GEORGE TOWN (Jan 17): An Indonesian construction worker was crushed to death when a concrete wall suddenly collapsed at a new housing project in Bayan Lepas, here on Tuesday.

JOHOR BAHRU (Jan 17): UDA Holdings Bhd will spend RM15 million to give Plaza Angsana, a popular shopping complex here, a facelift.

Chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said the project would be undertaken in two stages with the first involving external renovation works costing RM8 million.

Iskandar Malaysia
During our recent visit to Iskandar Malaysia, we were pleasantly surprised by the strong 65% bookings for UEM Land Holdings Bhd’s Imperia@Puteri Harbour condos launched in November 2011 at a record RM725 per sq ft (comparable with suburban condominiums in Kuala Lumpur).

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 18): IOI Corp Bhd said on Tuesday it had won a tender for a parcel of land in Jalan Lempeng, Singapore, for S$408 million (RM995 million).

The Housing and Development Board of Singapore (HDB) on Monday accepted the bid from Multi Wealth (Singapore) Pte Ltd, in which IOI Corp holds a 99.8%-owned subsidiary, to build condominiums on the parcel of land.

BEIJING (Jan 17): Annual growth in real estate investment in China, a main driver of the economy, slowed in December to its lowest pace in a year, falling in tandem with property sales revenues, but analysts predict the worst is yet to come.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 17): Sara-Timur Sdn Bhd, a Sarawakian construction and development firm, aims to establish a strong presence here in Peninsular Malaysia, its managing director John Loi and chairman Datuk Dr Zawawi Ismail conveyed during a media briefing held at its KL corporate office in Solaris Dutamas on Tuesday.

KUALA LUMPUR/SINGAPORE (Jan 17): IOI Corp Bhd is said to have won the bidding for a prime piece of land in Singapore that is earmarked for a RM1.7 billion to RM1.9 billion development. But analysts opine the timing of the venture may not be quite right.

It is learnt that IOI put in a bid for the tract at Jalan Lempeng, not far from the Clementi MRT station.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 17): Axis Real Estate Investment Trust Bhd (Axis REIT) posted a 21.9% decline in net profit for 4QFY11 ended Dec 31 to RM31.98 million from RM40.94 million a year ago.

Revenue for the quarter rose 12.1% to RM29.81 million from RM26.59 million a year ago, while basic earnings per share fell to 8.2 sen from 10.89 sen previously.

KUALA LUMPUR: Sentoria Group Berhad (Sentoria) plans to expand the facilities and accommodation capacity in Bukit Gambang Resort City (BGRC) with its new project Arabian Bay Resort (ABR). Established in 1998, Sentoria Group Berhad is the developer and operator of BGRC in Kuantan, Pahang.

KUALA LUMPUR: YNH Property Bhd foresees flat property sales growth in the current fiscal year in the absence of new launches during the period.

Head of corporate services Daniel Chan said the developer expects to sell about RM1 billion worth of properties from existing projects for its FY12 ending Dec 31, which is almost similar to what it achieved a year ago.