Note: Trading of EC World REIT has been suspended since 31 August 2023, due to a lack of funds to settle its financing obligations. It was due to submit a proposal on the resumption of trading of its units by 31 May 2025, but had gotten approval by the SGX for another extension till 30 November 2025.
EC World REIT (SGX: BWCU) invests in real estate assets used for e-commerce and port logistics, with all its 7 assets located in China – particularly within the largest e-commerce clusters in Hangzhou in the Yangtze River Delta and Wuhan.
Following the release of its annual report in mid-April, there are no material updates to highlight, apart from an announcement in June that the it has gotten an approval from SGX to submit their proposal to resume the trading of its units by 30 November 2025.
Another update to highlight was on Monday (11 August), where the REIT announced the appointment of Mr Kelvin Chow (formerly the CEO of Lendlease Global Commercial REIT) as the Chairman, Independent Non-Executive Director of the Board, as well as Member, Independent Non-Executive Director of the Audit and Risk Committee as well as the Nominating and Renumeration Committee.
Last evening (13 August), EC World REIT have published its results for the 2nd quarter, and also for the 1st half of FY2025, and in this post, you’ll find a review of its latest financial figures, portfolio occupancy and debt profile:
Financial Figures (2Q FY2024 vs. 2Q FY2025, and 1H FY2024 vs. 1H FY2025)
2Q FY2024 vs. 2Q FY2025:
| 2Q FY2024 | 2Q FY2025 | % Variance | |
| Gross Revenue (S$’mil) | $25.9m | $9.9m | -61.8% |
| Property Operating Expenses (S$’mil) | $2.1m | $1.9m | -9.5% |
| Net Property Income (S$’mil) | $23.9m | $7.9% | -66.9% |
On the whole, it was a very weak set of results reported by EC World REIT in the 2nd quarter, with its gross revenue and net property income tumbling by more than 60% compared to a year ago.
This can be attributed to the termination of master lease agreements upon the lease expiry for Chongxian Port Investment, Beigang Logistics Phase 1, Fu Heng Warehouse, and Fuzhou E-commerce, as well as lower contribution from underlying leases. However, this was partially mitigated by income contribution from new 3rd party leases secured for Hengde Logistics Phase 1.
In RMB-terms, EC World REIT’s gross revenue and net property income plunged by 59.5% and 64.6% year on year.
Finally, there is no distributable income to unitholders for the current period under review (compared to S$6.2 million a year ago) mainly due to the significant decline in revenue.
1H FY2024 vs. 1H FY2025:
| 1H FY2024 | 1H FY2025 | % Variance | |
| Gross Revenue (S$’mil) | $51.2m | $22.6m | -55.9% |
| Property Operating Expenses (S$’mil) | $4.1m | $3.8m | -7.3% |
| Net Property Income (S$’mil) | $47.2m | $18.7m | -60.4% |
For the 1st half of the year, EC World REIT’s gross revenue and net property income recorded a huge plunge as well, by 55.9% and 60.4% year on year to S$22.6 million and S$18.7 million respectively. In RMB-terms, it was down by 54.0% and 58.5% year on year respectively.
This can largely be attributed to the termination of master lease agreements upon lease expiry, along with lower contribution from underlying leases, partially offset by income contribution from new 3rd party leases secured for Hengde Logistics Phase 1.
Also, just like for the 2nd quarter, there is no distributable income to unitholders (compared to S$13.5 million a year ago) due to a huge decline in the REIT’s gross revenue.
Portfolio Occupancy Profile (1Q FY2025 vs. 2Q FY2025)
As far as the occupancy rate of EC World REIT’s properties go, there have been some stable improvements in the recent quarters, as follows: 71.3% (1Q FY2024) -> 80.2% (2Q FY2024) -> 84.1% (3Q FY2024) -> 86.3% (4Q FY2024) -> 86.6% (1Q FY2025).
However, leases has been short, with a weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of between 0.7 years and 1.3 years in the same period.
So, how is its portfolio occupancy of the REIT for the current quarter under review (i.e., 2Q FY2025 ended 30 June 2025) compared against that reported in the previous quarter (i.e., 1Q FY2025 ended 31 March 2025)? Let us find out in the table below:
| 1Q FY2025 | 2Q FY2025 | |
| Portfolio Occupancy (%) | 86.6% | 86.6% |
| Portfolio WALE (by Gross Revenue – years) | 1.3 years | 1.1 years |
EC World REIT’s portfolio occupancy remained the same compared to the previous quarter – at 86.6%.
