It’s no surprise that Singapore investors like real estate investment trusts (REITs). Apart from doling out dividends on a regular basis, REITs are fairly defensive in nature and serve as a more accessible means of investing in real estate.
Office and retail REITs typically come to mind when investors think about REITs, given the workplaces and shopping haunts of many Singaporeans. But with Singapore’s return to Phase 2 (Heightened Alert), these REITs could come under pressure once more as crowds thin out.
On the flipside, industrial REITs have been relatively sheltered from the impact. The sector was the best performing REIT sector in 2020, and in spite of the recent rise in COVID-19 cases, the earnings momentum for industrial REITs is likely to remain resilient.
Overview of industrial REITs
There are nine industrial and data centre REITs listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX). These include blue-chip REITs like Mapletree Industrial Trust, Mapletree Logistics Trust and Ascendas REIT; and smaller-cap players such as AIMS APAC REIT and ESR-REIT....
