India’s Fortis Q3 net jumps 59 pct, mulls REIT
Indian hospital chain Fortis Healthcare is evaluating plans to launch a real estate investment trust, or REIT, to free up capital to fuel expansion, its finance chief has said.
Indian hospital chain Fortis Healthcare is evaluating plans to launch a real estate investment trust, or REIT, to free up capital to fuel expansion, its finance chief has said.
The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has suggested the government to introduce Real Estate Investment Trust and Real Estate Mutual Fund to enable investors to own a diversified portfolio of professionally managed assets in the real estate sector. In a note submitted to the government, the Chamber said that the Indian Real estate sector currently lacks any monetization vehicle for capital intensive verticals such as commercial offices and retail malls.
Capital market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has apprehensions over the feasibility of real estate investment trusts (REITs) in India. The regulator had issued draft guidelines for REITs a couple of years ago, but may drop its plan to introduce it now.
Equity capital inflows touched USD 8.9 billion between January and September, registering a 46% Y-o-Y growth. The strong momentum in deal volume continued, with about 200 deals reported during this period, compared to 151 deals in the same period last year. The average deal size also increased to nearly USD 45 million in the first nine months of 2024 from about USD 36 million in 2023. Mid-sized deals, ranging between USD 10-50 million, represented 56% of the total investment inflows during this period.
India continues to exhibit strong economic growth prospects and business optimism is reflected in the increasing number of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in recent years. The traction in the number and volume of public issues lends credibility to an environment of higher corporate earnings, rising participation by retail and institutional investors, and availability of adequate liquidity in the market. With 123 fresh issues (As of 20th October 2024) across multiple sectors, 2024 has already surpassed the total number of IPOs witnessed in 2023.
In a report ‘India Market Monitor Q3 2024 – Investments’, CBRE indicates a robust 46% Y-o-Y growth in real estate equity investments, totalling USD 8.9 billion in Jan-Sep ’24 —the highest-ever recorded since CY 2018, surpassing the USD 7.4 billion total equity investments for CY 2023. On a quarterly basis, equity investments in real estate stood at USD 2.6 bn in the Jul-Sep’24 period. Domestic investors (predominately developers) took the lead with ~79% share in equity capital inflows in Jul-Sep ‘24. Singapore-based investors accounted for nearly 73% of the total foreign capital inflows, followed by the United States (~22%). Developer activity picked pace in Jul- Sep ’24 quarter, accounting for a share of nearly 47% in total equity investments, followed by institutional & collective vehicle investors (~36%).
This long-term growth in real estate is underpinned by six salient growth levers which includes, rapid urbanization, infrastructure development, digitalization, demographic shifts, sustainability and investment diversification; all of which will form the bedrock for a quantum leap in Indian real estate by 2047. These long-term growth ingredients will be pivotal in the expansion of Indian real estate – from under a trillion currently, to potentially a USD 10 trillion market by 2047, accounting for a 14-20% share in the country’s GDP.
Understanding the mindset of Indian real estate has never been easy. The built environment of the Indian real estate could argue and demolish the best of consumer-centric reforms. Remember the way industry body CREDAI had called RERA prior to its inception, and that too in front of the then Union Minister Kamal Nath, builder harassment and public amusement bill. But at the same time they celebrate the self-inflicted injury on many occasions. Track2Realty finds the overtones of the sector all the more contradictory with the Union Budget, before and after the budget.
India continues to experience positive retail growth, attracting foreign retailers to establish a presence in key locations. Charles Tyrwhitt, a men’s luxury fashion brand from the United Kingdom, opened its first store in Ahmedabad. Additionally, Maison Margiela, a French luxury fashion brand, and Franck Provost, a French beauty and wellness brand, entered the Indian market by opening their first stores in Mumbai and Bengaluru, respectively. Other noteworthy expansions include the opening of stores by international brands, such as the Swiss luxury watch brand Breitling and the American luxury fashion brand Michael Kors in Chennai and Pune, respectively. In addition, the Japanese homeware brand Daiso Japan and the skincare and cosmetics brand ILEM Japan also opened stores in Chennai.
DLF has emerged as the top real estate company in the 2024 GROHE-Hurun India Real Estate 100, with a valuation of INR 2,02,140 crore. Following DLF, Macrotech Developers holds the second position with a valuation of INR 1,36,730 crore, and Indian Hotels Company ranks third with INR 79,150 crore. Among the top 10 companies, 60% are headquartered in Mumbai, while two are based in Bengaluru and one each in Gurugram and Ahmedabad.