Singapore's government said on Thursday it will continue to suspend the sale of land on its 'confirmed list' in the second half of 2009 due to economic uncertainties.

The government did, however, add three sites to its 'reserve list', increasing the number of land parcels that may be sold to nine from six.

Singapore will only release a site on its 'reserve list' for sale if an interested party submits an application for the site at a price that is acceptable to the government. -- REUTERS

URA To Release Industrial Site At Kaki Bukit Road

Source : The Business Times, July 2, 2009

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) will launch a public tender for an industrial site at Kaki Bukit Road 2 in two weeks' time, it said yesterday. The 1.07 ha site was made available for sale through the government's reserve list system in May 2009.

Under the reserve list system, the government will put up a site for public tender only if it receives an application from a developer who commits to bid for the site at or above the minimum price which is acceptable to the government.

URA has received an application from a developer who has committed to bid at a price of not less than $5 million for the land parcel at Kaki Bukit Road 2, it said. The price works out to about $43 per square foot (psf).

The site comes with a lease period of 30 years. It is zoned for a Business 2 development, which means that it can be developed for a range of clean, light and general industrial uses.

Industrial rents will be under pressure given the broader economic outlook and weak demand for Singapore exports, said Nomura Research in a June 29 report on Singapore's property market.

'While the market appears to be pricing in a new economic optimism, the real estate sector is still faced with the dual reality of rental declines and higher yields as growth expectations are pared,' said the report. Rents could decline by 31.7 per cent over the property cycle, Nomura believes.