Track2Realty: Cushman & Wakefield has expanded into Malaysia with a new office in Kuala Lumpur that is C&W’s 35th office in Asia Pacific.
Sanjay Verma, CEO for Asia Pacific said, “This move is in line with our five year strategic plan, which contains an aggressive expansion plan for our business in Asia Pacific. This new office in Kuala Lumpur will help us further increase the depth and breadth of our service offerings to our global clients.”
Arsh Chaudhry, Executive Managing Director for Cushman & Wakefield in South East Asia said, “Malaysia is a key market for both our investor and occupier clients. It’s the third largest economy in South East Asia, and going forward it is going to play a key role in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). Malaysian capital sources have been active investors in real estate assets across the world and on the back of strong domestic demand, many of our global clients are expanding across Malaysia. Our new Malaysia office is a wholly owned Cushman & Wakefield entity, illustrating our commitment to this exciting market.”
The Malaysia economy grew by 5.1% in 4Q 2013 and 6.2% in 1Q 2014. The momentum of growth is targeted to continue into 2014 supported by resilient demand from the domestic market and firm exports numbers. Contribution from the manufacturing sector has been steadily increasing over the years and currently is known to account for about 25% of GDP.
In addition to growth and development opportunities in the Klang Valley, Cushman & Wakefield sees tremendous opportunities in Iskandar, which has been earmarked by the Malaysian government as a key economic growth region.
In their latest research report; Iskandar Malaysia: The Next Destination, Cushman & Wakefield reveal that the vision for Iskandar is to propel the economic expansion of Malaysia over the next decade (2025) and beyond. To date, Iskandar has attracted RM131 billion in total investments and since 2006, has created 554,000 new jobs. Under the Comprehensive Development Plan for SJER, one of the key development strategies is to attract high value, technology-led industries to Iskandar. Together with numerous, commercial and residential developments projects presently in Iskandar, new job creation is expected to rise rapidly to create an environment of sustainable growth and enhance the competiveness of Malaysia.
Arsh Chaudhry continued, “I see Iskandar complementing Singapore just as Shenzhen does to Hong Kong and New Jersey to New York City. Of the RM 47 billion FDI into this region, over RM 11 billion has come from Singapore. The Ascendas-UEM JV for developing a 210 hectare integrated technology Park in Nusajaya; Capitaland’s JV with Temasek Holdings in Danga Bay for a 71 acre mixed use development; Rowsley’s 10 million sq.ft. mixed-use development in Vantage Bay; and Pacific Star’s residential development in Puteri Cove, all speak to the confidence that Singapore developers have of the synergies between Singapore and Iskandar.”
Sigrid Zialcita, Managing Director, Research, Cushman & Wakefield said, “We believe there is sustainable investment interest in Iskandar Malaysia as prices are still very competitive despite their steady increases over the last five years. Concerted efforts from the relevant planning and regulatory authorities would ensure that Iskandar Malaysia will remain the focal point for investment from both local and foreign investors. As with Kuala Lumpur, the prospects for real estate investment in Iskandar look to be very favorable as immense opportunities are available in this market. The development of the commercial and services clusters in Iskandar is set to further strengthen the existing industrial developments as Malaysia moves towards innovative, research and technology-driven industries.”
