TORONTO — Brookfield Property Partners LP says it swung to a loss in its latest quarter despite seeing a significant pickup in private real estate investment activity.
“Institutional investors continue to rotate capital from fixed income investments into real assets that generate long-term derisked yield,” CEO Brian Kingston said Tuesday on an earnings call.
The real estate company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says it lost $38 million or 40 cents per unit for the quarter ended Dec. 31.
That compared with a profit of $1.55 billion or $1 per unit in the same quarter a year earlier when it benefited from higher valuation gains, as well as strong performance in several of its investments.
Company funds from operations and realized gains totalled $287 million or 30 cents per unit, down from $459 million or 48 cents per unit in the same quarter a year earlier.
Kingston said the company is encouraged by markets such as China, South Korea and the Middle East, which have seen occupancy return to normal.
While shopper traffic in its malls has not yet recovered to historic levels, all centres remain open and many key tenants reported 2020 sales figures that compare favourably with 2019 holiday numbers.
“A silver lining to the restrictions put in place during the pandemic is that there is significant pent-up demand for consumer spending given the savings that people have accumulated over the past nine months,” Kingston told analysts.
The US$900 billion stimulus approved by Congress in December will help consumers and retailers, he added.
Retailers have increasingly used their stores for distribution of purchases made online, with this activity growing about 500 per cent since the beginning of the pandemic.
“While the showroom area of the store may shrink, retailers are using more space for inventory returns and fulfilment, making the distribution channel itself less relevant, but the location of its physical real estate, more important than ever,” Kingston said
Meanwhile, he said Brookfield is pursuing a third-party verified health safety rating for all of its North American buildings to ensure that it’s “at the forefront of the industry in a post-pandemic environment.”
For the full-year, Brookfield Property Partners lost $2.5 billion or $2.39 per unit, compared with a profit of $3.16 billion or $1.89 per unit in 2019.
Company funds from operations and realized gains totalled $952 million or 97 cents per unit, versus $1.51 billion or $1.57 per unit a year earlier.
Brookfield Asset Management Inc. offered US$5.9 billion last month to buy the stake in Brookfield Property Partners that it does not already own.
Brookfield Property Partners says a special committee of independent directors has hired external legal and financial advisers and they are considering the proposal worth US$16.50 per unit.
The company holds a diverse real estate portfolio of properties around the world.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2021.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
