KUALA LUMPUR: Of the 69,205 affordable houses (RMM) constructed, young individuals own 44,983 units, which represents 65% of the total, says to Nga Kor Ming.

The Housing and Local Government Minister said that 25,903 units of the National Housing Company Limited residences have been sold, and 76.9% or 19,909 units are owned by the youth.

He said that 25,030 of 41,671, or 60.1%, of the affordable house units open for sale by the 1Malaysia People’s Housing Programme (PR1MA) are owned by the youth.

“This does not include projects implemented in collaboration with PR1MA,” he said during his ministry’s winding-up session for the 2025 budget on Tuesday (Nov 26).

Meanwhile, he said that 166 People’s Housing Projects (PPR) have been completed with 104,081 housing units.

“Of this number, 26 PPRs comprising three rented PPR projects, two owned PPR projects and 21 RTO PPR projects are under the ministry’s supervision.

“Based on records, 35.90% of household heads (KIR) are between the ages of 31 and 40,” he added.

Source: Vnexpress

KUALA LUMPUR: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is looking to improve economic growth and trade within the region through building better transportation and logistics networks.

This would also allow member states to insulate themselves from rising geopolitical and economic risks.

But the task ahead for the trading bloc remains challenging, as countries have to work on simplifying customs clearance and removing red tape, said observers.

“Within ASEAN, we have done quite well,” said Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke, highlighting the grouping’s open skies policy that increases regional connectivity.

For maritime, there are plans for the digitalisation of the region’s ports, so they can share information with each other and become more competitive, he added.

“The rail network (is also) important. There are missing links which have been rectified right now, especially between Laos and China.”

In June, the first ASEAN Express cargo rail service connecting Malaysia to China via Thailand and Laos was launched.

The journey is supposed to take just eight days but instead takes nearly two weeks due to gauge change and customs clearance at the borders.

In rail transport, track gauge refers to the distance between the two rails of a railway track. Several different track gauges exist worldwide, presenting a barrier to wider operation on rail networks.

This happens at the border between Thailand and Laos, as the latter’s railway differs from Malaysia’s and Thailand’s. Each container box has to be lifted by cranes to a
different track.

“It’s a win-win for everyone,” he said. “It is not just that taking down barriers only benefits one country, but it benefits the region as a whole.”

Source: CNA

MANILA, Philippines — A majority of office locators are likely to consider expansion activities to other markets in the country in the next three to five years, according to a survey by Santos Knight Frank (SKF).

Results of the 2024 Occupier Sentiment Survey showed expansion is the top real estate strategy for office occupiers, as voted by 64 percent of respondents.

“After the series of right-sizing initiatives at the height of the pandemic and the years that followed, sentiment toward expansion is now recovering. This is aligned with recorded improving occupancy levels in the Metro Manila office market wherein net absorption for the first half of 2024 is 125 percent more than the annual total for 2023,”
SKF said.

It added that while a vast majority of respondents considering expansion come from companies that are already based in the National Capital Region, Metro Manila still commands the highest share in terms of where the respondents want to expand, at 33 percent.

Other locations that are part of the five most preferred areas of expansion are Metro Cebu (31 percent), other parts of Visayas (30 percent), other
parts of Luzon (23 percent) and Iloilo (18 percent).

“It seems that the preference for expansion prospects is more tied to where there are existing facilities that can support these occupiers’ operations, rather than compelling them to explore build-to-suit arrangements,” SKF said.

The survey, participated by various stakeholders from office occupiers coming from different sectors and industries, asked locators for their insights on their real estate strategies such as expansion, changes in office design or layout, changes in footprint in their current
location, and relocation.

Following expansion, layout or design changes registered the second largest votes at 22 percent. Additionally, 19 percent of respondents said they are likely to pursue changes in footprint in existing locations while 13 percent said they are considering relocation.

In terms of office layout changes, SKF noted that the occupier sentiment survey showed that adopting a more collaborative work design is the top choice among Philippine-based office locators who plan to make changes to their office layout and design, at 95 percent.

Source: Phistar