Headlines

l  Y’day: NKY -0.83%, HSI +0.65%, SHCOMP +2.34%, KOSPI -1.23% (Aug 14)

l  Overnight: Dow -0.31%, SPX +0.27%, Nasdaq +1%

l  US: Pelosi expects bipartisan support for house coronavirus bill

l  US: House Sets Vote on $25b to Aid Embattled Postal Service

l  US: Boeing plans more job cuts through a second voluntary severance

l  US: CBL Sees Risk of Bankruptcy Amid Default Discussions

l  CA: Morneau is said to resign as Canadian finance minister

l  CN-US: Trump - Huawei spies on US; tightens access to US tech; adds 38 affiliates to entity list

l  CN-US: Trump -CN largest order of corn last wk; Navarro tells CNBC phase 1 trade deal is on track

l  CN-US: Comm. Sec Ross tells Fox no formal steps on Alibaba as of yet as US works on TikTok

l  CN: To refrain from flood-style stimulus; but keep liquidity reasonably ample & deepen int rate reform

l  CN: Ministry of Commerce: will intro measures to stop food waste in response to Xi's recent discussions

l  CN: Chinese City to Halt Frozen Seafood, Meat Imports on Virus Worry

l  CN: H1 of Aug, 2nd hand property transaction volume ↓ sharply in 13 cities incl Chengdu & Jinhua

l  HK: 44 new virus cases, 13 imported; 31 local = Lowest # local cases since July 15. 20 prelim cases

l  HK: Extends social distancing measures to Aug 25;  Free universal testing to begin Aug 31 (hk01)

l  JP: BoJ denies request for traders to work from home (though they can fax orders)

l  AU: International Students to Return to Australia in Pilot Program

l  AU: QLD no new coronavirus cases o’nite; Reaches 29 days without community transmission

l  AU: VIC reportedly 222 new cases; 3^rd consecutive day of numbers below 300

l  PH: Ayala land to offer 21m shrs for employee option at PHP 27.72

Today:  With the BoJ refusing trader requests to work from home I continue to think offices in India & Japan might be less impacted by the work from home thematic than other markets. HK Virus numbers continue to improve tho we’re still watching the port terminal cluster closely – I continue to like LINK & FORTUNE REIT here as laggards.

Finally: Velas Resorts in Mexico has just implemented a new COVID-19 screening measure for guests & staff: the smell test.  The new protocol proceeds from the latest science coming out of King’s College London, which discovered that there are 6 distinct “types” of Covid-19, each of which causes its own particular set of symptoms. Although this cld potentially complicate tracing & testing efforts, there is 1 common denominator that’s consistent across all 6 types: loss of smell.  Velas Resorts w/ a simple-but-innovative new safety precaution that tgts this unifying symptom by testing travelers’ sense of smell. B/f they can enter the resort compound, guests & staff alike will be xpctd to participate in this test, in which they’re asked to smell a sachet (a small, scented pouch) & accurately identify its particular odor. The sachets are infused w/ 3 v distinct scents: citrus, coffee or garlic. Requiring this simple, non-invasive sniff test will reveal whether individuals exhibit any smell-sensory loss & may be infected w/ the virus. This practice is being implemented in addition to the frequent health & temperature screenings already in place for both guests & resort staff members. (MSN)

China's retail sales ↑ 0.85%MoM in Jul. (Xinhua)

Hefei govt allows factory bldgs, rsch & education bldgs to be converted into rental housing, solving problem of mismatch b/w supply & demand of rental housing. (The Paper)

Hangzhou to implement rental regulations (the paper)  Will require home rental enterprises to deposit rental income in special accounts. Will have to deposit 30%/100% risk prevention & control funds to exit rental houses/newly added rental houses. 

CASS xpcts 65.5% urbanization by 2025 (Xinhua) est’s ~80m popn will migrate from rural areas to cities

Hainan tourism strong (Jiemian)  per Jiemian, resumption of flights @ Sanya airport highest among CN airports @ 95% of normal in July. Hotel occupancy 94% of normal. July duty-free retail sales +234% YoY.

Wanda Hotel, buyer extend negotiation time to 21 Aug from 14 Aug re sale of Vista Twr project, Chicago, for US$270m. Planned construction area 176,000m², a 93-lvl 5-star hotel w/ 193 rooms + luxury aprts, the 3^rd tallest bldg (350m) in Chicago. Construction to complete this yr-end. (The Paper)

Ronshine (3301HK) acq’d a resi site in Jiading, Shanghai for Rmb4.87b or Rmb38,763/m², 35.53% higher than the start price. Other bidders incl Seazen / Road King JV, Poly Devt. (The Paper)

Hopson Dev xpctd to record 1H consolidated profit ↑>85%YoY (vs 60% disclosed prevly). (Co)

Vantone buys hotel in Sai Ying Pun, HK for HK$310m ($40m), 30% disc to asking price in May. (Mingtiandi)

