United Hampshire US REIT Amazing Q1 2026 Results and 9% Distribution Yield.

Video version of previous posting on United Hampshire US REIT review- Please click here.

Donald Trump To Restart Attacks on Iran- Winter Is Coming!

Hi folks, Winter is coming! If you thought that your week was chaotic, wait until you see what just dropped in the Persian Gulf over the few days. Donald Trump and his buddy Netanyahu will soon be re-attacking Iran. Looks like oil supply from Middle East will be cut off for a very long time as Iran will be continuing with their blockage of the Straits of Hormuz. With oil availability tight despite US, Canada, Venezula, Russia etc ramping up oil production for exports and China curbing their oil consumption, it has been reported that prices will remain high and even rocketed. 

The Immediate Threat: Geopolitical Shortage (Days to Weeks) is what happens if Trump acts on his threat of another strike.

The Hormuz Chokepoint is causing over 14 million barrels per day of oil production to be shut in or stranded due to the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Because nearly 20% of the world’s seaborne oil transits this narrow channel, a renewed U.S. strike would likely cement this blockade through Q3 2026.

Global oil inventories are currently already being drawn down at a staggering, historic pace of roughly 4 million to 8.5 million barrels per day. Even with coordinated Emergency Stock Releases from the IEA, these storage reserves can only act as a buffer for a few months.  Refinery Starvation: Refineries outside the Middle East (particularly in Asia, which buys 75% of Gulf oil) are already slashing operations because they cannot source the specific types of crude they need. A renewed strike will immediately exacerbate the shortage of middle distillates like diesel and jet fuel, causing localized fuel rationing and skyrocketing pump prices well past $4.00 a gallon in the U.S. 

The Expected Shortage Timeline

So yes, we are already in a structural shortage covered by emergency reserves. If the ceasefire permanently collapses, those emergency buffers will rapidly deplete, threatening severe physical supply crunches for oil-importing nations very soon in another 2-3mths.Yes, this is how dire our current situation has become.

Parting Thoughts and REITs/Bonds Being Whacked Again

Sadly, my SREITs have been badly battered by the stock market this week due to the fear of inflation leading to extreme interest rate hikes that will inevitably affect their net profits. Bond funds also find their valuation being hammered from expectation of a higher interest rate environment. Haiz, nothing is safe it seems these days. Let's keep our fingers crossed that Trump is only bluffing about renewed attacks on Iran. The stubborn old man has brought much grief to the world economies.

United Hampshire US REIT Amazing Q1 2026 Results- Distribution Yield Now Around 9% Per Annum.

United Hampshire US REIT ("UHREIT") reported a strong 1Q 2026, with distributable income rising 10.0% year-on-year to US$6.9 million, driven by higher rents, active leasing and contributions from two newly acquired grocery-anchored properties. Gross revenue increased 8.7% to US$19.7 million, while net property income climbed 12.7% to US$13.2 million. Using FY2025 Distribution Per Unit (DPU) of 4.39 US cents and closing Unit Price (12 May 2026) of US$0.515 per unit, this represents a previous distribution Yield of 8.5%. Since Dover is acquired in 2nd half 2025, a high level normalisation should give about a at least 5% increase for DPU in 2026, that is around an incredulous 9% distribution yield! 

1. Recap of New Properties Driving Increase in Distribution.

UHREIT sold Albany Supermarket for US$23.8 million back in January 2025. Thereafter, it has reinvested those proceeds into higher-yielding investment properties along with debt to supplement the these acquisitions:

1(i) Dover Marketplace-Acquired on 1 August 2025.

Purchase price: US$16.4 million

Funding source: Fully funded by proceeds from the divestment of Albany Supermarket

1(ii) Wallingford Fair Shopping Center- Acquired on 22 January 2026.

Purchase price: US$21.4 million

Funding source: Partially funded by proceeds from the Albany Supermarket divestment, internal cash, and external borrowings.

2. Financial Highlights for Q1 2026

Portfolio fundamentals remained resilient. The grocery and necessity portfolio maintained 97.7% occupancy, weighted average lease expiry extended to 8.0 years, and tenant retention stayed high at 90%. Only 2.0% of leases are due for renewal in 2026, while self-storage occupancy improved to 89.2%.

The balance sheet remains stable, with aggregate leverage at 40.3%, a lower average borrowing cost of 4.91%, and no refinancing requirements until February 2028.

Final Add On

UHREIT Management remains positive on the outlook, citing resilient demand for grocery-anchored retail, limited new supply, and opportunities for further acquisitions and asset enhancements. The 9% distribution yield for 2026 and the high potential for capital appreciation made UHREIT an attractive investment. Personally, given the current good results (finally turn-around after declining financials for past few years), I would have invested additional funds into UHREIT if not for my current holdings which already made up 10% of my total portfolios which represented an extremely high concentration risk.  

Iran Thinks It Has Upper Hand Against Donald Trump Over US-Iran War- Trump Vomiting Blood.

Iran has responded to US latest proposal to stop the war and Donald Trump is either foaming from his mouth or vomiting blood after reading through it. In my previous May 4, 2026 post on the US-Iran war (US–Iran Ceasefire Or War: A Fragile Pause and What Comes Next ), I have expressed my thoughts that this will turn out to be a long protracted conflict that will never have a resolution. 

1. Brave Iranians Defy US and Bets That Donald Trump Will Not Be Able to Nuke Them

It is strange that the Iranian government is very confident that Donald Trump will never dare to use the nuclear bomb against Iran. Hence they have effectively dug in on their position for US to remove blockade first and to accept that Iranians will control the Straits of Hormuz going forward.

