Reduced revenue from a building in Brisbane was partly to blame for Keppel Reit's lacklustre first quarter.
Distribution per unit (DPU) dipped to 1.42 cents from 1.45 cents in the same period last year.
However, income available for distribution edged up 0.2 per cent to $48.2 million in the three months to March 31, while gross revenue slipped 0.3 per cent to $39.7 million. Net property income was down as well, slipping 0.6 per cent to $31.2 million.
The variances were mainly attributable to lower gross revenue and net property income from 275 George Street in Brisbane.
This was partly offset by better returns from Bugis Junction Towers and Ocean Financial Centre in Singapore, and 8 Exhibition Street in Melbourne.
Keppel Reit's share of results of associates and joint ventures - including Marina Bay Financial Centre, One Raffles Quay and some Australian properties - fell from $31.5 million last year to $28.5 million.
This was due mainly to reduced one-off income at various properties here and lower rental support for Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3.
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AT A GLANCE
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Gross revenue:
$39.7 million (-0.3%)
Income available for distribution:
$48.2 million (+0.2%)
Distribution per unit:
1.42 cents (-2.1%)
However, distributable income remained stable, due in part to adjustments made on differences between accounting and tax treatments of distributions.
The trust's manager signed leases of about 674,100 sq ft, with attributable area of around 261,400 sq ft, in the first quarter.
It noted that 23.3 per cent of the space went to new leases, 10.5 per cent were renewals, and 66.2 per cent were review leases.
Review leases typically apply to long tenures where rental rates are marked to market at certain times in accordance with their contracts.
The average monthly signing rent for office leases here in the quarter was about $10.05 psf.
New-leasing demand came from diverse sectors. In Singapore, the majority were expansions in the legal sector, while in Australia, demand came from a government agency taking up space at 275 George Street in Brisbane.
Keppel Reit units closed up two cents to $1.20 yesterday. The book closure date for the first-quarter distribution is April 26 with payment on May 30.
