Japan

Daily JAPAN: Rental Rates for Last Mile Industrial Real Estate Poised to Move Higher in Most Key Global Markets and more

In this briefing:

  1. Rental Rates for Last Mile Industrial Real Estate Poised to Move Higher in Most Key Global Markets
  2. Core US Sectors Leading an S&P Major Support Break
  3. Japan Display: Squeezing Up 36% As Chinese Investment Could Solve Balance Sheet Troubles
  4. CKD (6407) Hit Buy China Slowdown. Now Excessively Cheap and Cutting Costs.
  5. Goldwin Tops Sports Market Growth Through Store Investment

1. Rental Rates for Last Mile Industrial Real Estate Poised to Move Higher in Most Key Global Markets

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  • New industry data this week, plus take-aways from  our latest discussions with company managements, all confirm that the likely trend in the industrial segment of the global real estate industry is for rental rates to rise.
  • The growth in e-commerce is continuing to accelerate globally. In some key market, this is “triggering a land grab for distribution space that experts say is accelerating”.
  • Therefore, the increasing scarcity value of well situated industrial real estate in high demand markets is likely to continue to push up rental rates to higher and higher levels.
  • Given our expectation that fundamentals driving the growing demand for Last Mile Industrial real estate are likely to persist, we continue to expect this segment to outperform the broader Real Estate sector for the foreseeable future.

2. Core US Sectors Leading an S&P Major Support Break

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We see increasing evidence of a failed December risk on phase as core sectors break below supports and early 2018 lows in a lead fashion.

Our underperform/bear call for banks, small caps, tech and transports to lead a bigger market spiral is taking shape. Small caps, banks and transports are now breaking early 2018 lows, signaling a broader S&P break below 2,600 may in fact be unfolding now rather than in January/Q1.

Fed speak will dominate a break/bounce next week but a break down is in the cards, regardless in 2019.

Breadth remains bearish.

USD/JPY teetering on a pattern breakout. Gold is not trading well given it has decoupled from traditional correlations.

Big net outflows recorded in key sectors/markets last week.

3. Japan Display: Squeezing Up 36% As Chinese Investment Could Solve Balance Sheet Troubles

As we mentioned in a comment in  Japan Display: Cost Structure Improvement Is Good but Shipment Delay and IPhone XR Cloud Outlook the NHK reported last night that JDI was in talks with a Chinese consortium to secure something in the region of ¥50bn in funding (more than its market cap yesterday) for a more than 33% stake in the company. The Nikkei shed light on the identities of some of the consortium this morning mentioning investment fund Silk Road, Minth Group Ltd (425 HK) and  Shenzhen O Film Tech Co A (002456 CH). Bloomberg has also mentioned that the consortium could invest a further ¥500bn to establish a new facility in China for the production of OLED panels.

We spoke to the company this morning to get colour on these announcements.

4. CKD (6407) Hit Buy China Slowdown. Now Excessively Cheap and Cutting Costs.

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To us the shares are have now fully discounted the current spate of bad news. The company has a very strong balance sheet and owns 10% in itself. The shares are on 0.9x book, they yield 3.7% and trade on a 3/20 EV/ebitda multiple of 3.8x, assuming ebitda next year of Y16.5bn. Unless one is exceedingly bearish on the outlook for the global economy, then these shares are starting to look attractive here. They have fallen 65% year to date, yet longer term management has a clear strategy with regards to improving profitability.

5. Goldwin Tops Sports Market Growth Through Store Investment

Mizuno

Marketing of sports brands has become increasingly retail-led in the last decade and a focus on retailing has enabled Goldwin (8111 JP) to make serious gains while the two biggest domestic brands, Asics Corp (7936 JP) and Mizuno Corp (8022 JP), have been distracted by overseas expansion.

Goldwin took a close look at its beleaguered business 15 years ago and decided retail could be its salvation.

At current rates it will catch up with Mizuno’s domestic sales in a few years.

Overall, we are bullish about Goldwin but also the wider sports category because sports and sports fashion is in many ways one of the few consumer categories to be largely immune to a demographically challenged market like Japan – all age segments are buying into sports apparel, including the over 60s.