EC World Reit posts 18.5% drop in Q1 DPU to S$0.01127
EC WORLD Real Estate Investment Trust’s (EC World Reit) distribution per unit fell by 18.5 per cent to 1.127 Singapore cents for the first quarter ended Mar 31, 2023, from 1.383 Singapore cents the year before.
Gross revenue was down 12.5 per cent to S$28.1 million for the first quarter, from S$32.2 million in the year-ago period.
Net property income (NPI) dropped 12.3 per cent on the year to S$26.1 million for the quarter, from S$29.7 million previously.
The Reit’s manager attributed the lower revenue and NPI to the absence of rental income from Fu Zhuo Industrial, lower late fee income, straight-line rental adjustment as well as the weakening of the Chinese yuan. Fu Zhuo Industrial was seized by the Chinese authorities for public use last March.
Distributable income declined 9.4 per cent year on year to S$10.1 million, from S$11.2 million the year before.
Overall occupancy for EC World Reit’s portfolio remained at 96.8 per cent as at Mar 31, 2023. Of the Reit’s seven properties, four achieved full occupancy, while the others – Hengde Logistics and Chongxian Port Logistics – reported near full occupancy.
Weighted average lease to expiry (Wale) by gross rental income and net lettable area stood at 1.4 years and 1.2 years respectively.
Noting ongoing macroeconomic challenges and China’s property market crisis, the manager cautioned that EC World Reit will “continue to face financial stress in the short to medium term” due to higher finance costs, among other reasons. This is even as it expects the Reit’s rental income to remain fairly resilient.
Units of EC world Reit closed S$0.005 or 1.7 per cent higher at S$0.295 on Friday, before the results were announced.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
