Contrast this bounty with the lackluster performance of real-estate investment trusts.
Singapore property owners have spent a long time languishing in the shadow of the chart-topping performance of the island’s banks. But with US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaling the start of monetary easing from next month, the landlords’ day in the sun may not be far away.
Higher-for-longer global interest rates pumped up the profitability of loans at Singapore’s three homegrown banks. Last year, DBS Group Holdings Ltd., Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. and United Overseas Bank (SGX:U11
) Ltd. distributed a combined $11.3 billion in dividends, double the 2020 payout. This year, too, DBS has been generous in sharing the spoils of high net interest margins with investors. There hasn’t been much reason — yet — for the lenders to make aggressive provisions for loan losses.
