Japan’s Nomura invests in HCMC’s Sun Wah Tower

Tokyo-based real estate firm Nomura has announced a 24 percent acquisition of the Sun Wah Tower on Nguyen Hue Street in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Nomura Real Estate Development Co. Ltd. said it is looking to cash in on opportunities created by the rising demand for office space.

The company did not reveal the value of the deal but it said that the tower, invested in by Hong Kong’s Sun Wah Group, is the very first A-listed office tower in the Asia-Pacific region that it has invested in.

Standing in the heart of HCMC’s District 1, the tower rises 23 floors with a total area of 20,800 square meters (224 square feet).

Sun Wah Tower building on Nguyen Hue Street in Ho Chi Minh City's District 1. Photo by VnExpress/Minh Nga

According to Nomura, HCMC lacks A-listed office space, demand for which is expected to increase in the future.

Investing in Sun Wah Tower was a sound move given its prime location, the company said.

Up to 85 percent of the building’s current tenants are foreign companies and its occupation ratio as of late last year had reached 99 percent.

The Japanese developer also expressed its ambition to expand its business in Asia. It said it will invest more than 300 billion yen ($27.4 million) in condo apartments and office towers in Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok in Thailand, Shenyang in China and Manila in the Philippines between 2018 and 2025.

Real estate company CBRE Vietnam said last March that positive economic growth, rise in foreign direct investment and improvement of traffic infrastructure in Vietnam are foundations that will boost the development of office market this year.

Vietnam’s economy grew by 6.8 percent last year, the highest in ten years.

In the first five months this year, Vietnam lured $9.9 billion in foreign direct investments, 81.6 percent of the entire amount last year. Ho Chi Minh City took the lead with $2.39 billion (24.2 percent), according to official government data.