TA Global plans to include HK or Singapore listing?

TA GLOBAL Bhd, en route to a listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, has lined up a series of plans for next year, including a possible dual listing abroad.

It is learnt that shareholders are looking to list the company either in Singapore or Hong Kong, a year after its local debut, to build up the brand internationally.

TA Global is due to list on Bursa Malaysia on the 23rd of this month.



Its parent, TA Enterprise Bhd (TAE), aims to raise RM230 million from the listing. TAE has folded all its property assets into TA Global to "unlock the hidden value".

"TA Global will be taken global. In future, it will have a presence in the US, Asia-Pacific starting with Singapore, and Europe, targeting the UK first. It will develop luxury properties and buy hotels," a source told Business Times.
At present, TA Global is focused on Malaysia, Australia and Canada.

On the home front, it has lined up some RM7 billion worth of property development projects to be launched over the next two years.

They include Dutamas in Mont'Kiara, U-Thant 28 in Ampang, Seri Suria in Sri Damansara, Nova Square and two 50-storey residences near the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur City Centre.

In Canada, TA Global owns Terasen Centre (a triple A office building) and the four-star Aava Whistler Hotel. In Australia, it owns the five-star Radisson Plaza in Sydney and the Westin Melbourne. It is in the process of buying the Swissotel Merchant Court hotel in Singapore for S$260 million (RM632 million).

The source also said that TA Global was poised to launch a mixed development comprising luxury apartments, office towers and a hotel in Canada in 2010/11.

TA Global director and co-founder and TAE managing director Datin Alicia Tiah confirmed the plans for Canada, but declined to elaborate.

"We are looking at it. We have the landbank ready, but we want to wait for the right time to launch," she told Business Times at TA Global's prospectus launch in Kuala Lumpur in October.

Tiah had said she was looking to build TA Global's hospitality and property investment business by taking it global.

The plan includes buying four- to six-star hotels below market value and raising the company's image.

"It is still a good time to buy as prices are low. Locally, we hope to have a hotel in Penang and Malacca. We may build the hotels on our own or take over existing buildings."

TA Global, with RM2.4 billion of assets, was also eyeing hotels in international gateway cities like London and New York, Tiah said.

By Business Times (by Sharen Kaur)

TA Ent: No 'immediate' plan for dual listing

TA Enterprise Bhd, a Malaysian brokerage and property group, said its property unit TA Global Bhd has no “immediate” plans for a dual listing in Singapore or Hong Kong within a year after its local listing.

TA Global will be listed on the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange on November 23, TA Enterprise said on October 5.

The company has lined up about RM6 billion of property development projects over 10 years, TA Enterprise said in a statement to the stock exchange.

TA Global will continue to explore options to expand its main business activities in Canada, according to the statement.

By Bloomberg

PKNS optimistic of good take-up for RM140m Shah Alam projects

Selangor State Development Corp (PKNS) will launch three new projects in Shah Alam, Selangor, worth RM140 million over the next two months.

The projects, called Ayu Qaseh and Ayu Puri, offering 170 units and 144 units of two-storey link houses respectively that are priced from RM335,000, are located in its 243ha Alam Nusantara development.

General Manager Othman Omar said he is optimistic that the properties will be taken up within three months from its launch, beginning the end of this month.

"We expect response to be overwhelming as it is the first project by PKNS with a freehold status. We are selling with the certificate of fitness (CF)," he said.

Early next month, PKNS will also launch Puncak Tropika in Kota Damansara, featuring 28 units of three-storey semi-detached houses and priced between RM1.2 million and RM1.4 million, Othman told Business Times.

The units are 80 per cent completed and their CF will be obtained in January next year.

PKNS is currently running a home ownership fair themed "Kediaman impian@PKNS" until November 25, where it will offer for sale 1,073 units of low-, medium- and high-end houses and commercial properties, priced from RM99,000 to RM1.2 million each, or a combined RM286 million.

A bulk of the properties are existing stocks in Antara Gapi, near Rawang, consisting of link houses, semi-dees and bungalows, Othman said.

Some are terraced houses in Bernam Jaya (between Sabak Bernam and Tanjung Malim), one- and two-storey shophouses and one-storey terraced homes in Kota Puteri, which is on the way to Kuala Selangor, and semi-detached houses in Cheras Jaya.

The rest include two unsold units of semi-dees in Puncak Bangi, priced from RM835,000, 111 units of medium to high-end Kasturi Idaman apartments, priced between RM205,000 and RM365,000 in Kota Damansara, and 20 units of high-end apartments, dubbed Banjaria Court, in Gombak.

