Lower property earnings contributed to a drop in Keppel Land’s first half net profits while earnings from overseas projects grew almost 80 percent on last year for the property company.
Keppel Land posted a net profit of S$192.1 million in 1H2013, down 18.8percent from the S$236.6 million reported in 1H2012, due to lower earnings in property trading.
Meanwhile, the group’s earnings from overseas projects stood at S$50.2 million, which is 79.3percent higher than S$28 million over the corresponding period in 2012, thanks to overseas projects including 8 Park Avenue in Shanghai and The Botanica Phase 6 in Chengdu.
Property investment contributions also increased 27.4 percent to S$48.9 million, helped along by strong performances by Keppel REIT and the Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3.
Almost S$23 million, or 12 percent of the net profit came from the group’s fund management vehicles, Keppel REIT and Alpha Investment Partners (Alpha).
In Singapore, the company sold about 210 units in the first half, mainly from its newly-launched Corals at Keppel Bay and the fully-sold The Luxurie in Sengkang.
This quarter Keppel Land plans to launch The Glades, a 726-unit development next to Tanah Merah MRT station, of which a 30 percent stake has been divested 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,” it said in a release.
Keppel Land also plans to build 500 units in a recently-acquired prime CBD-fringe site near Tiong Bahru MRT station.
The release said: “Singapore’s Grade A office market remains resilient, supported by demand from diverse sectors ranging from legal to resource firms."
Amy Kelly, Senior Journalist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories email amy@propertyguru.com.sg
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