[ET Net News Agency, 28 November 2018] Wharf REIC (01997) provided an operational
update on its 3Q business. Its trophy shopping malls, Harbour City and Times Square,
displayed a significant moderation in retail sales growth.
While the retail sales performance of Harbour City continued to outperform overall Hong
Kong in 3Q, another project, Times Square, started to underperform, HSBC Global Research
said.
The trend is consistent with what the research house anticipated, which is that HK
retail sales growth would display a decelerating momentum to low single digits in the
coming months.
HSBC sees limited share price catalysts for Wharf REIC in 4Q, as its share price is
highly correlated to HK retail sales given its high exposure to the retail market. It thus
maintained its "hold" rating, with a target price of HK$54.4. (KL)