In life, one learns that being too extreme and over-confident may often resulted in a wrong prediction. Crazy Trump may just do what everyone thought impossible.

2, Donald Trump Never Expect A Quick War To Go Totally Wrong.

Bolden by his Venezuela kidnapping of its hostile President and working with a friendlier government, Trump is feeling invincible. Trump probably also think that an attack on Iran will also further boost his legacy by being the US President willing to deal with the Iran uranium problem.

3. Donald Cursing Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel For Dragging US Into War With Exaggerated Outcome.

Most analysts are certain that Benjamin Netanyahu has goaded Donald into his wish list for decades to deal Iran with a blow that will handicap it. He must have told Trump that now is the best time to bomb Iran to trigger a regime change. Netanyahu also further stroked Trump's ego by praising Trump's kidnapping of the president of Venezuela with minimum resources.  

Parting Thoughts

I think that the AI bubble will probably burst first rather than seeing any true peace deal materialising. The Straits of Hormuz will also re-open soon but subject to paying of extortion money to Iran. 

SG Government Finally Revised Executive Condo Purchase Rules- Just Do Away with EC Scheme.

I read in absolute amazement at the devastating new property measures released by the Singapore Government with regard to changes in conditions for buying an Executive Condo (“EC”) in Singapore. These changes will apply to government land sales from May 8, 2026 which means that it will occur somewhere in late 2027 or early 2028 given the requirement for developers to only be able sell EC 15 months after successful land bid. Many private developers and 2nd time HDB upgraders are probably cursing and swearing at the upcoming changes. 

1. Latest Changes Summarised

So for couple who decided to apply for EC and getting married soon at age 28, waiting for TOP takes around 2 years while the new Minimum Occupation Period (“MOP”) thereafter is 10 years will mean a long waiting time to flip EC of 12 years, that is age 40 already. This will definitely address the current unhealthy trend of Singaporean couples using this as a mean to get rich via property flipping. 

The increased allocation from 70% to 90% reservation for 1st time buyer will also reduce the get rich 2nd time lottery for HDB upgraders who already benefitted from the Singapore get rich via HDB lottery system in the 1st round and now asking for 2nd bite of the cherry. Additionally, this will ensure more 1st time buyers benefit from owning their first property.

2. My Personal Take- Good Measures To Control Unsustainable Rise in EC Prices

Overall, I think this is good as developers will now be very worried about selling off all units in time lest they get into trouble with the 5 years sales penalty if they are still unable to market the units off. Developers will thus be more prudent in their EC bid.

3. EC Scheme Should be Removed.

Don’t flame me but I am not exactly a fan of the current EC scheme. Our HDB government agency has lost track of its original purpose post independence to help all Singaporeans own affordable housing for a roof over their heads. Building EC takes away precious land now used to build tennis court, swimming pool & landscaping which could be used to build an extra stack of BTO. Why should all tax payers be paying for folks who want to live in luxury property at the expense of the lower income group who are more in need of subsidies?

Hence, there should just be (i) BTO and (ii) private property class in Singapore. HDB housing is for Singaporeans to live in and not for flipping upon MOP. Those who wants to speculate or invest can just go directly to the private property market. 

Parting Thoughts

Personally, I think that these new measures are long overdue and bring EC in line with the BTO Plus and Prime area programmes of 10 years MOP. For too long, many Singaporeans have been treating an EC as a mean to get free government handout in the form of subsided land rates and special CPF grant of up to S$30K. Overall, many EC flippers simply just sell away after the previous 5 years MOP rule and walk away with half a million dollars of profit or even more to upgrade to private condo or to buy a landed home without any effort. A home is primarily for living in and not for speculation. I hope that this measure will also help moderate EC prices to benefit future generation and also spur more people to be more entrepreneurial by starting their own businesses to boost the economy instead of just lying flat and waiting for money to drop down via flipping of their EC for sure-win lottery gains. 

Sold Off Kimly Limited To Take Advantage of DBS Analyst Report Published in May 2026 with Target Price of S$0.52 Per Share.

Hi Folks, today is not too bad a day. While working in office, I saw a notification from my Tiger Brokers App with regard to a sudden surge in share price of Kimly Ltd rising to as high as S$0.430 per share in the afternoon today (May 7, 2026). A quick check on SGX announcement showed nothing much happening to its business in May 2026. The biggest catalyst seems to be a new DBS research report released today that initiated coverage with a “BUY” call and a target price of S$0.52 per share.

1. DBS Analyst Report on May 7, 2026

The report highlighted the following on Kimly Ltd:

(i) strong net cash position,

(ii) stable coffeeshop cash flow,

(iii) potential industry consolidation,

(iv) recurring dividends and 

(v) gradual outlet expansion/acquisition.

Medium size counters often faced poor liquidity trading issue and thus exposes Kimly Ltd to the sudden interest and spike in demand upon the release of the DBS Analyst report.

2. Selling off Most of my Kimly Ltd Stakes While Retaining Some For Further Long Term Appreciation

I am letting go part of my Kimly stakes from the sudden surge in price for Kimly Ltd to take advantage of this opportunity for re-deployment. Kimly was at S$0.395 per share as at yesterday (May 6, 2026). While DBS analyst put up an optimistic targeted price of S$0.52 per share for Kimly, I am locking in an immediate realisation of the 30% capital appreciation at S$0.42 per share and have sold off 27,800 shares today while retaining another 20,000 shares for the long term.  

Parting Thoughts

Will wait a few more days to study the current market on which other potential stock to buy with the realised funds from my investment in Kimly Ltd last year (May 2025). I guess it is not too bad to be making a 30% capital gain in less than 1 year of investment which is 6 years worth of dividends assuming 5% dividend yield per annum. 

