened its first Chinese flagship store, in Beijing’s China Central Place complex.

    A stainless-steel mirror at its storefront draws attention to the two-storey boutique outlet, designed byGilles & Boissier of France.

    Attending the opening ceremony were Baccarat crystal global CEO Daniela Riccardi and Beijing Guohua Real Estate chairman Fang Chao. Singer Lin Yi Lun was among the guests. The Beijing opening follows the company launching a luxury hotel in New York last year to mark its 250th anniversary.

    Baccarat’s history goes back 200 years, and it represents the French art of living, according to theChina Central Place website. The new store offers an extensive product display, and includes many elements of the Baccarat flagship store in Paris, including a bar. Its decor also combines French and Chinese elements, with a Zenith 64-light chandelier illuminating the crystal works on display.

    Baccarat store Beijing

     

    Some of the products being offered are limited edition, including the Sun Mirror designed by Georges Chevalier in 1948, a set of crystal chess pieces by Oki Sato, founder of the Japanese design studioNendo, vases by Dutch designer Marcel Wanders, and panthers by French sculptor Jan Tésar.

    Baccarat’s store is on the ground floor of China Central Place, which is in the Trade Center in Jianguo Road, Chaoyang District. Among its international brands the mall also features Apple, Meissen, Rimowa and Tesla.

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  • Garuda Indonesia to set up new company for non-core units

    Garuda Indonesia to set up new company for non-core units

    Garuda Indonesia (GA, Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta) is planning to establish a new holding company to contain subsidiaries that do not contribute to its core business.

    Airline president Arif Wibowo told the Asia Nikkei newspaper that the plan has already secured shareholder approval – including that from the Ministry of Transportation – with a proposal set to be submitted to the Ministry of State Enterprises in the middle of the year.

    “We hope this will increase the company’s leverage, as each business unit will have clearer management and they can develop more specific focuses,” he said.

    Garuda currently operates five subsidiaries including: budget carrier Citilink (QG, Surabaya); PT Aero Wisata which deals with travel, hotel, transportation and catering services; PT Abacus Distribution Systems Indonesia which handles GDS services; PT Garuda Maintenance Facility Aero Asia (GMFAA) which deals with aircraft MRO; and PT Aero Systems Indonesia which is an IT solutions provider.

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  • Bali welcomes tourists with typical souvenirs for Chinese New Year

    Bali welcomes tourists with typical souvenirs for Chinese New Year

    Balis entrepreneurs and craftsmen are ready to offer some unique and affordable souvenirs to foreign tourists who plan on celebrating the upcoming Chinese New Year in the Island of God.

    “Various typical Chinese New Year souvenirs are especially being offered to the tourists from China and Hong Kong,” Ni Nyoman Sukiati, a Balinese craftswoman, stated here on Thursday.

    To welcome the upcoming Lunar Year 2016, various souvenirs, such as wall decorations, hanging lanterns bearing Chinese characters, and porcelain god statues are on sale at some supermarkets, shops, and tourism sites.

    Sukiati believes that the number of Chinese tourists visiting Bali will increase following the implementation of the visa-free policy for several countries, including China.

    “Chinese tourists, who spend their holidays here in Bali, will certainly want to buy some Balinese souvenirs,” she remarked.

    Beside the Chinese souvenirs, Balinese craftsmen have created some unique and creative merchandise, such as bracelets, necklaces, and brooches, which are also considered as the main export commodities to be shipped to some destination countries such as the United States, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, and Europe.

    Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) of Bali, the realization of non-oil products and handicrafts during 2015 reached US$498.6 million, a decrease of 7.02 percent compared to US$536.3 million in 2014.

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  • Australia, Indonesia boosting tourism and economic growth

    Australia, Indonesia boosting tourism and economic growth

    Australia is expanding efforts to encourage two-way tourism between Australia and Indonesia as a key driver of shared economic growth and more knowledge of each others country.

    Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Paul Grigson said tourism powers economies and supports communities.

    “We want to increase tourism in both directions. The Indonesian Government has already recognised the potential economic boost a strong tourism industry can deliver,” the ambassador was quoted as saying by the Australian Embassy here on its website.

    According to the ambassador, Australian tourism can help Indonesia realise that vision. More than a million Australians visit Indonesia every year. Australian tourists contribute 18 trillion IDR (AUD$1.8 billion) a year to the Indonesian economy, Ambassador Grigson said on Tuesday.

    He said as Indonesia seeks to develop its tourism industry beyond Bali, ease of travel is integral to its success. Indonesia has already experienced a 19 per cent increase in tourists from countries which were granted visa free access in 2015.

