Singapore property shares plunge on gov't cooling move

SINGAPORE - Shares of Singapore property developers fell sharply on Thursday after the government announced new measures to cool the city-state's housing market.

CapitaLand Ltd shares fell as much as 6.5 per cent to S$2.44 while smaller rival City Developments Ltd fell 7.6 per cent to S$9.26 and Wing Tai Holdings was down 6.5 per cent at S$1.00.

Shares of Ho Bee Investment Ltd, which develops high-end condominiums in Singapore, tumbled by as much as 12.1 per cent to S$1.09.

Singapore said on Wednesday foreigners who buy private homes will have to pay an additional stamp duty equal to 10 per cent of the property value.


Analysts said they expect developers with greater exposure to high-end luxury apartments to face more pressure because as foreign buyers make up a large chunk of their sales.

"We believe each of the key residential demand drivers, foreign buying, job creation and credit availability, will likely see signs of softness," Goldman Sachs said in a report.

It added that this could lead to a 15 per cent decline in home prices over the next 18 months with the prime segment facing more immediate pressure as foreign buyers pull back.

Noble founder's family buys 10 million shares as price plunged

SINGAPORE - An investment firm linked to the family of Noble Group founder and interim CEO Richard Elman bought 10 million of the commodity company's shares on Thursday as the price plunged by more than a quarter, Noble Group said in a regulatory filing.

Noble Holdings Ltd, whose beneficiaries include the children of Elman but not Elman himself, bought the shares at an average of $1.1919 each, raising its interest in Noble Group to 21.53 per cent from 21.37 per cent previously.

Noble Group shares closed 26 per cent lower to end at $1.18 a share on Thursday after the firm reported its first quarterly loss in over 10 years and CEO Ricardo Leiman resigned on Wednesday.