Ok Folks, that's all from me today....have a great week ahead! 

End of Project Freedom In Less Than A Day by Donald Trump and US.

This is really incredulous. Donald Trump's Project Freedom using US War ships to escort ships out of the Straits of Hormuz ended in less than one day after its announcement. The missile attacks on US Warships and commercial ships moving through the Straits of Hormuz appear to have led to continued high risks of severe damage and potential loss of lives. In a face saving moment, Donald Trump has paused the US military’s “Project Freedom” operation to open the Strait of Hormuz, by asserting “great progress” is being made towards a “complete and final agreement with the representatives of Iran”. So the operation will be halted for a "short period" to see whether a final agreement materialise.

Poor UAE is the greatest victim impacted by Donald Trump's "Project Freedom". The oil port and other facilities of UAE got attacked by missiles and drones fired by Iran as retaliation against Project Freedom. 

US–Iran Ceasefire Or War: A Fragile Pause and What Comes Next.

The conflict between the United States and Iran has entered a tense middle phase—not quite war, not quite peace. A ceasefire exists on paper, but clashes and economic pressure continue, especially around the Strait of Hormuz. At the centre: a proposed peace deal. Iran has put forward a multi-point plan, and the US has responded with tougher conditions. Tehran is now evaluating that response.

1. The Core Disagreement

The US wants: security first (reopen shipping, limit nuclear activity)

Iran wants: sanctions lifted first, then negotiations

That mismatch is why talks are slow and uncertain.

2. Most Likely Outcomes

I think that there are 4 likely scenarios here:

(i) Frozen conflict (most likely)

A shaky ceasefire holds, but tensions persist and shipping remains risky.

(ii) Partial deal (likely)

Both sides agree only on safe passage in Hormuz—without solving bigger issues. This will only materialise if Donald Trump got a sudden stroke from old age or eating too much McDonalds. 

(iii) Full deal (least likely)

A broader agreement with sanctions relief and security guarantees.

(iv) Escalation risk (almost present)

Talks collapse and conflict resumes.

Ships Stuck And Waiting to Clear the Straits

3. Flashpoint: US Escorting Ships

The US is now escorting vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz—a move which Iran views as provocative that is a violation of the ceasefire agreement. Possible Iranian Responses are as follow:

(i) Restraint: Allow passage to keep talks alive;

(ii) Harassment (most likely): Drones, patrol boats, limited attacks;

(iii) Diplomatic escalation: Claim ceasefire violation;

(iv) Direct clash (high risk and low probability): Engage U.S. naval forces;

Parting Thoughts

The most probable path forward, unfortunately, seems to be a prolonged conflict—where diplomacy continues, tensions simmer, and the risk of escalation never fully disappears. 

Parkway Life REIT DPU Shot Up 15%- But Beware!

Parkway Life REIT ("PLREIT") once again announced not just an increase in DPU but a stunning +15.1% for its first quarter distribution. Its last traded market price as at April 30, 2026 was S$4.02 per unit. Despite the fantastic results announcement, I do not think that it is worth it for new investors to foray into this PLREIT at this particular juncture. The recent announced DPU is S$0.0442 per unit for Q1 2026. Annualising this, the dividend yield for PLREIT will be 4.4% (forecast distribution is S$0.1768 per unit per annum). Many blue-chips SREITs such as Mapletree Industrial Trust, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust or Capitaland Ascendas are actually trading with a much more attractive 6% distribution yield and also way below their Net Asset Value ("NAV") per unit. On the other hand, PLREIT NAV per unit as at March 31, 2026 is only S$2.53 per unit which means that it is trading at a lofty +58.9% premium over its latest NAV per unit.

1. Price Trending Over Past 5 years- Always at a Premium Over its NAV.

Price Chart for PLREIT- Past 5 years 

The best entry price for PLREIT was actually when it was trading at the S$3.50- S$3.60 per unit range 2 years ago Also, PLREIT has been always trading at a premium over its NAV per unit due to it being in the medical sector where demand is deemed to be fairly resilient and that its management has always been delivering increase DPU over the years.

2. Does the Investment Thesis That DPU Is Resilient In Medical Sector True?

I will urge caution on this belief of many retail investors. Look at First REIT and you folks will know what I mean. Being in the medical sector does not mean that earnings will not be impacted. 

The only strong differentiating counter argument here is that PLREIT is way better than First REIT as Singapore has many top medical specialist relative to Indonesia as well as the always strong Singapore dollars compared to declining Rupiah. Nonetheless, it is still a fallacy as there is actually an overly concentration risk of main tenants for PLREIT. Main contributor of revenue is Parkway Hospitals Singapore Pte. Ltd. Again, I will point everyone to First REIT as well as to Elite UK REIT with regard to issues with having a business that has major tenant making up more than 50% of a REIT's revenue.

3. Escalation in Rental Income Increase of around 25% Expected to Start in FY2026.

From the previous S$150Mil AEI initiative at Mount Elizabeth for lease renewal exercise back in 2022, there will be an expected 25% rental uplift that will take effect from FY2026. Even if we take this into effect, the annualised yield will be around 5% which will still be significantly lower relative to the other blue-chip REITs as aforesaid mentioned. So, based on current market price, this is not very attractive.

Parting Thoughts

At the current price, I will be staying far away from PLREIT. I also find it strange that a number of retail investors view PLREIT as a "stable bond fund". PLREIT is never a bond fund. It is an equity instrument and thus comes with higher risk profile similar to other stock investments. Ok, that's all for my thoughts sharing for today, have a great week ahead! 

Iran Soften Stand To Revise Peace Offer-Donald Trump Chu Pattern Again!