Improvements can be seen in the occupancy rate of Fu Heng Warehouse (from 71.3% in 1Q FY2025 to 75.3% in 2Q FY2025), as well as in Wuhan Meiluote (from 84.1% in 1Q FY2025 to 91.6% in 2Q FY2025).
On the other hand, declines in occupancy rates were recorded in Fuzhou E-commerce (from 74.5% in 1Q FY2025 to 71.5% in 2Q FY2025), and in Chongxian Port Logistics (from 97.5% in 1Q FY2025 to 96.1% in 2Q FY2025).
Meanwhile, the occupancy rates in Stage 1 Properties of Bei Gang, Hengde Logistics, and Chongxian Port Logistics remained unchanged at 100%, 90.9% and 88.9% respectively.
As far as lease expiries goes, there is a huge bulk of them due for renewal over the next year and a half – 53.7% in the 2nd half of FY2025, and 28.8% in FY2026. Should the REIT be unable to secure renewals for the leases, then its financial performance will spiral down even further, and sinking it deeper into trouble.
Debt Profile (1Q FY2025 vs. 2Q FY2025)
EC World REIT’s aggregate leverage have been on the rise over the past 3 quarters, as follows: 56.1% (3Q FY2024) -> 56.5% (4Q FY2024) -> 56.8% (1Q FY2025).
The same can also be said for its average cost of debt, which have been on a steady rise in the same time period: 7.9% (3Q FY2024) -> 8.2% (4Q FY2024) -> 8.8% (1Q FY2025).
Has the REIT’s debt profile further deteriorated in the current quarter under review (i.e., 2Q FY2025) when compared against the previous quarter (i.e., 1Q FY2025)? Let us find out in the table below:
| 1Q FY2025 | 2Q FY2025 | |
| Aggregate Leverage (%) | 56.8% | 72.4% |
| Interest Coverage Ratio (times) | 1.4x | 1.1x |
| Average Cost of Debt (%) | 8.8% | 8.6% |
| Average Term to Debt Maturity (years) | 0.4 years | 0.2 years |
Of note in its latest debt profile is the huge 15.6 percentage point (pp) surge in its aggregate leverage to another new high of 72.4%, and also its average term to debt maturity at just 0.2 years – both of these statistics alarming to note.
CEO Mr Goh Toh Sim’s Comments & Outlook (Extracted from the REIT’s Press Release)
“On semi-annual basis, the revenue in RMB terms was 54.0% lower compared to 1HFY2024 mainly due to termination of master leases. The Manager has been continuing to negotiate with the Sponsor to resolve the outstanding receivables and will endeavour to resolve with the Sponsor via its Administrator with PRC Counsel’s assistance.
The Manager remains focused to actively explore options to divest some or all of the Group’s properties to pare down existing loan facilities with cash proceeds in order to be accepted by the lenders of the Offshore Facility for a possible refinancing or restructuring. At the date of this announcement, the Group has not received any offer to purchase from potential buyers, nor any notice of enforcement action from the lenders. In the meantime, the Manager, under the close guidance of all independent directors, continues to make its best endeavour to stabilise the performance of the ECW Group amid the ongoing persisting challenges from operation and financing activities.”
Closing Thoughts
The REIT’s overall position have worsened – with its financial performance for the 2nd quarter tumbled further, where its gross revenue and net property income fell by 61.8% and 66.9%, compared to 49.9% and 53.6% in the 1st quarter, both in Singapore Dollar-terms. Also, just like the 1st quarter, as a result of this significant plunge in its gross revenue, the REIT’s distributable income to shareholders is at zero, compared to S$7.3 million declared in the 1st quarter and S$6.2 million declared in the 2nd quarter.
Even more alarmingly, its aggregate leverage as of 30 June 2025 have leaped to a high of 72.4%, with its average term to debt maturity at just 0.2 years.
Finally, as far as the whole situation surrounding EC World REIT goes, my opinion is that the entire situation faced by the logistics sector in China is not helping (where there’s an oversupply of logistics properties, coupled with the lack of tenants). This has also led to a fall in valuation of the properties. Also, when it comes to divesting some of their properties to repay debt, because of the weakness of the sector, the REIT is faced with the challenge of finding a buyer.
Coupled with its extremely high aggregate leverage ratio, and its average cost of borrowings on an upward climb, I continue to maintain the view that the REIT is closer towards liquidation than it is to recovery (and speaking of which, there are currently no signs of this happening).
With that, I have come to the end of my review of EC World REIT’s latest results for the 2nd quarter, as well as for the 1st half of FY2025. Please note that all the opinions expressed within are purely mine which I’m sharing for educational purposes only.
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Disclaimer: At the time of writing, I am a unitholder of EC World REIT.
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