
Thais gobble up London real estate
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/eco ... eal-estate
Published: 27/10/2012 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
Property in London is continuing to attract Thai investors, reaching nearly 10 billion baht in investments year-to-date.
Kongkiat Opaswongkarn, the chief executive of Asia Plus Securities (ASP), said mergers and acquisitions (M&As) have been active in many sectors.
Property prices in London remain high, as it is the prime location for foreign investors, unlike continental European countries, which have experienced a sharp drop in asset values due to the deep impact of the EU financial crisis.
The UK kept the pound and so has not been much affected, said Mr Kongkiat, adding that London property has a distinctive quality that attracts investors from all over the world.
"Even with asset prices in Britain remaining high, buyers are willing to pay. Asian businessmen, especially from the Middle East, are buying London assets mainly and not those in the rest of Europe," said Dr Kongkiat.
He said buyers are afraid of uncertainty, currency fluctuations and property laws in continental Europe.
Investors from all over Asean are taking the opportunity to acquire foreign assets, and cross-border trading and listing activities are increasing.
Apart from real estate, Thai investors are also buying assets in hotels, health care, media, processed foods, construction and materials, and automobiles.
The Thai auto parts sector has benefited from the economic slowdowns in China and Japan, with production bases transferring here, likely leading to more M&A activities in the automotive sector.
The Asean Economic Community slated for 2015 should also open up the healthcare industry, as Thailand and Malaysia offer similar quality to Singapore at much lower prices, said Mr Kongkiat.
But Thai small and medium-sized enterprises as well as state enterprises must prepare for intense competition from regional integration.
ASP plans to list a new holding company on the Stock Exchange of Thailand this year, as holding firms are a new sector that can be used to raise funds for investment abroad.
The client is a Thai company that invests in China, said Dr Kongkiat.