Iran has soften and offered US a deal to open the Straits of Hormuz and talk about disposal of enriched uranium in a subsequent phase. Donald Trump, the King of USA, then angrily reject the offer as he wants the nuclear issue to be tackled upfront while he holds the US Naval blockage as a counter leverage that is hurting the economy of its government. The King has thus demanded Iran to revise their offer. 

I guess it is not too bad that Iran seems to have proposed this new offer relative to their previous stance of totally avoiding the previous peace talk. I think we are going to see the light at the end of the tunnel soon. Hang in there folks!

Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust Disappointing Fall in DPU again for Q4 FY2025/26. Time to Say Goodbye to MPACT?

Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust ("MPACT") posted a 2.6% decline in distribution per unit to S$0.019 for 4th quarter ended March 2026 on the back of a sharp drop of revenue by 5.5% (from S$222.9Mil to S$210.7Mil). As usual, the overseas properties of MPACT such as Festival Walk shopping mall continued to be affected by the loss of consumers to the new shopping haven in Shenzhen which is just less than 30mins of travelling  time via the Express Rail Link. Interestingly, recently, while my Hong Kong Boss (he's a business tycoon with wide business networking in China, HK & Australia) was on a business trip to Singapore, he remarked to me that everyone in Hong Kong now goes to Shenzhen frequently as it is extremely convenient. There are cheap SPA, foot massages, value for money food and grocery available in Shenzhen hence these adversely affect Hong Kong which is facing many empty retail shops with no tenants. Gone are the good old days of ever rising rental by Hong Kong landlords. My Hong Kong Boss next made another comment that once the Malaysia Johor Bharu & Singapore RTS is completed and fully functional, Singapore retail scene is going the way of Hong Kong, that is, it will also be severely affected by the surge in Singaporeans going for cheaper food and services across the causeway. 

Extracted Results Summary Q4 FY25/26

1. MPACT Q4 Results Ending March 2026.

Ok, back to MPACT most recent results announcement. The declining rental income from its overseas properties seem to have no bottom. I was initially optimistic that we have seen the trough of the decline in rental income given the many consecutive quarters and previously sky high negative rental reversion. 

If one refers to the screenshot below of all the main properties of MPACT, we can see that the revenue of Festival Walk HK continued to drop from S$49.9Mil to S$42.5Mil. Consequently, its NPI declined from S$37.7Mil to S$31.7Mil. The official reason stated for this decline is due to the sales of the Festival Walk office component.  

Without stripping off the effect of the disposal of its office component, we cannot really tell the current performance since we are comparing apple to orange. Hence Festival Walk HK is not exactly out of the woods yet until we have more clarity. 

Properties Breakdown Comparatives Q4 Current FY vs Q4 last FY

Key Financial Highlights For MPACT

2. Change in Investment Thesis on MPACT.

My thoughts are that my investment thesis on MPACT may need to change. I mean I have no doubt that its Singapore properties of Vivocity and Mapletree Business Park are still performing well. Nevertheless, the overseas properties continued to be a drag on its overall results and distributions to unit-holders. I am having some serious doubts on whether MPACT has further room to appreciate to catch up to its NAV per unit of around S$1.73 as at 31 March 2026. 

To elaborate further, the elephant in the room is whether its NAV is S$1.73 per unit or already close to its market price of S$1.40 per unit given the expected decline in NAV attributed to the poor performance of its overseas properties. The decline in NAV is not just in theory. If you look at 31 December 2025, its NAV per unit was S$1.78 per unit and now it has further eroded to S$1.73 per unit as at 31 March 2026. 

MPACT Vivocity

3. Parting Thoughts

I have put MPACT on my watchlist and to see whether its management will continue spinning off its non-performing overseas properties. While there seems to be improvement in Festival Walk tenant sales by 6% as reported, I am unsure whether the rental rates decline have stopped. I will probably wait for further clarity in the next quarter reporting before making a call on whether to just sell off all my MPACT units and recycle the funds to other investments. Are you folks still holding on to MPACT?

Indonesia Imitating Iran- Charging Ships Toll For Use of the Straits of Malacca.

Indonesia’s Finance Minister, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, recently "floated" the idea of charging ships transit fees through the Strait of Malacca as he was inspired by Iran's maneuverer off the Strait of Hormuz. Apparently, the Indonesia government wanted to try their hands on playing ruffians and imposing "protection money" to boost much needed treasury funds to cover their deficits. The Smart Aleck even tried to drag Singapore and Malaysia into the extortion ring by framing the idea as something that would require coordination with Singapore and Malaysia, rather than a unilateral Indonesian move. Any one can tell that Purbaya is just trying to share the political fallout from US, China, EU etc and to avoid Indonesia appearing as the sole wicked nation that is causing another disruption to global trade. 

1. Why the Proposal Caused Alarm

The Malacca Strait carries roughly one-fifth to one-quarter of global seaborne trade. Critical examples:

- China’s energy imports;

- Japan and South Korea’s shipping;

- Singapore’s port economy;-

- ASEAN trade

Any toll or restriction would likely:

(a) Raise shipping costs

(b) Increase insurance rates

(c) Trigger diplomatic backlash

(d) Potentially violate international maritime law

2. Regional Response

Our Singapore foreign minister, Vivian Balakrishna, jumped out immediately to oppose this stupid idea. Malaysia also showed little support and reinforced that the Strait is governed by UNCLOS transit passage rules, and not national tolling rights.

Additionally, Australia and major trading nations also quickly voiced their concern. Overall, Global markets viewed this suggestion as a destabilizing precedent.

