Sasseur Reit Q1 DPU up 31.9% to 1.759 S cents on 'strong business recovery'

SASSEUR Real Estate Investment Trust (Sasseur Reit), which owns outlet malls in China, posted a 31.9 per cent rise in its distribution per unit (DPU) to 1.759 Singapore cents for the first quarter ended March 31, 2021, from 1.334 cents a year ago.

Distributable income for Q1 rose 47.8 per cent on the year to S$23.6 million from S$16 million. This was propelled by "strong business recovery" from the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as asset-enhancement initiatives, resulting in greater diversity in trade mix and operational efficiencies, the manager said in a statement on Wednesday.

The distribution will be paid out on June 25, following book closure on June 11.

The Reit's rental income under its entrusted management agreements (EMAs) was S$34.1 million, up 23.4 per cent from S$27.6 million the year before. This came amid a rebound in outlet sales compared with Q1 2020, when the Reit closed its outlets for seven weeks due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Excluding straight-line adjustments, EMA rental income stood at S$32.3 million, up 27.8 per cent from S$25.3 million the previous year.

Sasseur Reit's portfolio occupancy level remained stable at 93.5 per cent in the first quarter, the manager said. The Reit’s portfolio comprises the Chongqing Liangjiang Outlets, Chongqing Bishan Outlets, Hefei Outlets and Kunming Outlets. 

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As the Sasseur Chongqing and Bishan Outlets are both located in the Chongqing municipality, the Reit’s entrusted manager merged the operations of the two outlets in Q1 2021 to achieve “greater synergy and efficiency” in operational and inventory management. 

As part of the rebranding exercise, the two outlets were renamed Sasseur (Chongjing Liangjiang) Outlets and Sasseur (Chongqing Bishan) Outlets. 

Anthony Ang, chief executive of Sasseur Reit’s manager, said the retail outlet industry will continue to be resilient during the pandemic as demand from domestic consumers remains high in China. 

Units of Sasseur Reit closed 0.54 per cent or 0.5 Singapore cent lower at 92 Singapore cents on Wednesday.