Malaysia Among Top 10 Recipients of Cross-Border Capital In Asia Pacific

KUALA LUMPUR, July 9 (Bernama) -- Malaysia saw an 18 per cent year-on-year increase in cross-border capital in the first quarter of 2019, placing it in the top 10 countries in the Asia Pacific, said global property consultancy firm, Knight Frank. According to its Active Capital 2019 report, overseas investors are keeping a close watch on the progress of the country’s new government which made encouraging advances in tackling corruption and cutting costs, particularly in the renegotiation of Chinese-backed infrastructure projects. In a statement Tuesday, Knight Frank Malaysia’s executive director of capital markets, James Buckley said the firm is focusing on alternative real estate sectors such as car parks, educational and logistics properties where the fundamentals are stronger. “We have also seen good demand from overseas groups for hospitality assets, and we anticipate that there will be increasing repositioning opportunities for older office buildings where increasing vacancies may lead owners to consider alternative uses,” he said. The report also delved into the sources and destinations of cross-border investments in commercial real estate, highlighting five themes which would shape the next phase of global real estate investment -- late-cycle investments, capital gravity, the reinvention of capital, ‘nownership’ and the value of data. -- BERNAMA