Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust's NPI up 1.3% in Q2

The income boost came from Festival Walk mall and its Japanese properties.

Mapletree North Asia Commercial Trust (MNACT) saw its net property income (NPI) rise 1.3% YoY to $84.75m in Q2 from $83.64m in 2018, according to an SGX filing. Gross revenue edged up 0.9% to $105.5m from $104.6m over the same period.

Its distribution per unit (DPU) hit 1.937 cents in Q2, up 0.6% YoY from 1.926 cents. The increases were attributed to higher rental income from Festival Walk and the higher average rate of HKD and JPY, but partially offset by the lower average rate of RMB.

For the H1 period, NPI grew 5.8% YoY to $169.79m from $160.43m in H1 2018. Its DPU rose 2.1% to 3.887 cents, whilst gross revenue grew 5.7% YoY to $210.4m over the same period.

Festival Walk delivered H1 gross revenue and NPI increases of 4.2% YoY and 4.3% YoY, respectively. Its leasing demand is said to have remained steady, supporting the mall’s full occupancy and positive average rental reversion.Tenants’ sales and shopper traffic for Festival Walk registered declines of 6.6% YoY and 3.6% YoY, respectively, in H1.

Meanwhile, gross revenue and NPI for Gateway Plaza in Beijing were 4.1% YoY and 3.6% YoY lower, respectively, over the same period. This was blamed on a lower average rate of RMB against SGD and a lower average rental rate. For Sandhill Plaza, gross revenue and NPI were also down by 1.3% and 0.3%.

The company’s properties in Japan contributed $25.6m and $19.8m to MNACT’s overall gross revenue and NPI, respectively for H1 from $17.5m and $13.4m a year before.