K-Reit sees upside in office rents

KEPPEL Reit (K-Reit) is expecting strong upside in office rents as leasing activities, especially in Singapore's CBD, remain buoyed by the tight office supply situation.

But it is not losing out on time and has, for the first half of this year, undertaken early renewals for about 164,000 sq ft of net lettable office space that were due to expire in the next three years.

"We are getting steady demand, but they are not the traditional tenants we are talking about, so we have to monitor the situation," said Ng Hsueh Ling, chief executive officer of the Reit's manager. "If Singapore's GDP continues to be good and (office) supply is quite limited, we may be able to get some upside this year and next year and 2016."