News roundup: Visitors flock to the Vinh Hy tourism village in Vietnam, plus other updates

For PropertyGuru’s real estate news roundup, tourists flock to the Vinh Hy tourism village in Ninh Hai district, the south-central province of Ninh Thuan, in Vietnam. In more news, Japan continues to attract foreign investors with its stable performance and cheap debt financing costs. Finally, Hong Kong’s data centre supply has outpaced demand, resulting in higher vacancy levels.

An idyllic village in Ninh Thuan province of Vietnam has a lot to offer to tourists

Tourists have thronged the Vinh Hy tourism village in Ninh Hai district, the south-central province of Ninh Thuan for its idyllic natural beauty and fascinating experiences.

Starting from Phan Rang – Thap Cham city, a 40-kilometre journey to the northwest will bring visitors to Vinh Hai commune where the village lies in its tranquil and scenic beauty with verdant mountaintops and crystal clear azure waters that shape up the renowned Vinh Hy Bay – one of the four most stunning inlets in Vietnam.

The 745-family village has much to offer its visitors, ranging from sea-based and resort to eco-tourism. Particularly, taking a glass-bottom boat ride is a spellbinding way to explore the ocean bed teaming with colourful coral reefs.

According to VietnamPlus, the allure of the village comes not only from the unspoiled views of the Ca heo (dolphin) cape, Rua (turtle) islet and Yen cave, or interesting activities like squid fishing at night and taking a serene stroll at the beach but also from the standout taste of the local seafood such as lobster, sea urchin, cobia and spotted-babylon snail.

No letup in foreign investors’ appetite for Japan

Japan has long been a popular choice for investors from all over the world but is still adding followers attracted to its stable performance and cheap debt financing costs.

Andy Hurfurt, Director of Institutional Investment & Advisory, at Savills Japan, says: “We continue to see a broad spectrum of overseas investors here, representing around 25-30 percent of reported transaction volumes every year. The yen is cheap by historic standards and that is also attracting investors.”

Alongside established foreign players, including Axa IM, Blackstone Group, ESR, Gaw Capital, GIC, PGIM Real Estate, Nuveen and Savills Investment Management, several global real estate investors have opened offices or appointed new senior staff recently.

Japan is also seeing an upswing in interest from Asian family offices and high-net-worth individuals, says Hurfurt in the Savills report. These investors tend to be from Singapore or Hong Kong and are familiar with Japan. Most are targeting the multifamily sector or perhaps hospitality and are looking to invest USD50-300 million in Japanese real estate.

Hong Kong’s data centre market continues to attract occupiers – CBRE

Geopolitical challenges continue to influence the data centre plans of multinational retail and enterprise companies in Hong Kong. The slowing Chinese economy has also hindered mainland Chinese occupiers, the primary market participant, from being active, according to a new report from CBRE.

RETalk Asia reports that Hong Kong is a major connectivity and commercial hub acting as a gateway to China. “The demand for data centres surged during the pandemic due to the shift towards using more cloud-based systems,” said Samuel Lai, Executive Director, Head of Advisory & Transaction Services – Industrial & Logistics, CBRE Hong Kong. “Data centres have proven to be an appealing alternative asset for investors as the leases can be as long as 20 years, indicating a stable, guaranteed return.”

The research report unveils that recent data centre supply has outpaced demand, resulting in higher vacancy levels. While mainland Chinese companies and international hyper scalers drive most absorption, Hong Kong IT service providers have also boosted regional take-up. The current wave of supply is expected to continue until mid-2025 before tapering off, allowing a more balanced long-term supply-and-demand scene.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].