3. Final Development

However, Jakarta subsequently quickly changed their mind after testing water and finding heavy criticism worldwide. They quickly clarified that Indonesia has no formal plan to impose tolls and remains committed to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which protects freedom of navigation in international straits. It is extremely disappointing that while the US-Iran war remains unresolved, Indonesia has tried to stir up more chaos in order to profit from it.

Capitaland Ascendas Rights Issuance Results- Not Too Bad.

Since I am mainly using another traditional trader securities custodian account of an international bank to hold Capitaland Ascendas REIT ("CLAR"), I am only able to see my rights issuance results this morning on 24 April 2026 (strange that in this day and time of Generative agentic AI, they still need 1 full day lead time to process for individual beneficial owners allocation after the main exercise completion on the morning of 23 April 2026.). Anyway, my total rights is 532 units and managed to get excess of 2,468 units. Total of 3,000 units. Guess not too bad given the overwhelming excess demand for CLAR excess units. Issuance price is S$2.35 per unit and closing market price as at 23 April 2026 is S$2.56 per unit. Hence every 1,000 units allocated gives immediate profit of S$210.  Consequently +S$630 of capital gain from this CLAR fund raising exercise. Guess, participating in rights issuance is better than buying Toto from Singapore Pool. My greatest Toto win after 3 years is only a miserable S$85 from a System 7 ticket (not to mention the few hundred dollars I "invested" into buying the Toto). 

So how did you folks fare for this CLAR rights issuance? Hopefully, you folks got what you targeted. Ok, that's all from me today. Have a great weekend ahead! 

Countdown to US-Iran Conflict Ended-Donald Trump Tried to Use Nuclear Code on Iran.

Amidst the never ending US-Iran war, a recent controversial allegation from ex-CIA analyst, Larry Johnson, has surfaced suggesting that Donald Trump had sought to use nuclear codes during the war and that this was stopped by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, who opposed the move. Not sure whether this is purposely leaked out fake news by US side to pressurise Iran into accepting a peace deal with the agreement to handover enriched Uranium. 

Anyway, Donald Trump has just extended the ceasefire deadline indefinitely. Trump further mentioned that this is to give Iran more time to come up with a revised peace proposal for the US to review. This is quite silly, given that Trump has threaten that he will resume bombing Iran and will not extend the ceasefire deadline. To be honest, I was surprised by Trump's move as he is quite egoistic so to extend ceasefire indefinitely is a major concession and good faith towards de-escalation of conflict. 

Nevertheless, grave danger still remain with the Straits of Hormuz closed and US naval blockage of Iranian ports. The flames of war may still be re-ignited instantly given Iran's view that nuclear enrichment is their sovereign rights that no one can take-away. 

The Shocking Announcement by Capitaland Integrated Commercial Trust To Acquire Paragon From Cuscaden Peak.

I am shell shocked by the announcement from Capitaland Integrated Commercial Trust ("CICT") that it will be acquiring Paragon from Cuscaden Peak. As a former unit-holder of SPH REIT and later on the renamed Paragon REIT, I vividly recalled a year ago, the Cuscaden Group folks said that Paragon need S$500Mil to S$600Mil for a major facelift and refurbishment to fight off the intense competition at Orchard Road. Henceforth, there will be a huge loss of income for all unit-holders of Paragon REIT for up to 4 years during this major facelift. The best option recommended was a privatisation then with Paragon valued at S$2.9 billion. In less than 1 year after Cuscaden taken Paragon REIT private, they have suddenly decided not to go ahead with the facelift but instead chose to sell Paragon to CICT for S$3.9 billion. Personally, I thought that all ex-Paragon retail unitholders have been played out by Cuscaden Group. Interestingly, Cuscaden Group is made up of 3 major corporate shareholders who are, HPL Hotel (lead by the famous Mr Ong Beng Seng), Mapletree and lastly, Capitaland itself which is affiliated to CICT.

Extract of Announcement by CICT on 20 April 2026

1. Screwing Unit-holders of Paragon REIT

To put it bluntly based on my personal thoughts, the privatisation move made to "market and influence" Paragon Unit-holders last year was nothing more than a show with the grand purpose to remove the numerous unit-holders so that a restructuring of the Paragon Property can be completed in order to sell it off. Under Paragon REIT, Paragon is just a 99 year leasehold whereby the free-hold title was being withheld by the then Singapore Press Holdings. By taking Paragon REIT private, Cuscaden can then proceed to merge it back into a wholesome freehold investment property for spinning off at a large profit to other potential buyers.  

Unfortunately for retail investors, everything was done legally. The "privatisation" was an option that more than 75% of unit-holders agreed to during the EGM....it was not at gun-point. Ex-Paragon Unit-holders do not have access to other information or possible better business alternatives at that juncture. 

Additionally, the Cuscaden folks, would simply argue that after this move was made, Capitaland folks then suddenly have an "Eureka" moment that its CICT maybe can buy over a freehold Paragon that leads to a win-win situation for both Cuscaden and Capitaland. Perfect!  

2. Screwing Unit-holders of CICT

Tragically for CICT retail unit-holders, they cannot feel the victory of scoring a major goal in acquiring a freehold Paragon with the very much coveted Medical Suites tenants and its stream of very resilient rental income. There is a huge price tag of S$3.9 billion and worse still, CICT unit-holders are unable to participate in any preferential rights issuance as the management of CICT decided to go with a private placement of S$600Mil (now upsized to S$750Mil due to strong institutional demand) at a discounted price of S$2.30 per unit (market price S$2.47 per unit as of 22 April 2026, 4pm) to private institutions to fill up the fund raising gap required to complete the deal.

