2218 GMT - Citi expects 2025 to be an inflection year for Australian real-estate stocks, driven by lower interest rates. The bank is currently tipping interest rates to begin falling in May, reaching a terminal rate of 3.6% over time. It is upbeat about data centers, retail property, self-storage and land lease assets. "We expect declining financing costs will provide additional tailwinds, supporting earnings growth across the broader sector," analyst Howard Penny says. Still, Citi predicts a slower recovery in Australian office markets, partly due to elevated vacancy rates. Its top picks are Goodman, National Storage REIT, Ingenia Communities, Stockland, Scentre and GPT. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 12, 2025 17:18 ET (22:18 GMT)
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