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Lend Lease eyes Malaysia's property mart

Posted: 18 Feb 2013 07:07 PM PST

Lend Lease Group, Australia's biggest developer, plans to expand in Malaysia to make up for a slowdown in residential sales and mining-related infrastructure projects back home.

The company is in discussions to invest in about three development projects in Malaysia and expects to complete the first agreement by June 30, Chief Executive Officer Steve McCann said in an interview from Melbourne yesterday.

Lend Lease wants to lower its dependency on the home market to about 60 per cent of earnings in five years from 73 per cent as of December 31, McCann said. Malaysia's growth exceeded 5 per cent in each of the five quarters through September, outpacing Australia's average 3.4 per cent expansion in the same period. Lend Lease's Asian Retail Investment Fund in May opened Setia City Mall in partnership with Malaysian developer SP Setia Bhd.

"Over time, say about five years, we'll invest more capital overseas," McCann said. "There are a few encouraging signs in the Australian residential market and there's a bit more enquiry off the reduction in interest rates but there won't be a material turnaround soon in the land subdivision market."

The Sydney-based company's future developments in Malaysia will be mixed-use projects dominated by retail space, McCann said. Two of its planned projects in the country will be in Kuala Lumpur and one elsewhere, he said.

Lend Lease in October agreed to jointly develop a 10.9 acre site in a project that will include office, retail and hotel space and homes with Naza TTDI, according to an e-mailed statement from the closely held Malaysian developer.-- Bloomberg

KL shares higher in early trade

Posted: 18 Feb 2013 05:49 PM PST

Share prices on Bursa Malaysia were slightly higher in early trade today on mild buying support mostly seen in heavyweights, dealers said.

Ten minutes into the opening, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 1.98 points to 1,622.91, compared to yesterday's close of 1,620.93.

HwangDBS Vickers Research Sdn Bhd said with no visible market leads from abroad and as Wall Street was closed yesterday, Asian equities may swing sideways when trading resumes today.

It said the local bourse could also continue its listless performance by drifting lower.

"On the chart, the benchmark FBM KLCI is expected to slide towards the tentative support line of 1,615 anytime soon," it said in its research note here.

Regional bourses were mostly lower with Japan's Nikkei 225 slipping 13.91 points to 11,393.96, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 13.72 points to 23368.22. Singapore's Straits Times rose 7.93 points to 3,296.07.

Back on the local front, the Finance Index improved 19.239 points to 14,848.27, the Industrial Index edged up 1.94 points to 2,786.71 and the Plantation Index increased 6.01 points to 7,926.67.

The FBM Emas Index was 10.97 points higher at 11,029.62, the FBMT100 advanced 9.829 points to 10,879.52, while the FBM Mid 70 Index declined 5.14 points to 11,959.49, and the FBM Ace Index added 9.1 points to 4,048.26.

Gainers led losers by 61 to 40, with 82 counters unchanged, 1,483 untraded and 17 others suspended.

Trading was thin with total volume at 68.425 million shares worth
RM15.15 million.

Among actives, The Media Shoppe edged up one sen to 9.5 sen, Compugates was unchanged at 9.5 sen, while Ins Bioscience slipped 1.5 sen to five sen.

For the heavyweights, Maybank was unchanged at RM8.87, while Sime Darby added two sen to RM9.24 and Axiata edged up one sen to RM6.28, with CIMB gaining three sen to RM7.03.-- Bernama

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Isnin, 18 Februari 2013

NST Online Business Times : latest

NST Online Business Times : latest

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