Croesus Retail Trust to acquire Hiroshima suburban mall for 3.3b yen

CROESUS Retail Trust (CRT) is acquiring a prominent suburban mall in Japan's Hiroshima prefecture for 3.3 billion yen (S$40.5 million).

Fuji Grand Natalie, located in a well-populated zone in Hatsukaichi City, has about 53 sub-tenants involved in fashion, goods, services, food and other sectors. It has a weighted average lease expiry of 8.2 years, and Fuji as an anchor tenant.

Hatsukaichi City is about 30 minutes from Hiroshima City by car, and also home to a World Unesco Heritage site, the Itsukushima Shrine.

The 3.3 billion yen consideration represents a 6.3 per cent discount to the property's valuation of 3.52 billion yen, said CRT's manager, Croesus Retail Asset Management.

Said trust manager's CEO Jim Chang: "The acquisition of Fuji Grand Natalie will be a good fit for CRT as all our acquisitions since our listing, are nonmaster leased properties, and this will allow us to balance our portfolio.

"Having Fuji Grand Natalie on board will provide greater income stability and another sustainable source of rental income for CRT's portfolio."

The trust manager is assessing other opportunities, but will also be prudent and ensure that any future acquisitions contribute to CRT's growth, he added.

With the addition of Fuji Grand Natalie, CRT's portfolio will comprise nine properties with an asset valuation of 99.75 billion yen.