    “A quarter of all tourists to Bali are Australian. We want to see more Australians come to Indonesia and experience sunrise at Mount Bromo, taste the spices of Padang and watch the sunset at Borobudur,” Grigson told Indonesian tourism industry representatives in a speech in Jakarta.

    Beyond these economic benefits, tourism builds links between people. It challenges stereotypes. It opens up new worlds and greater understanding.

    “I want more Indonesians to visit Australia.We have world class cuisine, galleries and unique experiences. With famous wildlife, fabulous wine and fantastic weather, Australia beats any other destination,” he said.

    Australia was the tenth most popular destination for Indonesian tourists in 2014 with a total of 149,800 visitors, up 7.6 per cent from 2013.

    More Indonesians travelling to Australia will make expanded flight routes between Australia and Indonesia more viable in the long-term, bringing benefits to both our economies.

    “Indonesian investors may also be missing out on opportunities to capitalise on some of the major tourism infrastructure projects currently underway in Australia. In 2014 alone, investment in the Australian tourism industry was valued at $53.7 billion,” he said.

    He added that the more Australians and Indonesians experience each others countries, the deeper their connections become.

    “The tourism industry is integral to the prosperity of both our countries. Now is the time for us to reach out to each other as neighbours and shape our futures together,” Grigson said.

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  • Starwood Hotels & Resorts to Debut Ultra-Luxury St. Regis Brand in Jakarta

    Starwood Hotels & Resorts to Debut Ultra-Luxury St. Regis Brand in Jakarta

    Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide announced today that the company has reached a management agreement with Rajawali Property Group to open The St. Regis Jakarta and The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta. Centrally located on Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said, Kuninganin in South Jakarta, the hotel and residences will be part of a new mixed-use development, which will also feature a commercial office tower that will serve as the headquarters of Rajawali Property Group. Slated to open in 2019, The St. Regis Jakarta and The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta are poised to become the premium address for well-heeled travelers and residents.

    “The St. Regis Jakarta and The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta are a great testament to the growing wealth and appetite for luxury in Indonesia’s capital,” said Stephen Ho, President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Asia Pacific. “We are delighted to foster our relationship with Rajawali Property Group by bringing the St. Regis brand’s bespoke service, contemporary design and refined elegance to the ever-bustling city of Jakarta.”

    Shirley Tan, CEO of Rajawali Property Group, added, “Jakarta currently features some upscale residences that are located above or next to hotels, but few offer the heights of refinement tied to the St. Regis name. Today’s signing with Starwood is part of Rajawali’s greater residential strategy to develop a collection of truly branded residences with unique ownership privileges in Southeast Asia, including The Residences at The St. Regis Langkawi in 2016 and The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta in 2019.”

    The St. Regis Jakarta will offer 280 luxuriously-appointed guestrooms and suites, all bearing elements of the brand’s rich heritage infused with modern inspiration. The hotel will feature four distinctive restaurants, including an all-day dining venue, a fine dining restaurant, The Deli, and the signature St. Regis bar. For meetings and events, the hotel will offer expansive function space that spans 3,600 square meters. Guests will also be able to indulge in world-class leisure facilities, including a spa with six treatment rooms, a fitness center and a swimming pool. To further enhance the guest experience, The St. Regis Jakarta will provide signature St. Regis Butler Service, offering guests 24-hour anticipatory service that customizes each stay to specific needs, tastes and preferences, allowing guests to savor the rarest luxuries of all time.

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    Following the success of the residences at St. Regis hotels in Singapore and Bangkok, and the soon-to-open St. Regis Kuala Lumpur, The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta will set new standards for luxury living in Jakarta. Located in a separate tower adjacent to the hotel, the 164 branded residences will offer homeowners and investors refined luxury and privacy, with each home expressing a sense of intimacy, grandeur and panoramic views of the vast city skyline.

    The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta will feature three types of apartments: a 3-bedroom Sky Residence occupying 355 to 373 square meters; the Sky Villa, a 750 square meter, 4-bedroom unit; and the Sky Palace, featuring over 1,250 square meters. Residents will enjoy exclusive concierge service, a multi-function room and wine room, private garden pool, private dining and library lounge, fitness center and dedicated car parking space. Residence owners will also be able to enjoy the renowned St. Regis services at their doorstep, including St. Regis Butler Service, as well as access the hotel’s fitness and dining facilities.

    “Starwood is pleased to expand its portfolio of St. Regis residences in Asia Pacific, as we see strong continued growth opportunities in this area,” said Rajit Sukumaran, Senior Vice President, Acquisition & Development, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific. “The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta will cater to the lifestyle needs of the increasingly affluent and appeal to luxury property investors, while remaining deeply rooted in St. Regis’ distinctive legacy of uncompromising elegance and the ability to provide the finest experiences imaginable.”

