Daily Briefing: Systra, Meinhardt bag design contracts for HSR project; Wilmar's solid start to 2017

And find out which REIT is capitalising on the favourable US office market.

From PropertyGuru: Global engineering companies Systra and Meinhardt have been awarded two Reference Design Consultant (RDC) contracts by MyHSR Corporation, and is responsible for implementing the Singapore-Kuala Lumpur High-Speed Rail (HSR) project in Malaysia, reported Today Online. This comes three months after American company Aecom was awarded the contract to design the Singapore infrastructure for the HSR project. 

From The Motley Fool: As Asia’s leading agribusiness group, Wilmar is engaged in a variety of businesses. According to its corporate profile, the company has 500 manufacturing facilities and a distribution network which spans some 50 countries. These businesses are divided into four main business segments: Tropical Oils, Oilseeds and Grains, Sugar, and Others.

From CNBC via Yahoo!: The improving business climate in the United States has fueled greater demand for offices in the country at a time when supply is still short — a trend that one Singapore -listed real estate investment trust has benefited from. Manulife U.S. REIT, whose portfolio comprises three freehold office buildings in Los Angeles, Irvine and Atlanta, said the favourable conditions have led to a 5 to 7 percent increase in rents over the last 12 months.