GPR/APREA Index January 2020 03 February 2020
Asia Pacific REITs remained resilient despite a general downturn in Asia’s equities arising from the uncertainty brought about by COVID-19. As broader Asia continues to feel the impact on business and supply chain disruptions, Asia's central banks are taking the economic implications of the virus seriously; the Bank of Thailand surprised with a rate cut on February 5th.
Australian and Japanese listed real estate equities and REITs were top performers among large-scale markets in the region, while India real estate equities recorded the best performance among mid and smaller markets. Notably, real estate continues to be a bright spot in many of their major cities.
The economic implications of COVID-19 are most pronounced in China, as major cities are in lockdown, business disruption is unprecedented, and consumers are forced to stay home. The People’s Bank of China along with the Ministry of Finance have announced a variety of measures to soften the impact of the virus. In addition, on February 12th, Shanghai, Zhejiang Wuxi, Xian, and Nanchang rolled out supportive policies for developers, aiming at relieving liquidity pressure.
