LONDON: The Employees Provident Fund's (EPF) property acquisition trail in the UK is continuing with the latest purchase of a third office building there. Its latest acquisition is a building measuring 225,000 sq ft on Fleet Street for £148 million (RM717.8 million).

SINGAPORE: Growth of up to 10% in land values, rents and capital values over the next 12 months is expected for factories and warehouses in Singapore, according to Colliers International's latest Asia Pacific Industrial Report.

LONDON: The European commercial real estate investment reached a surprising €35.8 billion (RM147.87 billion) in 4Q 2010, bringing the annual investment total to €105 billion, according to CB Richard Ellis's (CBRE) latest European Investment Quarterly.

This is by far the highest quarterly result since 1Q 2008, and amounted to 44% increase on the €73 billion in 2009.

KUALA LUMPUR: Sycal Ventures Bhd's wholly-owned unit Sycal Properties Sdn Bhd has signed a joint venture (JV) agreement with Global Net Communication Sdn Bhd.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia, Sycal said the companies aimed to jointly develop three plots of land in Kuala Lumpur into a high-end residential villas with estimated gross development value of RM70 million.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Steel Works (KL) Bhd (Masteel) and KUB Malaysia Bhd signed a joint-venture (JV) agreement to jointly build and operate 100km inter-city rail transit system costing RM1.23 billion at Iskandar Malaysia in Johor.

The system will also be linked to the Mass Rapid Transit line in Singapore.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's household debt, which stood at RM577 billion in November last year, is still on prudent level, says Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

She said household debts accounted for about 50% of total loans and 74% of gross domestic product (GDP).

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah receives an allocation of RM10.7 billion to implement 424 new projects and complete 761 existing ones within the first two years (2011-2012) of the 10th Malaysia Plan.

Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said the allocation received by Sabah was the second largest after that of the Federal Territories.

KUALA LUMPUR: Main Market-listed Kuantan-based property developer Pasdec Holdings Bhd plans to launch at least RM252 million worth of properties in Pahang this year.These include integrated developments Pasdec Persona, Pasdec Perdana and Pasdec Idaman as well as upscale mixed commercial developments Pasdec Makhota and Pasdec Avenue, its chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Khairuddin Abdul Manan

LONDON: The Central London property market is expected to retain its appeal in 2011 for investors seeking safe and transparent markets in the face of economic and financial volatility, said Bill Siegle, senior partner of London-based real estate consultancy Cluttons LLP.

Buoyant outlook