KUALA LUMPUR: Eco World Development Group Bhd (EcoWorld Malaysia) is upbeat about the prospects of the property market this year, as it expects consumer and business confidence to be boosted by the reopening of the economy.

       Executive director, president and chief executive officer Datuk Chang Khim Wah said the group is hopeful of an economic rebound in 2022 and has positioned itself well to “seize opportunities that may arise.”

       “Based on the group’s performance since the EcoWorld brand first emerged and especially the rebound in sales momentum we experienced amid an ongoing pandemic, it is clear that property demand is location, project and product specific,” he said in the company’s latest annual report.

       For 2022, Chang said EcoWorld Malaysia also intends to further grow its share of the industrial park market.

       “The attractive tax and other incentives offered by the government to increase foreign direct as well as local private investments in key industries and service sectors are expected to help attract more businesses to set up their operations in Malaysia once the international border for business travel relaxes,” he added.

       EcoWorld Malaysia recorded sales of RM3.52bil in the financial year ended Oct 31, 2021 (FY21), 53% higher than in the previous year and 23% higher than the RM2.88bil target it set for the year.

       The property developer posted a revenue of RM2.04bil and a gross profit of RM423.3mil in FY21, which were RM46.1mil and RM91.8mil higher than in FY20, respectively.

       Its net profit for FY21 jumped 14.1% to RM182.74mil from RM160.15mil a year ago, driven by its Malaysian operations.

       In a recent report, PublicInvest Research noted that EcoWorld Malaysia had surpassed its FY21 sales target back in August with sales of RM3.11bil.

       “The group sold 4,984 properties with a total sales value of RM3.52bil for FY21, which is near the historic high of RM3.70bil achieved in FY17, with 60% of the new sales from the central region, 31% from Johor and the remaining 9% from Penang.

       “We understand that sales performance from these three regions have substantially outperformed the group’s targets,” the research house said.

       PublicInvest Research said EcoWorld Malaysia expects sales momentum to continue by setting a new sales target of RM3.5bil in FY22.

       “It has around 4,296 acres of undeveloped land bank with an estimated gross development value of RM62.5bil,” it said.

       The research house noted that the group’s unbilled sales dropped from RM4.1bil in the third quarter of FY21 to RM3.5bil, due to the lack of project launches.

       “However, we believe sales will pick up speed again in the next few months. We understand that it sold properties worth RM376mil in November 2021 alone.

       “Group balance sheet continued to strengthen with cash and bank balances increasing 72% year-on-year while net borrowings reduced by 27%, which saw its net gearing reduced to 0.44 times.”

       Separately, PublicInvest Research said the group’s international arm, Eco World International (EWI), achieved RM1.38bil sales in FY21, close to the RM1.38bil sales achieved in the previous year.

       “Share of results in joint ventures was lower by 73% year-on-year to RM47.2mil.

       “This was partly due to additional incentives given to purchasers of completed units within the EcoWorld-Ballymore portfolio and higher commissions paid to agents to accelerate sales after the expiry of the UK stamp duty holiday in June 2021.”

       PublicInvest Research pointed out that EWI has set a sales target of RM2bil for FY22.