On May 6, Lendlease Global Commercial Trust Management independent non-executive director Simon John Perrott acquired 30,800 units of Lendlease Global Commercial Reit : JYEU +1.34% for a consideration of S$24,640. At 80.0 cents per unit, this took his direct interest to 114,650 units. Perrott was previously the chairman of CIMB Bank Australia from 2012 to 2014 and the chairman of RBS Australia from 2009 to 2012. From 2002 to 2009, he held various roles in ABN AMRO Bank where his last held role was co-head of banking.

 

In April, Lendlease Global Commercial Trust Management completed the acquisition of a 100 per cent direct interest in Jem, with the manager maintaining that the enlarged portfolio with high-quality tenants such as the Ministry of National Development, IKEA and NTUC FairPrice Extra provides strong and stable cashflow for unitholders.

 

THE manager of Lendlease Global Commercial Reit : JYEU +3.18% (real estate investment trust) on Thursday (May 5) said that portfolio occupancy for the first quarter ended Mar 31 remained high at 99.9 per cent.

 

Tenant sales year-to-date for its 313@somerset mall have also recovered close to FY2020 levels, the manager said in a business update.

 

Weighted average lease expiry (WALE) by net lettable area (NLA) stood at 8.2 years and 4.3 years by gross rental income (GRI). Moreover, the manager said it &ldquo substantially de-risked&rdquo leases expiring for the year to 1 per cent by NLA and 3 per cent by GRI.

 

With the completed acquisition of Lendlease Reit' s 100 per cent interest in Jem, the manager expects the Reit&rsquo s WALE to increase to 8.7 years. Its exposure to the suburban retail sector will also expand significantly to about 47 per cent.

 

For the first quarter, 313@somerset maintained an occupancy rate of 99.4 per cent with a tenant retention rate of 71.1 per cent as at Mar 31. This was mainly due to positive leasing momentum and the manager&rsquo s &ldquo proactive leasing strategy&rdquo .

 

The manager expects 313@somerset to benefit from the reopening trajectory, amid the resumption of social activities and the launch of the Vaccinated Travel Framework, anticipated to bring tourists back to Singapore.

 

Meanwhile, the 3 office buildings of Sky Complex are fully leased until 2032. The manager does not expect rising energy costs and inflation to impact the Milan development as the buildings operate on a triple-net lease structure with annual rental escalation pegged to the consumer price index.

 

With the completed acquisition of Lendlease Reit' s 100 per cent interest in Jem, the manager expects the Reit&rsquo s WALE to increase to 8.7 years. Its exposure to the suburban retail sector will also expand significantly to about 47 per cent.