Daily briefing: APAC stock markets lead global charts in H1; SG grants interim authorisation for GSK-developed drug use for COVID-19

And Suntec REIT announces plan to buy London office for US$489m.

From CNBC

Stock markets in Asia Pacific led global equity markets in the first half of the year with Vietnam’s VN Index seeing a 27.6% surge, according to CNBC.

Also, amongst the top-performing markets in the region were Taiwan’s Taiex (+20.52), South Korea’s Kospi (+14.73%), India’s Nifty 50 (+12.44%), and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 (+11.02%).

Meanwhile, amongst the poor performers were Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index (-5.8%) and the Philippines’ PSE Composite Index (-3.33%). According to JPMorgan Private Bank’s Alex Wolf, the South and Southeast Asian equity markets’ recovery will be supported by the vaccination progress.

Read more here.

From CNA

The Health Sciences Authority has granted an interim authorisation for the use of sotrovimab for treating COVID-19 patients.

The sotrovimab is developed by GlaxoSmithKline and Vir Biotechnology. It can be used by patients, aged 18 or older, with mild to moderate COVID-19 cases.

Clinical trial for the sotrovimab is currently underway. It involved more than 1,000 people between the ages of 18 and 96, who showed risk factors of mild to moderate COVID-19 that could progress to a severe case.

Read more here.

From Forbes

Suntec REIT will be buying an office building in London for £353 million, or around US$489 million, as part of its bid to diversify its assets.

The 11-storey Minster Building in London is a grade A office building with an ancillary retail space. It has a gross floor area of 230,000 square feet.

It will be the second investment Suntec REIT made in the UK. Suntec REIT currently has a 50% stake in NOVA Properties, which owns 2 grade A office buildings in London’s West End.

Read more here.