https://www.probutterfly.com/blog/sasseur-reit-emerging-stronger-from-the-pandemic

Payable:26Mar21

Singapore, 26 February 2021 &ndash Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust (&ldquo Sasseur REIT&rdquo 砂 之 船 房 地 产
投 资 信 托 ), which operates four retail outlet malls in China, recorded a 18.8% y-o-y increase in its 
distribution per unit (&ldquo DPU&rdquo ) for the quarter ended 31 December 2020 (&ldquo 4Q 2020&rdquo ), reflecting the strength 
of its business model and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, its manager Sasseur Asset Management 
Pte. Ltd. (&ldquo SAMPL&rdquo or &ldquo REIT Manager&rdquo ) announced today. 
Sasseur REIT recorded Entrusted Management Agreement (&ldquo EMA&rdquo ) rental income of RMB 159.1 million in 
4Q 2020, 4.3% higher than 3Q2020, with the variable component rising 13.1% to RMB 56.7 million in 
tandem with higher sales in 4Q2020. The four outlet malls generated RMB 1.25 billion of sales in 4Q 2020, 
a significant improvement of 12.2% from 3Q 2020, boosted by year-end promotions and seasonal events 
such as Christmas, the Winter Solstice and New Year.
For the whole of FY 2020, EMA rental income dipped 6.1% to RMB 579.8 million compared to FY 2019
due to the temporary shutdown of its malls for up to 44 days in the first half of FY 2020. However, income 
available for distribution and DPU are higher in FY 2020 compared to FY 2019. This is attributable to the 
rapid rebound of the Chinese economy in the second half of 2020, following China&rsquo s stringent control of 
COVID, as well as the strong operational capabilities of and proactive asset management actions taken by
the Entrusted Manager, lower tax expenses and a strengthening RMB. In addition, the early refinancing 
exercise completed by the REIT Manager in September 2020 contributed to lower weighted average cost 
of debt (from 4.41% to 3.90% excluding upfront fees). The net asset value per unit of Sasseur REIT rose 
2.5% year-on-year to $0.914 as at 31 December 2020, compared to $0.892 as at 31 December 2019.
Sasseur REIT&rsquo s portfolio occupancy level remained stable at 93.5% in Q4 2020. VIP membership of the 
four outlets continued to grow rapidly in 2020, reaching 2.11 million as of 31 December 2020, 33% higher 
as compared to 31 December 2019. During 2020, the Entrusted Manager implemented targeted asset 
management strategies to strengthen the positioning of the outlet malls, increasing its appeal to the local 
customers. Sasseur (Hefei) Outlets had been repositioned with strong sports theme which drew higher 
consumer traffic to the mall. The tenant mix at Sasseur (Chongqing) Outlets was also revamped to cater 
to changing consumer preferences.
Mr Vito Xu, Chairman of SAMPL, said, &ldquo We are very encouraged with the better than expected full year 
performance of Sasseur REIT in 2020 considering that the COVID pandemic led to significant business 
disruptions and losses globally. Among the 9 retail REITs listed on SGX, Sasseur REIT was the only REIT 
with positive returns. We are heartened that we have delivered total returns of 24.6% to investors since 
IPO in March 2018. 
In January 2020, COVID-19 pandemic broke out in China. Most retail establishments did not respond to 
cease operations. Sasseur, believing that safety of our customers and staff must be our first priority, made 
a bold decision to close our outlets as the first outlet operator to act so quickly. It proved to be a very good 
decision as zero COVID-19 infection happened in our outlets. When we closed the outlets for 45 days, we 
also seized the opportunity to gear up the outlets by adopting new operational measures and intensive 
marketing activities, to continue attracting shoppers and ensure a quick and strong rebound in our 
businesses.
Sasseur group operates in a niche China outlet market, supported by a large middle class population which 
continues to grow in size and sophistication, together with our extensive marketing efforts, customer 
engagement and ability to offer a distinctive physical shopping experience, will allow us to seize more  opportunities in the retail outlet mall sector. China&rsquo s economy is projected to grow at 8% in 2021
3
. We are 
confident that the strong domestic consumption and expanding middle income class in China will continue 
to propel Sasseur REIT to greater heights in 2021.&rdquo
Mr Anthony Ang, CEO of SAMPL, said, &ldquo Despite the pandemic and temporary shutdowns, recovery has 
been strong and Sasseur REIT&rsquo s DPU for the fourth quarter has increased 18.8% year-on-year. Sasseur 
REIT&rsquo s DPU in 2020 grew every quarter, averaging 13% increase per quarter. Our EMA Rental Income 
has remained resilient. This underscores the strength of our business model which mitigated risks through 
the fixed and variable components of rental income. Sasseur REIT&rsquo s large and diversified tenant base with 
low dependence on any single tenant or trade sector will continue to underpin its portfolio resilience. The 
Entrusted Manager team and the REIT Manager team will build on the momentum for 2021 to further 
improve performance. We will continue to unlock greater value from the portfolio through the planned 
asset enhancement initiatives of Chongqing and Hefei outlets in the first half of 2021 and to seek suitable 
accretive acquisition opportunities by leveraging on the wide network and pipeline assets of our Sponsor. &rdquo
On 23 November 2020, Sasseur REIT secured its fourth accolade for 2020. It was named Best Commercial 
REIT Asia 2020 by London-based Capital Finance International Awards, in recognition of its high standards 
of corporate governance and reporting, as well as its excellent performance in corporate governance and 
investor engagement. Sasseur REIT also bagged awards for Best Retail REIT, Best CEO and Best 
Investor Relations for second consecutive years at Asia Pacific REITs Awards 2020, in September 2020.
Sasseur group, the sponsor of Sasseur REIT, opened its 13th outlet mall on 7 November 2020. Located in 
Xiamen, Fujian, the 75,000 square metre outlet mall has over 300 well-known domestic and foreign brands
and 1.5 million merchandises. In addition, Sasseur REIT added three more outlet malls managed by 
Sassuer group to its pipeline, in Suzhou, Nanjing (2nd Project) and Shijiazhuang projects in the 4th quarter, 
further demonstrating the strength of Sasseur group&rsquo s expansion strategy in China and its ambition to 
continue to be the leading outlet specialist in China. 

https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/RI3XZ3BBXV6WYJ2W/649777_Sasseur_REIT-Press_Release_FY2020.pdf

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http://edm.sgx.com/a/hBgBWo7B86$MfB93$EkAAAlcxIb/link13