Singapore prime office land prices up 6%: report

Prices of prime office development land in Singapore remained unchanged in the second half of last year but increased by 6 percent for the whole of 2015, according to a Knight Frank report.

The consultancy attributes the moderate growth to soft demand in the office rental market as a result of both domestic and external economic challenges coinciding with strong supply.

Among the recent commercial land transactions in Singapore is the sale of a 31,530 sq m mixed-use plot in Alexandra View to Tang Groups subsidiary Tang Skyline in November 2015. The property was sold for US265 million (S$366.5 million) or US$6,435 psm (S$8,900 psm) based on the developments gross floor area.

Meanwhile, the price growth for prime office development land in Asia slowed to 1.5 percent in 2015 from 3.6 percent in the previous year. Cumulatively, prices grew by 27.5 percent since mid-2012.

For both office and residential sites, total investment in the region surged by 65.3 on a six-month basis and 14.1 percent on annual terms.

The increase was led by China, which accounted for nearly 95 percent of the total Asian volume in the second half of the year. Other countries that saw phenomenal growth on a year-on-year basis include Vietnam (559.5 percent) and Thailand (272.3 percent) as private investment accelerated.

In addition, cross-border land investments soared by 55.3 percent year-on-year, with China buying nearly two-times more land than the rest of Asia in 2015.

Nikki De Guzman, Editor at CommercialGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this or other stories emailnikki@propertyguru.com.sg

More from PropertyGuru:
Ascott scores JTC lease for one-north serviced residence
Ascott to open serviced apartment in one-north
Johor to become an economic powerhouse
Johors Forest City given duty-free status