CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust - Annual Report 2021

3. How are CICT malls staying relevant with the greater adoption of online shopping in Singapore amidst COVID-19? The shift towards online purchases does not signal the impending demise of shopping malls. Instead, it highlights the importance of adapting to evolving retail trends. Adopting an agile approach, we leverage omnichannel solutions to expand our reach to different shoppers. Among these is CapitaLand’s CapitaStar platform. This dynamic omnichannel shopping and lifestyle rewards platform allows shoppers to earn cashback when they shop with us. Our ongoing priority is to balance the occupancy and rents in each property while continuing to refresh and adjust tenant mix in the malls to remain relevant and appealing to shoppers. Physical malls will stay relevant in Singapore’s retail context. Face-to-face interactions remain essential for many retailers and shoppers, with malls functioning as a destination for gatherings among families and friends as well as business meetings. 4. What has been CICT’s ESG focus in 2021? Amidst ongoing efforts to reduce our environmental footprint, we adhere to high standards of corporate governance. We have been working closely with our tenants to understand their needs during the pandemic, placing the safety of our stakeholders as our top priority. We continued employee engagement efforts and sought to safeguard their physical and mental well-being, while caring for vulnerable groups in the community. More on our efforts towards environment, social and governance can be found on pages 125, 141 and 171 respectively. 5. How did CICT achieve its financial robustness despite the COVID-19 challenges? We kept operating expenses in check, managed risks to balance occupancy and rents, in addition to supporting our tenants and securing our top line. CICT enjoys diversified sources of funding and a well-spread debt maturity profile. We lowered our cost of debt to 2.3% from 2.8% a year ago. Our gearing of 37.2% remains manageable in the short term, as we maintain a disciplined approach on our leverage profile. 6. What will be your focus for CICT in 2022? Throughout FY 2021, we worked to stabilise our portfolio and operations and expanded our presence into a new developed market in Sydney, Australia. 2022 will see us drive our value creation strategy, while exploring strategic opportunities especially in Singapore and key developed markets. Operationally, our priority remains centred on supporting our tenantsandensuringthewell-being of all our stakeholders. Cautiously optimistic on the reopening theme, we want to tap on opportunities to ride the eventual market recovery. 22 CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust Conversation with CEO