KUALA LUMPUR: Axis Real Estate Investment Trust’s (Axis-REIT) net property income rose 9.3% to 53.43mil in the second quarter ended June 30, 2021 from RM48.90mil a year ago.

       This is due to contributions from newly acquired properties and commencement of new tenancies at Axis industrial facility in Rawang and the D8 logistics warehouse, it said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.

       In a filing to the stock exchange, the group said its revenue also increased 8.8% to RM60.37mil in the quarter compared to RM55.48mil in the corresponding period a year ago.

       “The net income from operations increased marginally by 0.8% to RM31.4mil from RM31.1mil a year ago,” it said.

       Meanwhile, Axis-REIT’s management company, Axis REIT Managers Bhd, has proposed to distribute 99% of the quarter’s realised income available for distribution, giving a higher distribution per unit of 2.40 sen in the quarter from 2.15 sen per unit distributed a year ago.

       For the first half of FY21 (H1FY21), Axis-REIT’s net property income was up by 6.3% to RM103.3mil from RM97.2mil a year ago.

       “The net income was 4.9% higher, year-on-year (y-o-y), at RM63.3mil from RM60.4mil,” it said.

       In H1FY21, the group’s total trust income rose 6.9% y-o-y to RM117.9mil from RM110.3mil a year ago.

       However, Axis REIT Managers Bhd chief executive officer and executive director Leong Kit May remains cautious of the Covid-19 pandemic which has caused global economic downturn.

       However, Axis REIT Managers Bhd chief executive officer and executive director Leong Kit May remains cautious of the Covid-19 pandemic which has caused global economic downturn.

       “While the pandemic’s impact on Axis-REIT’s operations and financials have been manageable thus far, should the pandemic prolong or worsen unexpectedly, this may impact Axis- REIT’s performance for the rest of the financial year ending Dec 31, 2021.

       “We will continue to manage Axis-REIT’s portfolio and exercise prudent capital management at all times to deliver sustainable earnings per unit and distribution per unit payout to the unit holders.

       “The current gearing level of 36% provides headroom for Axis-REIT to continue its yield accretive acquisition strategy should good opportunities come along,” she said.