Keppel Land Limited Unaudited Results for Second Quarter and Half Year ended 30 June 2013

Transcription

1 PRESS RELEASE Keppel Land Limited Unaudited Results for Second Quarter and Half Year ended 30 June July 2013 The Directors of Keppel Land Limited advise the following results of the Company and of the Group for the second quarter and half year ended 30 June These figures have not been audited. Presentation materials are available at and For more information, please contact: Media Relations Ms Grace Chia Senior Manager Group Corporate Communications Keppel Corporation Limited Tel: (65) / grace.chia@kepcorp.com Investor Relations Ms Serena Toh General Manager Investor Relations & Research Keppel Land Tel: (65) stoh@kepland.com.sg

2 PRESS RELEASE Keppel Land s Financial Highlights for the Half Year Ended 30 June July 2013 Higher Earnings from Overseas and Property Investment Net profit of $192.1 million in the absence of bumper contribution from Reflections at Keppel Bay Overseas contribution grew by 79.3% to $50.2 million on higher profits from China Property investment rose 27.4% to $48.9 million on higher contribution from Keppel REIT and Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3 Keppel Land achieved a net profit of $192.1 million for the first half of 2013, 18.8% lower compared with $236.6 million earned in the first half of This was due primarily to lower earnings from property trading compared with the same period in 2012 when there was a significant profit recognition of $137.7 million from Reflections at Keppel Bay from units sold under the deferred payment scheme. The Group s contribution from overseas recorded 79.3% growth to $50.2 million year on year, compared with $28 million in the same period last year. The bulk of Keppel Land s overseas profit came from the recent sales of more than 50 units at 8 Park Avenue in Shanghai and the completion of The Botanica Phase 6, comprising 1,248 units, in Chengdu. Property investment contribution rose 27.4% to $48.9 million on improved performance by Keppel REIT and higher contributions from Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3. The Group s fund management vehicles, Keppel REIT and Alpha Investment Partners (Alpha), contributed $22.9 million or about 12% of net profit for the first half of this year.

3 Financial Highlights ($m) Half Year Ended Quarter Ended 30 Jun Jun Jun Jun 2012 Turnover Pre tax Profit Net Profit Net Debt/Equity Ratio (x) NTA/Share ($) Singapore s Property Market Remained Resilient The private residential market in Singapore remains steady, with prices inching up 0.8% in the second quarter from 0.6% in the previous quarter. Sales of new private residential units moderated to about 10,060 units in the first half of 2013, compared with about 11,930 units sold in the same period last year. In the first half of 2013, Keppel Land sold about 210 units in Singapore, mostly from its newly launched Corals at Keppel Bay and the fully sold The Luxurie in Sengkang. Corals at Keppel Bay has been well received, with about 140 units or 88% of 160 launched units sold since its launch in May. Keppel Land plans to launch The Glades, a 726 unit development next to Tanah Merah MRT station, in the third quarter of this year. As part of a strategic tie up with China Vanke, the Group has divested a 30% stake in The Glades to China Vanke. The partnership will provide Keppel Land with the opportunity to tap on Vanke s extensive knowledge and expertise of the Chinese market as the Company looks to scale up its presence in China s high growth cities. The Group has also recently acquired a prime CBD fringe site near Tiong Bahru MRT station. The site is located within a popular and mature residential estate in which the Group plans to develop about 500 units. Singapore s Grade A office market remains resilient, supported by demand from diverse sectors ranging from legal to resource firms. Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3 s commitment level increased to about 90% as at end June 2013, compared with about 79% as at end The Group s fund management business also continues to grow, with total assets under management by Keppel REIT and Alpha reaching $17 billion as at end June In June, Keppel REIT acquired a 50% stake in 8 Exhibition Street, an office building located in Melbourne s CBD. Following Keppel Corporation s distribution in specie and sale of units in Keppel REIT, Keppel REIT s free float has doubled from 24.4% to 48.5%, resulting in a significant improvement in its trading liquidity. Alpha s Alpha Asia Macro Trends Fund II achieved a final closing of US$1.65 billion, exceeding its initial target size of US$1 billion. Investors in the follow on fund include institutional investors from Europe, US and Asia. Another fund managed by Alpha, Alpha Core Plus Real Estate Fund, divested 135 Cecil Street in Singapore recently. Strong Residential Sales in China The Group sold about 1,940 residential units in China in the first half of 2013, surpassing 2012 s full year sales of about 1,650 units. Sales were primarily from The Botanica in Chengdu and The Springdale in Shanghai. The Group recently launched two blocks comprising 260 units at 8 Park Avenue located in the

4 prime Jingan district and sold over 50 units as at end June Keppel Land has also launched Park Avenue Heights in Panchenggang, Chengdu and sales have been encouraging. The Group will continue to monitor the market to launch new projects such as Seasons Residence in Shanghai, Waterfront Residence in Nantong and Hill Crest Villa in Chengdu as well as Seasons Garden and Serenity Villa in Tianjin Eco City in the second half of The Group continues to seize opportunities to scale up in growth cities with the acquisition of a site in the established area of Sheshan in Shanghai for the development of about 200 landed houses. The Group has also forayed into Shanghai s retail market with the acquisition of a stake in Life Jinqiao, a retail and office development located in Pudong district to capitalise on the growing affluence of the Chinese population. Moving ahead, Keppel Land will continue to focus on building its capabilities and strengthening its position in its key markets of Singapore, China, Indonesia and Vietnam. The Group is also committed to grow its fund management business for a recurring fee income stream. Disclaimer This release may contain statements which are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements, which are based in the current views of Management on future developments and events.

