The Straits Trading Company Limited is involved in a number of different things and a fair amount of their inflowing currency comes from the part of the business that deals with property trading and development. It was previously headed up by Tan Chin Tuan, who passed away recently and left his family to deal with the selling off of the company's assets.
At the current moment, there is a showdown between the Tans (owning 23.6 per cent of the company) and the Lee Family of the Oversea Chinese Banking Corporation (owning 33.37 per cent of the company), who are both currently looking to sell their shares to the Cairns investment vehicle, which in turn is looking to acquire more than a 50 per cent stake in the company when all is said and done.
The financial jockeying between the three companies has not only caused massive increases in share prices of Straits, but it has also effectively put a hold on many of the other property investments in the area as investors nervously await the final outcome of the takeover bid that Cairns is launching.
At the same time and in the same country, the Pacific Star Group has launched a project that will be a combination residence-retail building which will include luxurious apartment buildings and many areas where residents can set up shop and run their business. This multi-million Euro project will be the first of many to come out of the Pacific Star Group, but the sheer size of this project will likely tie up most of the company's resources for some time to come.
Volatility is the hallmark of many an emerging property market and with this type of feverish activity going on within Singapore's property market, many investors are starting to take a closer look to see what is available.
If Cairns' takeover bid ends quickly and successfully and Straits is able to continue their own property investment (they currently hold important shares in many of the hotels in Singapore), then it is expected that the Singapore property market will have the base of support it needs to expand through additional property development.
