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Thursday, May 18, 2023

Money in housing, cautious optimism in industry

PETALING JAYA: The property market is expected to remain cautiously optimistic in 2023, with the gradual increase in the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) since last year likely to affect market activity, particularly on residential demand, says the Valuation and Property Services Department.

The outlook of the workforce in the construction sector and the increase in the price of building materials will also affect supply.

Department director-general Abdul Razak Yusak said internal and external factors, such as economic and financial developments both globally and in the country, would also have an impact on the real estate sector and the sentiment of industry players.

“Looking at the national economy which is projected to grow by 4% to 5% in 2023, supported by continued resilient domestic growth prospects, the property market is expected to remain cautiously optimistic in 2023,” he said.The first quarter of this year alone saw over 89,000 transactions worth RM42.31bil, which was higher than those recorded in pre-pandemic years, he said.

“The seasonal factor in house purchases, which is usually low at the beginning of the year, the increase in OPR and the decline in Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) are among the factors that contributed to a decline in residential market activity in particular,” he said.

New residential launches, said Abdul Razak, were also indicating a cautious sentiment among developers, with the number recorded at nearly 4,700 units, which was less than those in previous years, while sales performance was moderate at 25.7%.

The decrease in new launches was in line with the decrease in the number of developers’ licences and advertising and sales permits of new housing sales and renewals approved by the Local Government Development Ministry from 5,641 in January and February last year to 2,911 during the same period this year, he added.

Johor recorded the highest number of new launches at 2,077 units or about 45% of the nationwide total with a sales performance of 24.9% while Selangor had the second highest at 791 units or 17% share with a sales performance of 37%.

Abdul Razak said in line with the cautious sentiment among developers, construction activity had slowed down in the first quarter of 2023.

“This is seen as a positive development to balance the unsold supply in the market,” he said, adding that the residential and serviced apartment overhang status continued to be positive.

“The number of overhang units has decreased to 26,872 units worth RM18.31bil in the first quarter of 2023 as a result of market absorption in all states, except Selangor. The volume and value of residential overhang decreased by 3.2% and 0.5% respectively compared with the fourth quarter of 2022,” he said.

Selangor recorded the highest number and value of overhang units, with 4,995 units worth RM4.47bil, followed by Johor at 4,759 units worth RM3.94bil, Kuala Lumpur with 3,423 units worth RM3.13bil, and Penang with 3,138 units worth RM2.48bil.

The purpose-built office (private) and shopping complex segment in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, said Abdul Razak, should be given attention as there was a surplus of space, which was also expected to be severely affected by the inflow of new supply this year.This is as Kuala Lumpur recorded the highest available private purpose-built office space at 2.53 million square metres involving 290 buildings, followed by Selangor with 1.40 million square metres involving 192 buildings.

For the shopping complex segment, Selangor recorded the highest available retail space nationwide at 0.79 million square metres with 146 buildings followed by Kuala Lumpur at 0.56 million square metres with 97 buildings.

“Developers need to be more thorough and cautious before planning any new development and local authorities need to evaluate in detail before approving each new project,” said Abdul Razak.

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Brighter outlook for the housing sector

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Reptiles sneak indoors to stay cool

Unwelcome visitors: Officials removing snakes and a monitor lizard from houses in Penang

GEORGE TOWN: They come, they see, they hide.

It is not just humans who are seeking shelter from the scorching heat.

Reptiles, too, are coming out of their natural habitat to take refuge.

Snakes and monitor lizards were the most common to have encroached into homes, garages, parking areas, drains, toilets and other areas of late.

Penang Fire and Rescue Department director Saadon Mokhtar said during this period, there had been an increase in cases of snakes and monitor lizards entering homes.

“Most of them entered the kitchen area.

“The snakes would then hide behind the fridge or behind cupboards.

“Some would coil up behind the washing machine or inside the bathroom which is cooler.

“For monitor lizards, they have the tendency to enter and hide in the kitchen and in drains behind housing areas,” he said.

From January until April this year, the cases have almost doubled compared to last year, added Saadon.

“This year, there have been 427 reports of snakes entering various premises compared to 238 during the same duration last year.

“There were 73 sightings of monitor lizards this year compared to 47 last year,” he said.

Meanwhile, northeast district Civil Defence Force officer Captain Muhammad Aizat Abdul Ghani said on average, they could catch three to six snakes a day.

“This is only in our district, I am sure the others have more.

“Usually, the snakes hide in dark spaces either in the garage, parking areas, drains in the housing compound or sheds.

“It is not too often that they are found inside houses as it is usually too bright for them.

“There are, however, a few cases where they are caught inside the house.

“It is not only during the current heatwave that snakes are seeking shelter at housing areas and other premises, but also during the rainy season when we have caught some,” he said.

Captain Muhammad Aizat said Penang has plenty of snakes and they usually come out from the river or big drains.

“This is why houses and schools near rivers or drains are usually prone to snake intrusion.

“We received calls about the sightings of monitor lizards as well, but not as many as for snakes,” he said.

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China's rising clout in the spotlight

TOKYO: The weekend gathering of finance chiefs from the Group of Seven (G7) advanced economies leaves signs that the world’s second-largest economy will loom large at this week’s summit in Hiroshima.

Efforts to grapple with China’s growing global presence were evident at the three-day G7 finance chiefs’ gathering in Niigata, Japan, during which they held their first outreach in 14 years, aimed at winning over emerging nations.

The meeting with Brazil, the Comoros, India, Indonesia, Singapore and South Korea primarily tackled issues such as debt and high-level infrastructure investment, in a tacit counter to China’s Belt and Road initiative, according to analysts.

“What’s going on at the G7 is reflecting changes in global order following the loss of the US dominance,” said Masamichi Adachi, economist at UBS Securities.

“No one is being able to draw up a grand design with shifting of power.”

G7 host Japan persuaded its G7 counterparts to launch a new programme by the end of 2023 to diversify supply chains for strategically important goods away from China.

The G7 comprises the United States, Britain, France, Japan, Italy, Germany and Canada. But the finance chiefs’ closing communique did not mention a US-proposed idea for narrow restrictions on investment to China, a potential rift among the grouping on how far they should go in pressuring Beijing.

A Japanese finance ministry official at the gathering, who declined to be named because of he sensitivity of the matter, said the idea was discussed in Niigata, but declined to elaborate.

China is among the biggest markets for most G7 countries, particularly for export-reliant economies such as Japan and Germany.

China-bound exports account for 22% of Japan’s overall shipments. Japan and the United States want to try to win over countries, including those in the Global South, with promises of foreign direct investment and aid, analysts said. — Reuters

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Japan, which holds the G7 presidency this year, is urged not to be an accomplice and accessory to economic coercion, and G7 countries should demand that the US stop splitting the world into two markets, which is the primary threat to the global economy, Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, told a press conference on Monday.

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