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    The announcement further strengthens the partnership between Starwood and Rajawali Property Group, which currently owns eight Starwood properties, with a total of more than 1,500 rooms throughout Malaysia and Indonesia. This distinguished portfolio includes The St. Regis Bali Resort and the all-suite St. Regis Langkawi Resort. The latter is on track to open in April 2016, as part of an integrated complex comprising The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa and the ultra-modern Langkawi International Convention Centre (LICC), both owned by Rajawali Property Group.

    Starwood currently operates 18 hotels in Indonesia, five of which are located in Jakarta. The company is accelerating its growth in the country and is on track to open 13 additional hotels in the next three years. In addition to The St. Regis Jakarta, Starwood’s pipeline also includes Aloft hotels in Kebon Jeruk and Wahid Haysyim, The Westin Jakarta and W Jakarta.

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  • Indonesia studying Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

    Indonesia studying Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

    Indonesia is studying 6,000 pages of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement to see possible impacts on domestic industries if it finally decides to join it.

    “There are 30 sub-sectors involved in the 6,000 page agreement that have to be studied one by one,” Director General of Resilience and International Industrial Access Development of the Ministry of Industry, Achmad Sigit Deiwahjono, said here Thursday.

    The focus of the study was not put on the policy of domestic content (TKDN) which is not allowed in the agreement, he said.

    The government hoped the TKDN would not be abolished if Indonesia later joins the TPP, he said.

    He would negotiate so that the TKDN would remain, but the portion would be divided for the interest of the TPP, he said.

    “Indonesia wishes it (TKDN) would be exempted, for example, by allowing the TKDN to some value of the project,” he said.

    He did not know when the study would be finished, and he also did not know if Indonesia would finally join it or not, Sigit said.

    “We will still study it. It is not yet finished,” he added.

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  • Indonesia’s growth in 2015 slows for fifth consecutive year

    Indonesia’s growth in 2015 slows for fifth consecutive year

    Growth in South East Asia’s largest economy, Indonesia, has come in at 4.76% for 2015, marking the fifth consecutive yearly decline. Weaker commodity prices and consumer spending, together with a slowdown in its key trading partner, China, has hurt growth. Towards the end of last year, however, the economy expanded by just over 5%, boosted by government spending. President Joko Widodo had promised to lift annual growth to 7% on average.

    However, the country has seen an average of just under 6% growth over the past decade and analysts have said growth is unlikely to improve for some time.

    “The fourth quarter data is a positive surprise,” economist Tony Nash told.

    “But unfortunately the uptick will likely be short lived. We expect deterioration in the first quarter and it’ll be tough to regain growth momentum before 2017,” he added.

    Mr Widodo made his promise to raise growth when his five-year term began in 2014, but he has faced problems boosting government spending and has seen several large infrastructure projects delayed.

    A $5.5bn high-speed railway project, funded by China, was signed last year and is scheduled to be up and running by 2019.

    But the project has faced widespread objections from transport experts and its long-term viability has been questioned.

    Mr Widodo has also faced international condemnation for the country’s man-made forest fires, which have caused serious economic and environmental damage.

    In December, the World Bank said Indonesia’s forest fires last year had likely cost the country more than twice the amount spent on reconstruction efforts after the 2004 Aceh tsunami.

    In its quarterly report, the bank said the fires had cost some 221tn Indonesian rupiah ($15.72bn; £10.5bn).

    It added that regional and global costs would be much higher.

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  • Custodian Banks Officially Become DPP Members

    Custodian Banks Officially Become DPP Members

    The Financial Services Authority (OJK), the Indonesian Securities Investor Protection Fund (P3IEI/SIPF) and relevant stakeholders had established the Investor Protection Fund (DPP). The goal is to improve the security of investing in Indonesia’s capital market.

    The Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) announced that custodian banks listed in the IDX have been DPP members since January 1, 2016. Thus the number of DPP members now reaches 133 custodians.

    “One hundred and twelve of them are securities brokers (PPE), which administrate customers’ securities accounts, and 21 are custodian banks,” SIPF president director Yoyo Isharsaya said on Thursday, February 4.

    DPP protects investors’ assets deposited at brokers or at a custodian bank. The protected assets are securities that are collectively entrusted to a custodian and recorded in a securities account in a central securities depository (LPP).

    The DPP also protects investors’ funds that are deposited to a fund custodian by opening an account.

