SYDNEY: Lower sales of new homes in Australia over the last three months to October, combined with other important housing indicators, are foreshadowing a housebuilding downturn next year, said the Housing Industry Association (HIA) on a statement on Monday, Nov 29.

1) Market capitalisation
Winner: UEM Land-Sunrise
Market size is important to attract investor interest, particularly given Malaysia's two-tier market where institutional funds are heavily drawn to larger stocks and the FBM KLCI is currently bereft of property representation.

THE merger between Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd (MRCB) and IJM Land Bhd is expected to create the country's second-largest property company with a market capitalisation of over RM7 billion and landbank of more than 9,000 acres.

LAST week, Sunway Group chairman Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah and his daughter Sarena Cheah, made an offer to take over the assets and liabilities of Sunway Holdings Bhd and Sunway City Bhd (SunCity) via a deal involving cash and shares swap totalling RM4.5 billion.

IN early November, UEM Land Holdings Bhd started the property merger ball rolling by proposing a conditional takeover of Sunrise Bhd at RM2.80 per share, which values the acquisition at RM1.39 billion. It will create Malaysia's largest property company with a market capitalisation of nearly RM10 billion and a 12,000-acre landbank.

KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Property Bhd, the property arm of Sime Darby Bhd, is best known for its size as the property developer with the largest landbank in the country.

KUALA LUMPUR: A number of construction players stand to benefit from the proposal for a second 1,000MW coal-fired power plant as part of the ongoing plan to meet the country's growing power needs.

It was reported last week that the Energy Commission had requested for proposals from two power plant operators for an additional 1,000MW coal-fired plant.

KUALA LUMPUR: Size matters. This is the message that property developers have been sending out recently, as seen from the slew of tie-ups among the big names.

In the span of a month, three significant proposed mergers among property developers have emerged in the market, and all with the objective of building up size.

Major KL LRT extension work packages finally out

When Mah Sing Group Bhd previewed its M Suites in Jalan Ampang in September, the response was encouraging enough to get the company searching for another piece of land in the area.