In addition, there maybe a need for a 4 years facelift that may cost an additional S$500Mil to S$600Mil as per the management of Cuscaden Group (making up of veterans in real estate HPL, Mapletree and Capitaland). CICT unit-holders may have to bear the execution risk in such an event. 

Nevertheless, on a personal front, I have serious doubt that CICT will want to spend another half a billion CAPEX for such asset enhancement. 

3. Parting Thoughts

From an investment perspective, I will not be investing in CICT. Personally, I do not like the office component present in CICT as my preference is more on a retail concentrated REIT. CICT market price is also trading at 1.17 times its NAV of S$2.11 per unit in April 2026 pro-forma which is overvalued. As a matter of fact, there are better opportunities out there. 

Why Donald Trump Will Cut Down US Military Spending To Reduce US Budget Deficit.

The Government of the United States of America is technically bankrupt. For more than 2 decades, the US deficit has been getting from bad to worse. For illustrative, look at the recent 5 years (2021-2025) whereby US has been running a ballooning budget deficit of US$1.38 trillion to US$2.77 trillion. For 2026, Donald Trump is expected to create an all time high (since COVID) deficit of over US$2 trillion with the US war “adventure" in Iran- this will be a whopping  12% of GDP. The failure and upcoming refund of the illegal import tariffs is only going to worsen the deficit. Its heavy spending on healthcare (Medicare and Medicaid) as well as social security by being a welfare state are placing huge burden on its public finance. 

Donald Trump To Cut Down US Military Presence in Europe and Asia

Already, we are seeing Trump using the excuse of the Iran War and no assistance from its European allies to “re-evaluate” its military assets deployed in Europe. I believe US will gradually reduce the number of US overseas military bases as well as its overseas military personnel to reduce unsustainable military spending so as to rein in the deficit. While US is still a powerful nation, it is no longer a “super power” like it used to be immediately post World War 2.  

Donald Trump has also succeed in isolating America from its allies by pursuing (i) import tariffs (that economics 101 lesson has clearly stated the negative repercussion) against all nations and (ii) withdrawal of military resources from allied nations to prioritise fighting the war in Iran. 

Parting Thoughts

The MAGA movement led by Trump seems to be doing more harm than good to US and as a matter of fact, it is hastening the US decline as a global super power. We are now starting to see the decline of the US dollars starting with the cracks appearing in the US petrol dollar regime. 

Passive Income Personal Updates and 1 More Week Of World Peace Countdown.

Based as at April 15, 2026 announcement- Excluding Endowus & Margin Financing Cost

Looks like for upcoming Q2 2026, the dividends flow from my stock portfolios will be low again. The highest peak for dividends pay date for my portfolios are usually in the month of March and September. With the US Iran ceasefire negotiation still going on, I truly hope that it will at least get another 2 weeks to 1 month extension even if the 2nd round of peace talk failed to come to an agreement. My target of achieving S$1.3Mil gross investment at the end of 2026 seems to be in jeopardy. 

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Diversification and Bonds

For the current stock market crisis triggered by the blockage of oil supply at the Straits of Hormuz, I guess I was lucky to have suffered only a slight decline in portfolio valuation This was mainly due to the following:

1. Focused more on Singapore and Hong Kong listed equities with only very tiny exposure to US equities which are way too overvalued in my personal opinion;

2. Diversification is important. I am currently holding onto around 25 equity counters and numerous unit trusts. Unit Trusts are important for diversification and reduces the incidences of going down to zero value should any stock in it faced total business collapse and

3. Having bonds inside investment portfolio does help reduces volatility. While this is basic common sense, retail investors like myself often struggle to buy bond directly as the minimum size to hold is often large and there will be insufficient diversification to avoid concentrated default risk.  A bond fund thus solve this problem. I have been investing in Unit Trust funds under the Endowus platform.

Parting Thoughts

Let's enjoy the peace and quiet for another week before the deadline for US-Iran ceasefire expire and see whether Donald Trump and Iran will extend it further. While the expectation gaps between the 2 sides are still enormous, there are numerous signs that both wanted to end the conflict and find some common ground. 

Got Conned By A "Financial Planner"- The New Scammer Operation.

A week ago, I received a phone call from a "Wealth Planner" from Singlife who claimed that I have signed up for a free blue-tooth enabled wireless ear-piece set. All I have to do was to meetup this Wealth Planner and then collect it. This triggered off my memory of another similar incident earlier this year. In January 2026, I have also received such call from a lady who proclaimed the same assertion. My response then was that I don't recall ever signing up for such promotion and hence not going, the financial planner quickly told me it is a free gift and I just have to turn up for an appointment. When I insisted that I do not want to go, the financial planner tone change immediately into frustration and said that the gift is free and she cannot understand why I am not interested to even go to meet-up. Thereafter, she ended the phone conversation rudely. 

1. Decided to Give a Chance- Meet-up with New Financial Scammer Planner 

Anyway, back to this latest fiasco. This Wealth Planner offer the same free-ear piece meet-up ruse. Since I have free time and also wanted to learn more about the latest investment products, I decided to accede to the meetup request. For ease of reference, I will give this Wealth Planner a fictitious name called "Ryan". 

I told Ryan to meet me up at Toast Box near my workplace during lunch for further discussion.

When I reached, Ryan was already there. He quickly took out his gigantic tablet and asked me what insurance policies do I have with Singlife and that he is actually an independent financial advisor who represents a number of insurance companies such as Income, HSBClife, Tokio Marine Life etc. I was thinking whether I need to buy some coffee for both of us since I sense that this Ryan is the type who will only buy his customer drinks if there is a confirmed deal but he seems very anxious to present his sales products immediately and being polite, I decided to let him carry on first.

