Asian real estate still attractive after US rate hike - LaSalle Investment
[SHANGHAI] Asian real estate remains attractive due to relatively high yields despite US monetary tightening as the pace of interest rate increases in the region is expected to be slow, an executive at LaSalle Investment Management said on Thursday.
Elysia Tse, LaSalle's head of research & Strategy, Asia Pacific, identified China as a market with huge business growth potential, and brushed aside concerns over currency fluctuations and Beijing's capital control policies.
In the Asia Pacific "we're going to see a slower pace of interest rate increases, if any," Mr Tse told Reuters, hours after the US Federal Reserve raised short-term rates by 25 basis points in a widely-expected move.
Japan is still fighting persistent deflation, while central banks in some countries such as Australia may raise rates only moderately, and the real estate yield is high enough to cushion the impact, she said.
Mr Tse's comments might ease fears among some investors that rising interest rates would boost borrowing costs and hit property values. There are also concerns that higher rates in the United States would lure capital away from emerging markets.
LaSalle Investment Management, owned by Jones Lang LaSalle Inc, manages about US$58 billion of assets globally, including US$7.8 billion in the Asia Pacific.
Regarding China's property market, Mr Tse downplayed currency risks and regulatory uncertainty, saying LaSalle's US$330 million China business has the potential to match that of Japan, where the company has US$5.34 billion of assets under management. "China is the largest economy in Asia, and very important part of our business. Given enough time, we will grow our business (in China) as large as Japan," Mr Tse said.
Mr Tse identified China's logistics real estate as an area representing "attractive" investment opportunities, citing the country's rapidly expanding e-commerce industry. "You have a very strong demand, but you have a shortage of modern warehouses...so a supply-demand imbalance in favour of landlords and investors," she said, adding that such properties in China's major cities yield 5.75-6.25 per cent.
In China's financial capital Shanghai, top grade office buildings yield around 3.5-4 per cent.
REUTERS
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Property
Airbnb promises to combat sex work in rentals during Paris Olympics
Hong Kong property deals hit three-year high in April
More homes planned in Media Circle to support housing demand
Qatari Sheikh sells London mansion to fellow royal for £39 million
Toronto home sales fall for third month in April; prices rise
Far East Shopping Centre owners in private talks after close of S$928 million en bloc tender