UEM Sunrise maintains RM1.2b sales target this year

KUALA LUMPUR: UEM Sunrise Bhd is not impacted by the changes in the board of Khazanah Nasional Bhd and has maintained its sales target of RM1.2 billion for 2018 with improved sentiment among buyers.
UEM Sunrise managing director and CEO Anwar Syahrin Abdul Ajib said so far it has achieved about 60%-70% of its sales target.
“We’re optimistic but we like to be cautious. Anything extra will be a bonus,” he said at a media briefing last Friday, where it is making homes more affordable by offering 300 homes, mainly in Cyberjaya and Johor Baru, for as low as RM293,000.
He said the sales numbers for the first half of the year have showed that things were picking up and that the sentiment was quite good, coupled with the change of government that subsequently provided the feel-good factor and confidence to the market.
He said given the number of property supplies that are coming in, developers are being careful with launches and what they bring to the market.
UEM Sunrise is optimistic with the new government and Anwar lauded some of the government’s moves to get developers to embark on affordable housing on government-owned land.
“We want to wait and see what kind of policy that they (the government) have ... compliance costs, an entity that oversees affordable housing is a good move, from there we will have better clarity.”
On Khazanah, Anwar said it has not spoken to the Khazanah board members and that there is no engagement with the sovereign wealth fund yet.
“No, we’ve not talked to them (Khazanah). That’s very high level. We’re not worried (about movements in Khazanah) because we’re professionals. We’re answerable to our board so there’s very clear corporate governance in place for us.
“For us, it’s about coming up with exciting products, running the business responsibly for our shareholders. We’re continuing that and we’re starting to look at ways to be ready for next year. We need to deliver the numbers for this year, bringing in enforcements (appointments of senior executives) and it’s about addressing the market to help the government deliver on the housing sector,” said Anwar.