    With custodian banks becoming DPP members, the value of investors’ assets are protected by the DPP increased to by 295.27 percent from Rp765.25 trillion per December 31, 2015 to Rp3024.78 trillion per January 1, 2016.

    Investors whose assets are protected by the DPP are those who entrusted their assets and a securities account at the custodian, opened securities sub-accounts at the LPP by a custodian, and have a single investor identification issued by the Central Securities Depository.

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  • West Sulawesi provincial government to maximize use of cacao plantations

    West Sulawesi provincial government to maximize use of cacao plantations

    The West Sulawesi provincial government will, this year, maximize the use of cacao plantations to annually produce one million tons of the commodity, according to Provincial Estate Service spokesman Tanawali.

    “The government of Southeast Sulawesi this year will maximize the use of cacao plantation areas in order to support its determination to achieve a production target of one million tons of cacao,” he remarked here on Friday.

    He noted that of the 168 thousand hectares of cacao plantations in West Sulawesi, efforts have been intensified in 65 thousand hectares since 2009 to improve the quality and production.

    “We hope to maximize the use of all cocoa plantations in West Sulawesi within the next three years to support the program to make Indonesia the worlds largest producer of the commodity,” he stated.

    In addition, Tanawali noted that the cacao processing industry in Indonesia should continue to grow stronger to increase the processing capacity.

    Due to growth in the cacao processing industry in 2015, the processing capacity increased to 765 thousand tons from 345 thousand tons in 2010.

    During a visit to the cacao processing company PT Mars Symbioscience Indonesia in Makassar, South Sulawesi, in August last year, Industry Minister Saleh Husin stated that the number of cacao processing companies rose to 19 from 15 units in the previous year.

    “The government has encouraged development of the cacao processing industry by restricting exports of cacao beans since 2010,” the minister noted at the time.

    Husin remarked that under the Cacao National Movement Program, the government was optimistic of boosting the productivity of the countrys cacao plantations from 0.5 ton to 2 tons per hectare.

    Therefore, the minister emphasized that the government will facilitate investment in the cacao processing industry by helping provide infrastructure, one-stop service, fiscal facility, and exemption of import duty on factory machines.

    Indonesia is the worlds third-largest producer of cacao beans after the Ivory Coast and Ghana in Africa, and Sulawesi is the largest cacao producing region in the country.

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  • Furniture giant IKEA loses its trademark dispute in SC in Indonesia

    Furniture giant IKEA loses its trademark dispute in SC in Indonesia

    There is Samsung of South Korea, Sony of Japan, BMW of Germany and IKEA of Indonesia. Wait! IKEA of Indonesia? Yes, at least in Indonesia, if not worldwide.

    Furniture giant IKEA, founded in Sweden in 1943, has lost a trademark dispute in Indonesia after the country’s highest court agreed the name was owned by a local company.

    Indonesian furniture company PT Ratania Khatulistiwa registered its IKEA trademark in December 2013. It’s an acronym of Intan Khatulistiwa Esa Abadi.

    The Supreme Court’s ruling was made in May last year but only surfaced publicly this week with its publication online by the court on Thursday.

    It said IKEA had not actively used its trademark in three consecutive years for commercial purposes and it could be deleted under Indonesia’s trademark law.

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  • Angkasa Pura has world-class logistics warehouse in Bali

    Angkasa Pura has world-class logistics warehouse in Bali

    State-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura-I now has a logistics warehouse of international standard in the Indonesian island resort of Bali, according to the companys President Director, Sulistyo Wimbo Hardjito.

    Speaking to reporters here on Friday, Hardjito remarked that the international standard warehouse, named the Bali Logistics Park, is projected to boost the distribution of logistics in the eastern Indonesian region.

    “The presence of the Bali Logistics Park is expected to facilitate the flow of goods and encourage the growth of the logistics services sector and tourism in Bali,” he noted.

    According to Hardjito, the logistics warehouse building is located in proximity to the eastern side of the Ngurah Rai International Airports runway.

    In the meantime, Director of Angkasa Pura Property Miduk Situmorang explained that the Bali Logistics Park was built on a 1.6-hectare plot of land, with a building area of 7.2 thousand square meters.

    Situmorang said the building, constructed in nine months, has eight storage rooms, each measuring 960 square meters.

    “We hope the Bali Logistics Park would be able to address the needs of warehousing facilities of customers and businesses,” he affirmed.

    Angkasa Pura Director for Logistics Affairs Garniwa Irwan explained that the Bali Logistics Park has a loading and unloading area, which is able to serve 40-feet trucks, equipped with forklifts.

