Charter Hall Retail REIT continues to deliver in line with expectations the company announced as part of an operation update for the quarter ending 31 March 2013.
During the quarter, the REIT finalised the sale of its interest in the last United States joint venture entity with Regency Centers. The sale of these assets was in line with book value and realised net proceeds of $11 million, which will be reinvested into Australian acquisitions or redevelopment opportunities. The REIT now has only three small assets remaining in the United States which are being marketed for sale.
The company also completed 83 new leases and renewals across the Australian portfolio, delivering specialty rental rate growth of 3 per cent during the quarter, with occupancy maintained at 98.5 per cent.
Anchor tenant MAT growth for stores in turnover was 4.3 per cent at 31 March 2013, highlighting the resilience of the REIT's non-discretionary Australian portfolio. Specialty shop sales grew at 1.4 per cent.
“We are pleased to report that our Australian portfolio continued to deliver solid results during the third quarter, reflecting the strength of the non-discretionary retail sector,” Scott Dundas, fund manager of the REIT, said.
“As we finalise the reweighting of the REIT’s portfolio to Australia, we will continue to enhance our existing Australian portfolio through accretive acquisitions and redevelopments, with approximately $100 million of works currently underway.”