Suntec Reit’s H1 DPU up 15.8% on higher income

SUNTEC real estate investment trust’s (Reit) distribution per unit (DPU) grew 15.8 per cent year on year to S$0.0481 for its 6-month period ended Mar 31, 2022, from S$0.04154 last year.

Gross revenue rose 22.1 per cent to S$203.5 million for the first half of this year, from S$166.8 million in the corresponding year-ago period.

The Reit’s manager on Wednesday (Jul 27) attributed the higher revenue mainly to contribution from The Minster Building - newly acquired in July 2021, higher revenue from Suntec City, Suntec Singapore, 21 Harris Street and Olderfleet, 477 Collins Street.

The commercial Reit’s net property income (NPI) also gained 35.8 per cent to S$152.9 million in H1 this year, from S$112.6 million in the year-ago period.

Further, distributable income grew 16.9 per cent to S$138.1 million in H1 2022, from S$118.2 million last year.

The manager of Suntec Reit noted in particular that its topline had been slightly dampened by a lower gross revenue from its Australian property on 177 Pacific Highway due to lower occupancy and a weaker Australian dollar.

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“The CBD retail market in Melbourne continues to be weak as tourism restrictions and flexible remote work arrangements have led to declines in shopper traffic and retail sales,” said the manager. “Retail rents in the CBD are expected to remain weak despite further easing of restrictions as the return to office is slow.”

Separately, while its Singapore offices and retail have enjoyed good growth in H1, the Reit’s manager warned of a slower recovery at Suntec Convention. They expect income from Suntec Convention to remain impacted for the whole of 2022. 

A distribution of S$0.02419 per unit for the period Apr 1 to Jun 30 will be paid on Aug 29 after book closure on Aug 4.

Suntec Reit closed 0.6 per cent or S$0.01 higher at S$1.59 on Tuesday.