Tag Archives: property

Azerbaijan’s oil fund buys Tokyo shopping centre

SEPT. 23 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Sofaz, the Azerbaijani oil wealth fund, bought property in Japan worth $435m, its first foray into the east Asian property markets.

In a statement, it said that it had teamed up with Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation to buy the landmark retail property Kirarito Ginza for 52.3b yen.

Shahmar Movsumov, the fund’s executive director, said he was excited by the purchase. “We are delighted to have made our first foray into the Japanese real estate market. Our investment rationale for this asset is based on its capital preservation capacity,” he said.

In the past few years, Sofaz has been developing its property portfolio with purchases in London, Paris, Sydney and Kuala Lumpur. Last month it said that it would reduce payments to the national budget as its earnings had fallen because of the collapse in oil prices.

In July the fund, which holds around $37b earmarked for infrastructure projects, bought $500m of Chinese government bonds, part of planned diversification of its assets.

Kirarito Ginza is a modern retail building built on Tokyo’s Chou Avenue, one of the most prestigious streets in the country.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 249, published on Sept. 25 2015)

Property price fall in Azerbaijan

JUNE 18 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) – Experts in Azerbaijan’s real estate sector are predicting a drop in house prices this year as the market reacts to a decline in economic conditions in the region, media reported. A sharp fall in oil prices and the value of the Russian rouble have hit the former Soviet region.

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(News report from Issue No. 236, published on June 18 2015)

Kazakh property market shrinks

>>Currency devaluation inflated early data>>

JAN. 13 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) — The number of property deals in Kazakhstan dropped by over 13% last year, the State Statistics Committee data showed, more evidence of a downturn in the economy.

The biggest drops in the number of property transactions were in North Kazakhstan — a fall of 25% in the number of property deals in 2014 compared to 2013 — and the Akmola, Almaty and Karaganda regions which all had a fall of around 20%.

Only some of the western regions, experiencing something of an oil boom, enjoyed a small increase in the property market in 2014.

This is all bad news for Kazakhstan which is trying to keep its tenge currency strong despite a fall in the price of oil and a drop in the value of the Russian rouble.

Earlier, the shrink in Kazakhstan’s property market had been disguised by figures which showed that the value of the deals had actually increased by over 10% in 2014. A currency devaluation of 20% in February 2014 inflated the value of transactions in the Kazakh market.

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(News report from Issue No. 214, published on Jan. 14 2015)

Foreigners barred from buying land in Georgia

SEPT. 18 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Until July farmers from around the world had eyed up Georgia as good place to move to, buy a patch of land and start farming.

On July 17, though, President Mikheil Saakashvili signed a decree passed by parliament that places a moratorium on foreigners owning land.

Mr Saakashvili had, it has to be said, been against the decree but he was powerless to resist parliament which is now controlled by an opposition coalition led by PM Bidzina Ivanishvili.

Mr Ivanishvili’s government has proved their populist touch once more.

The previous government of Mr Saakashvili’s United National Movement had suspended a law banning foreigners from owning land unless they were part of a Georgia-registered business. They said that foreigners’ expertise was needed to boost productivity and efficiency.

They also actively encouraged some groups, such as Boer farmers from South Africa to migrate to Georgia. Other groups also arrived, such as Punjabi Indians.

This, though, triggered a backlash. Local people protested earlier in the year under the banner: “Georgian land for Georgians”. Once again politics and business in Georgia appear intimately entwined.

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(News report from Issue No. 152, published on Sept. 18 2013)

Azerbaijan funds resort in Montenegro

JULY 22 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijan has been on something of a spending spree. Whether through SOFAZ, the state’s oil fund, or through SOCAR, the state energy company, Azerbaijan’s government has spent millions of dollars on overseas investments.

These included properties in some of the world’s most expensive cities — SOFAZ bought an office block in London’s St James’ for $286m in 2012, then spent $180m on property in Paris and $133m on a building in Moscow — as well as large currency deals and gold purchases.

Property prices in London and Paris are soaring and gold is seen as a sensible long-term bet so these appear solid investments. Azerbaijan’s latest investment, though, strikes an off-beat cord.

Azerbaijani and Russian news website reported comments made in Moscow by the visiting PM of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic, on July 12. He said SOCAR had agreed to spend 500m euro building a new luxury resort on Montenegro’s attractive Adriatic coast.

Various websites have since reported that two private companies, Triangle Investments and Developments Limited and Azmont Investments LLC, will pursue the project on behalf of SOCAR.

For most countries, spending 500m euro on building a luxury resort in Montenegro is a risky investment choice.

(News report from Issue No. 144, published on July 22 2013)

Azerbaijan’s SOFAZ makes London property deal

DEC. 17 2012 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan’s state oil fund, SOFAZ, bought a $285m building in central London, its first significant purchase for its new international property portfolio, media reported. Azerbaijan’s wealth fund is worth an estimated $33b.

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(News report from Issue No. 118, published on Dec. 28 2012)