5 KEPPEL LAND LIMITED OPENING REMARKS BY CEO ANG WEE GEE HALF YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2013 Good evening, and welcome to Keppel Land s half year 2013 results presentation. We have achieved a net profit of $192.1 million in the first half of Our core markets of Singapore and China contributed the bulk of our profits. Despite the uncertain economic environment and property cooling measures, our sales in Singapore and China were better than the same period last year. We sold about 210 homes in Singapore in the first half of 2013, compared with 190 homes sold over the same period last year. The recent launch of Corals at Keppel Bay, the third waterfront development of premium homes at Keppel Bay, has been well-received with about 140 units sold. In China, we achieved strong sales of about 1,940 homes in the first half of 2013, exceeding the 1,650 homes sold for the whole of Sales from the launch of two residential blocks at 8 Park Avenue in Shanghai s prime Jingan District in mid-june have been encouraging with more than 50 units sold. We also recently launched Park Avenue Heights in Panchenggang, close to the financial street in Chengdu s city centre. Deepen Presence in Core Markets To capitalise on the good prospects of Singapore and China markets, our total investment year-to-date in both countries is close to S$1 billion. In Singapore, we won the tender for a site in Tiong Bahru, located close to an MRT station and expressways in a popular and mature estate on the fringe of CBD. Future supply of new homes in the vicinity is limited. The acquisition is consistent with our strategy to develop homes well-served by major transportation nodes and with strong marketing attributes. 1

6 In China, we made two acquisitions in Shanghai. We just bought a prime residential site in the prestigious Sheshan area to develop about 200 exclusive landed homes. Early this year, together with funds managed by Alpha Investment Partners (Alpha), we jointly acquired a majority stake in a retail-cum-office development, Life Jinqiao. This marked our first foray into the retail market of Shanghai and enables us to grow our commercial presence in China. In April this year, we entered into a strategic alliance with China s largest residential developer, China Vanke, to jointly develop properties in Singapore and China. This will allow us to tap Vanke s insight and operating expertise in the Chinese market as we step up presence in high-growth cities. Vanke has acquired a 30% stake in our Tanah Merah project, to be called The Glades, as we explore similar collaborations with them in China. We see sustainable housing demand driven by solid economic fundamentals and favourable demographics in Singapore and China. We will continue to build up our capabilities and strengthen our position in these core markets. With a strong balance sheet, we will be able to seize good opportunities when they arise. Six new projects will be launch-ready in Singapore and China in the second half of this year. They include The Glades in Tanah Merah, Singapore; Seasons Residence in Shanghai; Waterfront Residence in Nantong; Hill Crest Villa in Chengdu; as well as Seasons Garden and Serenity Villa in Tianjin Eco-City. We see good long-term potential in Vietnam and Indonesia. The development of Saigon Centre Phase 2 in Ho Chi Minh City will benefit from Vietnam s growing middle-class. In Indonesia, we will focus on securing attractive sites in Jakarta, especially around the CBD area. 2

7 Grow Commercial Portfolio Commitment at Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3 has increased from about 79% as at end-2012 to about 90% to-date. We see healthy take-up from diverse sectors, including legal and other business services as well as energy and commodity firms. Leveraging our expertise in building award-winning office and mixed-use developments, we are also developing several prime commercial projects across the key cities of Beijing, Tianjin, Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City. We will continue to step up commercial development in Singapore and overseas to establish a balanced portfolio. Our fund management business continues to grow. Combined assets under management (AUM) by Keppel REIT and Alpha have increased to S$17 billion. Keppel REIT s trading liquidity has improved significantly as its free float doubled from 24.4% to 48.5% following Keppel Corporation s distribution-in-specie and sale of Keppel REIT units. Recently, Alpha s follow-on fund, Alpha Asia Macro Trends Fund II, achieved a final closing of US$1.65 billion, exceeding its target of US$1 billion. Our fund management business will provide a steady stream of recurring income against the volatility of our property development earnings. Reinforce Brand Identity In today s volatile and uncertain business environment, our strength in innovation will continue to set us apart from our competitors. It is entrenched in our culture to continually challenge ourselves to think and do things innovatively, and this has contributed to our past successes and won us numerous accolades. It is with this in mind that we recently launched a new branding campaign and unveiled a marketing tagline "Thinking Unboxed" to reflect our commitment to continually innovate and shape the future. "Thinking Unboxed" has been and will continue to be second nature for us at Keppel Land and we will harness this unique strength of ours as we grow the company in this very competitive environment. 3

8 Achieve Sustainability Goals At Keppel Land, we continue to advance our sustainability efforts. In Singapore, we adopted Jurong Lake and sponsored the Learning Trail under PUB s Waters Adopters Programme to educate and engage the public to appreciate water as a precious resource to be enjoyed and conserved. In line with our focus on the environment and education, Keppel Land is supporting Singapore International Foundation s Water for Life project in Yangon, Myanmar. The project will provide access to clean drinking water for over 7,000 villagers by providing 36 tube wells in two townships. These projects also provide volunteering opportunities for our staff as part of our CSR outreach programme. In our latest Global Reporting Initiative-accredited Sustainability Report, we raised the application level from B+ last year to A+. We now have in our portfolio a total of 38 BCA Green Mark awards for our projects. As a responsible corporate citizen, we will continue to adopt the triple bottom line approach of economic viability, social responsibility and environmental protection to meet our sustainability goals. I will now hand over to our CFO, Mr Lim Kei Hin, for a review of Keppel Land s second quarter and half year performance. Thank you. 4