Wheelock’s new flats in Tseung Kwan O get tepid reception as protests keep chipping away at sentiment
- Slow day of sales for batch of flats at Marini, Grand Marini projects shows how political crisis is rapidly sapping appetite among buyers
A batch of new flats at a project in Tseung Kwan O failed to hit the mark with investors on Wednesday as sentiment continues to dwindle amid violent protests that show no sign of abating.
By 8.10pm Wheelock Properties had managed to sell just 177 out of 318 units that went on sale at its Marini and Grand Marini projects.
Just 12 days earlier, buyers had snapped up 435 of 500 flats in the first batch at Marini. The contrast shows the alarming rate at which market sentiment is falling as the massive street rallies stretch into their 14th week.
The demonstrations, initially against a now-abandoned extradition bill but now calling for broader democratic reform, have come on top of the protracted US-China trade war which had already drained appetite for property in Hong Kong.
The prolonged political tension has now started to be reflected in the city’s economy, said analysts.
Within the last week, buying sentiment has been further eroded by Fitch Ratings’ downgrade of Hong Kong’s outlook, and a report suggesting the city is losing its appeal with expatriates because of the turmoil.
Applications for general employment visas dropped 7 per cent in August from a year earlier, after rising on an annual basis for most of 2019, according to official figures cited by Bloomberg on Saturday.