23 new homes sold on w/e, ↓90%WoW (HKET) 2ndary home sales +43%WoW to 14wk high. (Standard)

Moody's assigns A3 to Hysan's proposed perpetual securities, outlook remains stable. (Co) Press says 5.3% Area, may price today

Some devrs put remaining units up for sale this Fri. 5 units in SHKP’s St Moritz, 1 unit from Henderson Land / NWD’s Double Cove Grandview, 1 unit from Sino Land’s Mayfair By The Sea 8. (HKET)

Poly names new resi project in Castle Peak Bay, Tuen Mun as Villa La Plage; cld start sales this yr. (HKET)

Wing Tai sells unit at OMA by the Sea in Tuen Mun at 10% lower 8 days later (Apple Daily)  The unit’s sale was previously cancelled (& deposit forfeited), sold 8 days later in a tender at a price 10% lower.

HKCG reported 31% decline in net profit; DPS kept flat (Company)  Henderson Land’s 41.5%-owned Hong Kong China Gas (3 HK) reported 1H20 net profit of HK$2.67bn, ↓ 31% YoY, interim DPS flat at HK$0.21. Henderson Land will report Thursday (Aug 20).

HK govt to announce 3^rd round of anti-pandemic relief measures at end Aug (HK-01)

Devprs sell 1,080 Singapore private homes (excl ECs) in July, ↑8.2%MoM. (Biz Times)

A-REIT raises S$100m from maiden green bond. 10yr, 2.65% fixed coupon, issued under S$7b € medium-term securities program. (Biz Times)

2 office flrs at Samsung Hub up for sale w/ S$104.88m indicative price = S$4,000/ft² based on total strata area 26,220ft². (Biz Times)

2 adjoining plots at Jalan Lembah Kallang for sale at S$17m guide price. (Biz Times)

Lendlease sold 25% shr of 1 Syd Harbour, a 72-storey resi twr in Barangaroo it is constructing, to Mitsubishi Estate. To contribute A$100m to FY21 NPAT. (SMH)  >>> not new news

Cromwell says sh/ldrs shld ignore ARA takeover documents & take no action. ARA will again call an EGM to seek the election of its nominees to the Board. (Co)

Scentre Shoring Up Balance Sheet With Asset Sales: 1H Preview (BBG)

Dexus to co-invest up to A$100m in Co RE Fund. Dexus launches the Dexus Real Estate Partnership 1, the 1^st in series of closed-ended opportunity funds.  Jason Howes appointed fund mngr. (BBG)

Abacus Prop FY NI A$84.7m, FY final DPS A$0.0905. FY revenue A$262.3m, FY FFO A$124.6m. (Co)

Ingenia Full Year Ebit A$71.9m, +17% Y/y (BBG) - FY underlying profit A$59.1m, +25% y/y. FY net income A$31.5m, +7.3% y/y,  FY final distribution/shr A$0.044 vs. A$0.058 y/y, No Fy21 Guidance Being Provided

Japan 2Q GDP shrinks at record 27.8%QoQ amid pandemic. (Mainichi)

Nippon Bldg 1H operating rev Y38.6b (↓1.4%HoH), operating income Y16.8b (↓0.9%), NI Y15.5b (↓0.2%). f/c 2H operating rev Y41.7b (↑8%), operating income Y17.8b (↑6.4%), NI Y16.6b (↑7%). (Co)

Frontier REIC 1H operating rev Y10.6b (↑0.9%HoH), operating income Y5.8b (↓0.1%), NI Y5.5b (↑0.7%). f/c 2H operating rev Y10.7b (↑0.7%), operating income Y5.4b (↓5.8%), NI Y5.2b (↓6.1%). (Co)

Mori Hills Revises 2021 Jan earnings f/c. Operating rev Y9.8b (vs prev Y9.6b), operating income Y6.16b (vs Y6b), NI Y5.56b (vs Y5.4b). (Co)

Tata Realty plans to list 20mft² commercial assets portfl as REIT nxt couple of yrs. (India Times)

Indonesia govt revises 2020 GDP gwth f/c to -1.1% ~ +0.2%YoY. Govt to provide $24b pandemic stimulus funding nxt yr to support economic recovery.

Govt aims for 2021 budget deficit at 5.5% of GDP, sees gwth ~5%. (Biz Times, Jakarta Post)

Malaysia’s GDP 2Q20↓ 17.1%YoY, worst since 4Q98 Asian financial crisis. (Biz Times)

Ayala Land’s AREIT plans 3yr shelf registration of up to Php15b debt. “This will provide AREIT the ability to leverage for future acqns while preserving cash for div distributions”. Board also approved cash div 1Q Php0.28/sh, 2Q Php0.31/sh. (Biz World, Bilyonaryo)

Thailand’s # of unemployed individuals 2m-3m people, vs 7m-8m feared, Labour Minister said. (Nation)

* My pa holdings: BAC US, 1 HK, 6 HK, ST SP, TEAM US, GOOGL US, AMZN US