It was a generally downbeat second quarter in the region’s investment markets as trade tensions continued to eat away at sentiment, even if some Southeast Asian economies look set to benefit.
Simon Smith, Savills Research
China
The combination of tighter financing conditions and the ongoing trade dispute continues to weigh on the business community with signs of weakness appearing in the office market.
Hong Kong
Civic unrest has added to external uncertainties and volumes have borne the brunt while prices are holding up for now.
Indonesia
Optimism after Indonesia’s Presidential election should support the market in the coming quarters. As demand across property sectors is expected to rebound, we expect the period of price stagnation to end, leaving a small window of opportunity for investors.
Japan
Macro-headwinds abound, but stable prospects and a favourable yield gap make Japanese real assets attractive to global investors, particularly during this late stage of the property cycle.
Malaysia
Market sentiment appears to be gradually improving after a muted start to 2019.
Singapore
This time, souring economic conditions worldwide are not having any deleterious impact on investment sales because investors look for stability to deploy capital.
Korea
The five-year treasury yield fell to 1.7% in Q2/2019 and an asset in GBD changed hands at under 4%.
Taiwan
Limited new office supply is providing a strong foundation for office prices and rent growth in the short- to medium-term.
Thailand
Thailand’s hospitality sector enjoyed considerable investor interest over Q2, with largely Bangkok-based schemes attracting capital spurred by healthy hotel market fundamentals and long-term sector confidence.
Vietnam
Vietnam continues to see good growth underwritten by strong domestic demand and robust international interest from both visitor arrivals and increased FDI.