Australia’s central bank is expected to move swiftly on rate cuts (Getty Images)
Ongoing damage from what the Wall Street Journal has dubbed “the dumbest trade war in history” continued to dominate the news on Monday as investors attempted to price in the impact of US President Donald Trump war on cross-border commerce. Australia’s central bank is expected to rapidly reduce interest rates, with China also set to pursue further easing as companies struggle with aftershocks from a hastily launched US trade offensive.
Aussie Rate Cuts Expected Next Month Amid Trade War
The Reserve Bank of Australia will cut interest rates next month and at least once more this year as fears over Donald Trump’s drastic tariff regime forces central banks to ease policy further and faster than expected just a week ago, according to economists polled for The Australian Financial Review’s quarterly survey.
The poll found 29 out of 40 economists forecast the cash rate to fall by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.85 per cent in May. Read more>>
Nikkei Down 8.6%, STI Drops 8.5% in Trump Tariff Fallout
A global stock selloff continued on Monday as Asian markets tumbled in morning trading, following US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff announcement last Wednesday.
The Straits Times Index (STI) plummeted by 8.5 percent, falling below 3,500 with a drop of more than 325 points. This marked the largest intraday decline since the STI crashed 8.9 per cent during the subprime mortgage crisis on Oct 24, 2008, and surpassed the 8.4 percent tumble that the index took during the Covid pandemic-induced crash on Mar 23, 2020. Read more>>
Blackstone Said Mulling Sale of Two Airtrunk Data Centres
Blackstone Inc. is considering selling of a pair of AirTrunk data centers in Sydney and Melbourne, following its acquisition of the company in December, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The firm has held talks with advisers as it mulls the divestitures of the two stabilized data centers, which could each fetch roughly A$2 billion ($1.3 billion), said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. Read more>>
Bally’s Wins Control of Australia’s Star Casinos in $181M Deal
Star Entertainment’s board has agreed to hand control of the casino group to US-based Bally’s Corporation in a A$300 million ($181 million) deal, which will stave off financial collapse.
Three sources with knowledge of the matter, not authorised to speak publicly, said the proposal has received the support of Star’s board, led by chairwoman Anne Ward, and its lenders over the weekend. Read more>>
Gangnam Office Tower in Exclusivity at $15M
Seoul-based real estate investment firm Asia Property has been picked as the sole preferred bidder for an office building currently occupied by coworking space provider WeWork in the bustling Gangnam office district after beating four other contenders with a bid equivalent to KRW 22.5 billion ($15.3 million).
Asia Property reportedly offered KRW 35 million won per 3.3 square metres for an asset deal, or KRW 38 million won for a share deal. The building spans five basement floors and 19 above-ground floors, with a total floor area of 2,126 square metres and has WeWork as its anchor tenant. Read more>>
40-Something Mainland Shipping Exec Said to Buy Singapore Bungalow for $34M
A shipping entrepreneur in his forties is buying a bungalow in the Leedon Park Good Class Bungalow (GCB) Area for S$45.8 million ($34 million) or S$2,929 per square foot based on the freehold land area of 15,636 square feet.
The incoming buyer of the Leedon Park bungalow is understood to be Guo Ningbo, a naturalised Singaporean from China who is about 47 years old. The other co-founder of the group is Xue Bing. Read more>>
US Giant Public Storage in Buyout Bid for Australia’s Abacus Storage Property Trust
South African billionaire Nathan Kirsh has teamed up with US giant Public Storage to make a takeover bid for Abacus Storage Property Trust that values the entire company at about A$1.93 billion.
The move to mop up the minority shareholders defies market volatility and could spark consolidation in the local storage sector, as the US group has previously attempted a takeover of rival ASX-listed National Storage REIT before walking away during the pandemic. The consortium has now submitted a non-binding indicative offer and the target company said it had formed an independent board committee to assess the proposal but said it “has not at this stage formed any view on its merits”. Read more>>
Student Housing Operators Warn on Opposition Plans to Slash Aussie Admissions
The student accommodation sector has rejected Coalition plans to slash international student numbers, arguing that city universities should instead guarantee beds for students coming to Australia.
The sector is backed by some of the world’s largest investors hailing from Asia, Europe and North America, as well as local funds, pitting them against the plans that could hurt returns, putting their investment at risk and potentially worsening the supply crisis. Peter Dutton on Sunday announced he would slash international student numbers by about 80,000 enrolments. Read more>>
Hong Kong Family Office Puts Melbourne Office Block on Market at $30M
Hong Kong-based Mars Group has put 420 St Kilda Road back on the block, hoping that it can offload the office tower for about A$50 million ($30 million) to an investor willing to bet on the recovery of the famed Melbourne boulevard.
While a series of buildings in the sub-market have been hit by vacancies and others have fallen to apartment or build-to-rent developers, the office block is considered a strong performer. The offer is also tipped to appeal to counter-cyclical buyers that have emerged for office blocks as they are willing to reposition assets and then capitalise on the market recovery. Read more>>
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