After seeing that I already have many insurance policies from critical illness, H&S, PA, income replacement policies, Ryan changed tactic and showed me a list of financial needs, namely, (i) Insurance, (ii) Savings, (iii) CPF & (iv) Investments and asked me directly to tell him what I need.  I was flabbergasted at that juncture and thought how come Financial Planner work in such a manner that is so unprofessional. 

2. Investment Recommendation by Financial Scammer

My reply to Ryan latest query as above mentioned is that I am more interested in investment and that my preference is more of income-focused type.

Ryan immediately flashed a 7% dividend yield ILP and began marketing it to me. Ryan also told me that this product apparently got 20% bonus upfront for the 1st year premium of S$20K. I told Ryan that I have serious doubt of a financial product that can give 7% dividend yield constantly every year. Only then did Ryan clarified that part of the "dividends" will be paid out of capital....OMG!

Seeing that I am not interested, Ryan quickly whipped up another ILP from Tokio Marine Life, that has a Japan focused theme fund that pays out high dividends and also double digit growth for past few years. I told Ryan that I have my reservation about Japan that had a lost decade due to deflation and most recently, high inflation and probably stagflation in future. Also, one of the top 10 investment of this fund has Toyota which has been losing lots of global market shares to China electric cars and that I am really struggling to take this product up.  

It does not end there, Ryan along with his indomitable spirit quickly recommend that he got ILP that will allow me to choose and customise my own unit trust funds. Next, I asked him this question: "If I can choose and customise the funds, then what is the initial cost as well as annual management cost of this ILP? Will this be similar or cheaper than the digital wealth management platform of Endowus?" 

3. Financial Scammer Beating Hasty Retreat

Ryan did not address my question directly. Instead he suddenly began packing his gigantic tablet and told me that he got another urgent appointment and that he will send some of those previous proposals presented to me for consideration (deep in my heart, I knew that he was just lying through his teeth about sending those proposals to me) and then suddenly disappear from Toast Box in the blink of an eye and I found myself staring into thin air. This Ryan was actually a magician! 

Parting Thoughts

Well, I think this meet-up is a total waste of time. But I kind of half expected it. In a way, I think that some wealth planners like Ryan actually needs to be sent back to financial planning courses as the way he approached it haphazardly seems to be more of with an overwhelming interest to sell products and taking commission rather than analysing what a prospective client really need. Last but not least, beware of the free blue-tooth ear piece ruse....haha! 

Ok, that's all from me today. Have a great week ahead folks!

Investment Portfolios Updates (10 April 2026) - Net Investment of S$931K and Projected Annualised Passive Income of S$53K.

It has been some time since I last updated my portfolio. Unfortunately, not much difference for my portfolio growth as my SREITs got hammered down badly again from the global oil crisis triggered by the US-Iran war. As of this post, the Straits of Hormuz whereby 20% of the World's oil supply are being shipped from the Middle East remain blocked. Previously, Iran allows countries which paid extortion fees of US$1 per barrel of oil (total as much as US$2Mil per tanker which carries up to 2 million barrels) via crypto currency to cross however, crazy Donald Trump has setup a US Naval blockage to stop all such ships in order to prevent Iran from monetising and profiting self-proclaimed protection fees. 

Nevertheless, I managed to improve my projected dividend income this year by switching lower yield Keppel Ltd, Capitaland China Trust and Ping An Insurance Group for Link REIT which has a higher yield of 7%. This will be an average yield per month of S$4.4K. Please see my further elaboration in my margin Portfolio 2 below.

1. Portfolio 1- Stocks Held in SGX Central Depository 

Finally took profit off Har Paw Corporation by selling all my shares to realise 100% profits. Have re-invested in Genting Singapore which is currently at its 52 week low price. With Genting capital expenditure of US$5.3 billion for waterfront expansion, it will continue to attract tourists. 

2. Portfolio 2- Margin Purchased Securities
(Note: My margin purchased securities has grown to a sufficient scale to sustain itself and can pay off annual financing charges as well as to gradually pay down the margin loan through the dividends generated.) 

Keppel Ltd and Ping An Insurance Group has enjoyed close to 90% to 100% capital and dividend  gain and its dividend yield has thus dropped significantly relative to my original investment cost. I have sold off part of my stake in Keppel Ltd and all my Ping An Insurance stocks and bought Link REIT which was offering dividend yield of close to 7% and way below its NTA per unit. 

Additionally, I have sold off all my Capitaland China Trust earlier this year and switched to Link REIT.

3. Portfolio 3 (with Tiger Brokers and MooMoo) 

(Venture into higher risk as well as capital growth stocks here)

Bought additional Link REIT here and also bite the bullet and sold off bulk of my Oceanus shares.

4. Portfolio 4 (Endowus Unit Trusts & Other Investments)

Took quick profits off my gold fund. Also took out S$10K for my personal use due to an urgent need to do some home enhancement via my Endowus Pine Asia Pacific Bond fund.

Parting Thoughts

To be honest, I am extremely disappointed that the SREIT rally since Q4 2025 has now reversed due to the global oil crisis and seems that I am back to square one. The consolation is that many stocks and REITs are now at a huge discount. Have thus took this opportunity to buy more equities with a view to be cautious since the oil crisis will get worse and we are staring at the probability of a deep global recession.

Trump and Iran Need To Sit Down To Talk And Stop The Senseless Fighting and Blockage of Hormuz.

Donald Trump act blur again. How can a ceasefire not include his best friend from Israel which just intensified its bombing on Lebanon? Iran also desperate until it decides to weaponize the Straits of Hormuz against the whole world to exert pressure on the Global Economies. Totally no respect for the Law of the Sea for international navigation through straits. Now it even wants to blackmail countries into paying toll for safe passage through the Straits of Hormuz. How is this different from piracy?

