SINGAPORE- Income from Australian properties boosted first quarter distributable income at Cache Logistics Trust.
However, the trust noted that Singapore's industrial property market is expected to be weak in the near term.
Distribution per unit (DPU) came in at 2.04 Singapore cents for the three months to March 31, down 5 per cent from the same period a year ago, mainly due to higher units.
Gross revenue jumped 32.7 per cent to S$27.9 million and distributable income gained 8.6 per cent to S$18.2 million.
Net property income increased 12 per cent to S$22.1 million.
Chief executive of the trust manager Daniel Cerf said: "Our Australian strategy is paying off with the portfolio there contributing 13.8 per cent of the first quarter's gross revenue. We look to continue to expand our footprint in the country with quality assets."
Gross turnover growth came also from income from new logistics warehouse facility, Cache Logistics said in a filing on the Singapore Exchange website. The facility is the DHL Supply Chain Advanced Regional Centre, completed in Singapore in July last year.
The growth was however, offset by lower income from Singapore properties converted from master leases to multi-tenancies, it said.
As at March 31, portfolio occupancy remained was 94.2 per cent and the portfolio weighted average lease expiry was approximately 4.3 years.
Cache Logistics noted that the Singapore industrial property market "continues to be weighed down by a combination of an oversupply of industrial space and uncertainty in the global economy".
A bright spot however is that the government is committed to support the industry by initiatives to improve Singaporeans' employability within the sector, it said.
The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) - an indicator of manufacturing activity - was at 49.4 in March, the highest level since Dec 2015, it noted. However, it said the manufacturing economy has contracted overall for a ninth straight month last month.