"While the properties are attractive in terms of product offering, sales have been slow due to the current economic situation. We are optimistic the two units at Puncak Bangi will be taken up soon mainly because they are the last landed properties by PKNS in Bandar Baru Bangi, Othman said.

On Banjaria Court, PKNS has launched the first of four blocks. It will open for sale the remaining blocks next year, Othman said.

To boost sales, PKNS is offering RM500 downpayment and cash rebates of RM3,000 to RM8,000, including free legal fees, for all the properties.

It is also giving a RM50,000 rebate for the semidees in Cheras Jaya.

"We hope to sell 391 units worth RM55 million this month. We have achieved RM12.7 million from the sale of 48 properties since the launch," he said.

The home ownership fair also applies to Ayu Qaseh, Ayu Puri and Puncak Tropika projects.

By Business Times (by Sharen Kaur)

Iskandar Malaysia investments on track:CEO

Investment in Iskandar Malaysia remains positive despite the challenging economic environment with a total cumulative committed investment of RM50.5 billion since its launch three years ago.

Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) chief executive officer Harun Johari said the investment garnered was on track with 113 per cent targeted cumulative committed investment for 2009 achieved to date.

"Out of this amount, RM23.52 billion was for manufacturing, RM14.6 billion for property, RM6.61 billion for utilities, tourism and others, and RM6.23 billion from the government," he told Bernama.

An update of the investment in the economic region was given at the seventh IRDA members of authority meeting held in Kuala Lumpur last Thursday.
Harun said a report on the progress attained by Iskandar Malaysia and the benefits for the people was presented at the meeting which was jointly chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman.

He said the members were updated on the progress of strategic initiatives in safety and security, public transport industry improvement, incentives and investments.

He also said that the breakdown of committed investments has remained consistent with 51 per cent local investment and 49 per cent foreign investment.

As at October 2009, 35 per cent of the cumulative committed investment of RM17.7 billion had already been spent, reflecting the actual work on the ground.

The new investment commitments for 2009 are expected to provide about 4,000 employment opportunities in Iskandar Malaysia throughout 2009 in addition to the 44,500 jobs created since the launch in 2006, Harun said.

He said in terms of safety and security development, it included the establishment of 138 community police posts and 200 trained auxiliary police personnel who will be deployed for high visibility policing work by end of 2010.

At the end of this year, up to 10 community police posts will be launched to create a visible and strong police presence in residential communities.

Also by end of 2009, a total of 200 integrated closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras are to be installed in the five municipalities of Iskandar Malaysia, comprising Pontian, Kulai, Pasir Gudang, Johor Baharu Tengah and Johor Baharu.

This, according to Harun, is to enhance the monitoring of hot-spot areas in Iskandar Malaysia.

The members of authority meeting also discussed the implementation mechanism for the proposed preferential tax rate of 15 per cent for Malaysian and foreign knowledge workers residing in Iskandar Malaysia.

The entitlement is for those working in the qualifying industry sectors of green technology, biotechnology, educational services, healthcare services, creative services, financial advisory and consulting services, logistics services and tourism.

Another item on the agenda was the public transport industry improvement project which saw the establishment of the Iskandar Malaysia Transport Steering Committee to provide governance and the Iskandar Malaysia Public Transport Team as the implementation vehicle with the Johor Economic Planning Unit as the lead agency.

The steering committee is chaired by Johor State Secretary Datuk Abdul Latiff Yusof.

Harun said the project implementation would result in public buses servicing previously unserved routes, termed as social routes, to close the service gap for some residential areas and emerging areas in Iskandar Malaysia.

From December 2009 to end of March next year, up to 40 buses will be on the road to service the social routes, he said.

Harun said the progress achieved so far was facilitated by IRDA working closely with state and federal agencies, local councils and key players that included manufacturers, property developers and those providing logistics, educational, healthcare and tourism services.

Iskandar Malaysia, he said, has been undergoing notable redevelopment in the past three years with improved roads, highways and interchanges, cleaner rivers, treated sewerage and flood mitigation projects, better connectivity and public transport facilities that are benchmarked against the world's best.

The improvements are expected to contribute towards smoother traffic flow, reduced travelling time, minimum flash floods in the city centre and improved bus service for commuters, Harun said.

According to him, the amenities will contribute towards a livable, safe, secure and environmentally sustainable environment, abundant with employment and wealth-creation opportunities for its residents and investors.

By Business Times