US and Israel started this war and are now finding it extremely painful to end it. Makes one wonder what are their real military objectives in the first place? Iran is still shooting ballistic missiles and launching drones non-stop at everybody- they seemed to have an endless supply of them hidden deep underground. Many ordinary folks in Iran and Lebanon have been killed in this war, it is time to end the violence and senseless bloodshed. Donald Trump need to wake up and stop his Art of the Deal nonsense and negotiate a peace settlement in good faith.

Personally, I think that Trump had already TACO on this painful war that is going to make his life extremely miserable once his Republican party lose big during the upcoming mid-term election. Nevertheless, US not continuing the war does not mean that this war is over since the Straits of Hormuz is now being used by the Iranians to restrict the amount of oil that gets out. For local holding onto SREITs, the rally from Q4 2025 is gone and now back to square one. Interest rates will also start to rise again as evident from recent hints given by the US Federal Reserve folks.  

Capitaland Ascendas Rights Issuance Via CDP Account Instead of ATM.

With the 2 weeks ceasefire just announced between US and Iran and the Capitaland Ascendas REIT ("CLAR") rights issuance price of S$2.35 per unit against market price of S$2.57 per unit as at April 8, 2026 (Wednesday), this is an immediate capital gain of S$0.22 per unit or +9.36%. I thought that it is a no-brainer that everyone will rush in to subscribe for their allotment. Looks like getting excess units will be extremely challenging. 

1. Personal Thoughts On Buy Or Skipped Rights Issuance?

Please read my previous post here: 

Capitaland Ascendas REIT Rights Issuance in Midst of US-Iran War-Subscribe Or Wait?

2. Use CDP Investor Portal To Purchase Instead of Via ATM

This is my first time using the CDP Investor Portal for purchase and I decided to try it for the convenience since it means one does not need to walk to the nearest ATM machine anymore. I noticed that the CDP instruction guidance on the instruction booklet and CDP website is neither user friendly nor intuitive. I will do a quick walkthrough here in this section:   

2.1 Go to https://investors.sgx.com/

2.2 Next, scroll down to find "Today's Highlight" section and therafter "Corporate Action Submission"

2.3 Click on "View full list" if you cannot see Capitaland Ascendas

2.4 Click on Capitaland Ascendas

2.5 Now you will see the Corporate Actions Form Submission for Capitaland Ascendas REIT

2.6 Scroll to bottom to click on "Proceed to log in" using Singpass

Thereafter, just follow the instruction to key in the total number of units (Allotted Plus Excess) and presto, the QR code for PayNow will appear for your payment using your banking App. 

Parting Thoughts

The management of Lendlease Global Commercial REIT must be very upset at their tragic and unfortunate twist of fate during their just recent rights issuance exercise that only has 62.2% subscription. Looks like the rights issuance exercise of CLAR will be hotcake with more than 100% excess being subscribed. 

Donald Trump Unhinged Lunatic- The Opening of Straits of Hormuz Deadline Or Destruction of Iran?

What a week it had been! Iran shot down a US F-15 fighter jet and then there was the subseqent dramatic rescue of the downed aircrew by US Commandos deep in Iran's territory. Strangely, Trump and his Secretary of War (formerly Secretary of Defense before the renaming of this post) have terminated a number of US generals in the midst of the war with Iran. Rumour has it that these were the generals that were against the ground offensive initiative by Trump and Pete Hegseth. In the meantime the vital oil channel, the Straits of Hormuz remains shut off with Iran only allowing a few ships to pass through it. 

Deadline up to Tuesday for Straits of Hormuz to Reopen.

Trump's gave new deadlines (yes, keep repeating the same thingy) for the opening of Straits of Hormuz for Monday (6th April) and then now Tuesday (7th April) else the US will unleash hell on Iran. Trump  had told Iran to “open the f***in’ Strait” or face “living in hell” in an extraordinary swear-laden rant on Sunday.

But, I don't think the Iranians will budge. In fact, the Iranians have stated that they will only consider stopping the war if there is a change in regime in US, that is, a government without Donald Trump before they will negotiate.

European Union and Other Allies Cutting Deal With Iran Without US

Macron, the president of France, has made a good speech recently.  He said that countries should avoid dependence on China's “dominance” and exposure to what he called the “unpredictability” of the United States.

In the meantime, many countries have been cutting deals with Iran to allow some of their ships to pass through unharmed in the Straits of Hormuz.

Additionally, UK has convened a meeting of over 40 countries from every continent of the world, as well as key international organisations including the International Maritime Organisation and the European Union regarding the Straits of Hormuz closure by Iran. The key points being discussed:

(a) Increase international diplomatic pressure, including through the UN, to send clear and co-ordinated messages to Iran to permit unimpeded transit passage through the Strait of Hormuz and to comprehensively reject the imposition of tolls on vessels which seek to pass through.

(b) Explore co-ordinated economic and political measures, such as sanctions, to bear down on Iran if the Strait remains closed.

(c) Work together with the International Maritime Organisation to secure the release of thousands of ships and sailors trapped in the Strait and get shipping moving again.

(d) Joint arrangements to support greater market and operational confidence. This includes working with shipping operators and industry bodies to ensure coherent and timely information sharing.

Parting Thoughts- Investing During War Time

I think that there are signs of improvement in the global oil disruption from the closure of the Straits of Hormuz by Iran with many countries starting to kick off solutions discussion. As such I will be making some additional investment into equities this week. Saying that, no one knows exactly what the unhinged Donald Trump will do next and global markets may crash further. Good to keep some dry powder in such an event. Ok, that's all from me today. Have great week ahead!