You may have read news about empty office properties in the United States and Europe, especially after the resulting work from home (WFH) trend that started during the COVID-19 period, and the rising interest rates that came thereafter. Vacancies are going up and rentals are coming down at those places. These brought about the drop of office property valuations, and property-related counters and funds are taking a hit. Yet right here in Singapore, we see the demand for office spaces is still there, with healthy rents and high occupancy rate in the downtown area. In the real estate investment trust (REIT) scene, we can observe that overseas-based ones, especially those whose properties are in the United States, are under downward pressure as compared to those whose properties are mostly locally based. There are, in my opinion, several reasons why and all played some part in the net positive of things. Reasons The first is geopolitical, with...