What was Singapore’s biggest retail transaction in Q1?

It was also the biggest investment deal by quantum.

According to Cushman and Wakefield, total investment volumes in Singapore declined by 25.5% qoq to $4.2 billion in Q1 2024 as investors remained cautious amid elevated financing costs. 

On a yoy basis, investment volumes are up by 20.9% yoy. In Q1 2024, investment volume was led by the residential ($1.7b) sector, followed by commercial ($1.3b) and hospitality ($0.6b) sectors. 

Here’s more from Cushman and Wakefield:

Due to rising investor confidence on the back of strong travel recovery, both retail and hospitality sectors registered higher transaction volumes. The largest retail transaction was the sale of The Seletar Mall for $550 million (m), which was also the biggest investment deal sealed by quantum. Allgreen Properties’ acquisition of The Seletar Mall was seen to be a value-add opportunity for further enhancements to the asset. 

For the hospitality sector, investment volume was driven by the sales of Hotel G ($238.0m) and Capri by Fraser, Changi City ($170.0 m). Island-wide hotel revenue per available room (RevPAR) has been steadily increasing to $224.27 in 2023 compared to $191.96 in 2019. 

Meanwhile, the residential sector’s investment volume declined by 49.5% qoq due to fewer and smaller Government Land Sales (GLS) sites sold. Caution prevailed among developers during recent GLS tenders such as Media Circle and Orchard Boulevard, which received fewer than expected number of bids and fetched lower bid prices compared to past tenders within similar localities. 

One GLS site, the Marina Gardens Crescent site, whose tender closed in Jan 2024, was eventually not awarded as the winning bid ($770.5m) was assessed to be too low. The residential collective sale market remained muted, due to the widening gap between buyer and seller expectations.