Singapore’s Keppel posts zero 2023 home sales in Vietnam

Keppel Corporation recorded no sales of home units in Vietnam in fiscal year 2023, according to the Singaporean firm’s financial results for the full year ending December 31, 2023.

Meanwhile, in fiscal year 2022, Keppel’s home sales in Vietnam reached 70 units out of 2,190 sold by Keppel around in the world.

In fiscal year 2023, Keppel’s home sales rose 41.6% year-on-year to 3,100 units, driven by 1,730 units in China and 1,180 in India. Beside Vietnam, the figures for two other Southeast Asian markets, namely Singapore and Indonesia, were 60 and 130, respectively.

Regarding the commercial portfolio, with 401,210 square meters of gross floor area, Vietnam remained the second-biggest market for Keppel, or 27% of the real estate firm’s total figure of 1.49 million square meters. China was the biggest with 536,340 square meters, or 36% of the total.

Similarly, in terms of residential landbank, China was the biggest market with 16,443 units, or 43% of the total; followed by Vietnam with 9,238, or 24%; Indonesia with 7,109, or 18%; India with 5,244, or 14%; and Singapore with 187, or 1%.

Highlighting major real estate activities in 2023, Keppel noted that it acquired two residential projects in Ho Chi Minh City with Keppel Vietnam Fund and Khang Dien Group, and announced the acquisition of a stake in a retail property in Hanoi.

Reviewing its operations in Vietnam, Keppel highlighted its residential landbank in Vietnam with seven projects, all located in Ho Chi Minh City. With a gross floor area of 2.72 million square meters, those projects feature 15,089 units. Of which, 6,527 have been launched, 5,851 sold, and 9,238 available for sale.

Commenting on the performance in Vietnam, Louis Lim, CEO, Real Estate of Keppel, said: “It (Vietnam) will remain one of our key markets in emerging Asia, alongside India and China.”

The current problem in Vietnam is “a lot of delays in terms of the sales permits or construction permits that we can get to launch projects,” the executive added.

Emphasizing the strong underlying demand in Vietnam, Louis Lim stated: “Our partner recently had a project which had about 1,000 units. Within 2-3 days, they sold about 90%.”

Globally, Keppel reported its highest net profit in history of SGD4.1 billion ($3.05 billion) last year, more than quadruple year-on-year, thanks to a SGD3.3 billion disposal gain from a divestment from its offshore and marine (O&M) business. The return on equity (ROE) was 37.9%, higher than the 8.1% posted in fiscal year 2022.