    Irwan remarked that the logistics warehouse, with a capacity of five thousand kilograms per square meter, can be operated by using advanced technology that allows users to store and organize their items accurately.

    Further, he remarked that the customers can choose and manage their own storage and distribution of several products in the warehouse or store a pallet unit in one of the storage consoles.

    He noted that the Bali Logistics Park in Bali will serve as an example for the central and eastern regions of Indonesia.

    “With the presence of the Bali Logistics Park complex, the businesses will not hesitate to expand their distribution of goods in Bali. We are also planning to build a similar facility in Surabaya, East Java,” Irwan added.

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  • Malaysia, Indonesia & Thailand to shore up rubber price

    Malaysia, Indonesia & Thailand to shore up rubber price

    Asia’s top rubber producers have agreed to cut exports by 615,000 tonnes for six months from March, moving to lift prices that have tumbled to their lowest since the global financial crisis amid excess supply.

    Benchmark rubber futures in Singapore and Japan rallied 2-3% on the news. The benchmarks sank in January to their lowest levels since end-2008 to early 2009.

    Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, which produce nearly 70% of the world’s natural rubber, said in a joint statement that the move was to address a decline in rubber prices which has had “a direct effect on the income of rubber smallholders in our three countries.”

    Thailand will cut exports by 324,000 tonnes, Indonesia by 238,740 tonnes and Malaysia by 52,260 tonnes, according to a statement from the International Tripartite Rubber Council (ITRC), which groups the three producers.

    The total cuts account for nearly 6% of global natural rubber output.

    “The three countries’ ministers believe that cutting exports and boosting domestic use of rubber will drive up prices and fix the price slump, making prices fair for rubber farmers,” Thailand’s agriculture ministry said in a statement.

    Previous efforts by major rubber producers to cut exports or output have only had a fleeting impact on prices amid a slowdown in top rubber importer China. In 2014, the ITRC members also agreed to cut exports to curb excess supply.

    Before that, they collectively cut shipments by 300,000 tonnes in 2012-13, or roughly 3% of 2012 global output. The intervention only briefly supported prices and Indonesia called for the pact to be discontinued.

    Besides cutting exports, the three countries today also agreed to increase domestic consumption of rubber – including for road and railway construction.

    “We are optimistic with joint implementation of these measures, rubber price will recover and continue to be fair and remunerative to all smallholders and other stakeholders in the natural rubber industry,” the ITRC said in the statement.

    Thailand, the world’s top rubber producer and exporter, will cut its rubber exports by 50% starting March, said the Rubber Authority of Thailand.

    “The three countries will cooperate in cutting exports by 615,000 tonnes from March to August,” said Chao Songarvut, acting director of the Rubber Authority of Thailand, adding that the move was to drive up prices.

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  • Lippo Malls Trust buy integrated development in Yogyakarta

    Lippo Malls Trust buy integrated development in Yogyakarta

    First Reit has entered into a joint venture with Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust (LMIRT) to jointly buy an integrated development in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, from their sponsor PT Lippo Karawaci Tbk.

    The property comprises Siloam Hospitals Yogyakarta (SHYG) and a retail mall component known as Lippo Plaza Jogja (LPJ).

    The purchase consideration for SHYG at S$40.82 million, which will be borne by First Reit, represents a discount of 9.69 per cent to S$45.20 million, being the higher of two independent valuations.

    The lower valuation by KJPP Willson & Rekan (in association with Knight Frank) put its value at S$41.52 million as at end-September 2015.

    The property is held under one “Right to Build” (Hak Guna Bangunan) title certificate and currently, in Yogyakarta, there are no regulations permitting the regional government of Yogyakarta to subdivide the property and issue separate strata titles for SHYG and LPJ.

    First Reit and LMIRT have, therefore, decided to jointly acquire the asset. They own mostly hospitality and retail assets in Indonesia respectively.

    The property, comprising a hospital and a retail mall, is a 10-storey building including one basement and one mezzanine level on a total land area of 13,715 square metres, with a shared multi-storey parking area on the upper levels and a rooftop helipad.

    The joint acquisition will boost First Reit’s portfolio to 18 properties and strengthen its asset base by 3.15 per cent to S$1.31 billion, from S$1.27 billion.

    First Reit will finance the SHYG portion of the joint acquisition by a drawdown from its debt facilities and internal cash.

    As for LPJ, its purchase consideration of S$51 million, which will be borne by LMIRT, represents a discount to both the independent valuations it obtained.

    LMIRT will finance the retail mall acquisition using debt financing.

    The manager is currently exploring the options of bank loan facilities and/or issuance of unsecured bonds under the EMTN programme it set up last September.

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