City Developments Limited

For Q1 2018, CDL achieved a strong revenue growth of 35% to S$1.1 billion (Restated Q1 2017: S$783.7 million). The increase was propelled by the completion of The Criterion Executive Condominium (EC) in Q1 2018. Under prevailing accounting standards, revenue and profits are recognised in entirety upon obtaining Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) for an EC project. The Group also benefited from the maiden contribution of New Futura as well as continued contributions from Coco Palms and Suzhou Hong Leong City Center.

The Group achieved net attributable profit after tax and non-controlling interest (PATMI) of S$80 million (Restated Q1 2017: S$95.6 million). The lower PATMI was attributable to compressed profit margins for The Criterion EC, relative to projects such as Coco Palms, D'Nest and Suzhou Hong Leong City Center, and the absence of contribution from Commonwealth Towers, a joint venture (JV) project that was completed and sold out last year. Notably, while New Futura achieved stellar sales performance since its launch in January 2018, the profits will only be booked in when the sale of the units are legally completed.

Mr Kwek Leng Beng, CDL Executive Chairman, said, “It was a strong quarter for our Singapore residential business. Our new launches have received overwhelming response, with The Tapestry emerging as Singapore’s top-selling project for March. As the Singapore residential market continues to improve, our strategic approach enabled us to secure three very attractive sites in Q1 2018, bringing our total Singapore residential pipeline to over 3,000 units. We will continue to seek strategic bids to bolster our local land bank but will remain highly selective and disciplined. In addition to organic growth, given our strong balance sheet, acquisitive growth is also on our radar and we will continue to prudently seek suitable opportunities that are synergistic with our core real estate business.”

Mr Sherman Kwek, CDL Group Chief Executive Officer, said, “After four challenging years for the Singapore residential property market, the emerging signs of recovery look promising. Fuelled by pent-up demand, sales volumes are strengthening and property prices are trending up. Anticipating that land prices will escalate substantially, we acted swiftly in acquiring land sites and now have one of the larger land banks in Singapore for future development income. The strategically acquired land bank caters to all segments of the market such as EC, mass, mid and high-end and is spread across the island from the east to the central to the west. The Group will be able to launch the appropriate parcel at the right time and is well positioned to ride the upward momentum.”

Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc

Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C) posted a net profit of £8 million for the first quarter ended 31 March 2018, double that of the same period a year ago in constant currency terms.

The rise in profit was helped by a gain of £3 million from the disposal of two Australian hotels owned by CDL Hospitality Trust (CDLHT). The group also benefited from the higher profit contributions from CDLHT and associated company First Sponsor Group, with total contributions being £3 million higher than the previous year.

Hotel revenue rose by 3.9%, helped by higher contributions from Millennium Hilton New York One UN Plaza, which was rebranded in August 2017 and M Social Auckland, which opened in October 2017. Total revenue rose by 3.3% to £217 million in constant currency terms.

“Performance over the first three months of the year was mixed. London declined and Europe is showing indications of weakness, whilst our Millennium Broadway New York hotel continues to hold back overall trading performance in New York. More positively, Asia showed some signs of a recovery and New Zealand continued to perform well. We are on track to move forward on a number of significant capital investment projects this year, designed to improve returns on Group assets. We also remain alert to acquisition opportunities,” said M&C Chairman Mr Kwek Leng Beng.

Ms Jennifer Fox will join M&C as its new Chief Executive Officer on 19 June 2018.

China Yuchai Limited

Net profit attributable to China Yuchai's shareholders was RMB 242.8 million compared with RMB 248.5 million in the first quarter of 2017. Net revenue was RMB 4.3 billion (US$ 689.7 million) compared with RMB 4.6 billion in the first quarter of 2017.

Total number of engines sold decreased 8.2% to 110,113 units, compared with 120,010 units in the same quarter last year. Lower unit sales primarily reflected reduced sales of agricultural engines during the first quarter of 2018.

Mr Weng Ming Hoh, President of China Yuchai, commented, “With our broad portfolio of engines for on- and off-road market sales, our strategy of supplying engines to multiple markets is providing growth in some areas even as other markets are stagnant. We continue to focus on improving our operational efficiency and maintain our strong financial condition.”

Diesel engine maker China Yuchai is a subsidiary of industrial conglomerate Hong Leong Asia, a member of Hong Leong Group Singapore.