Pacific Rim

Americas Rank as Best-Performing Investment Region

LOS ANGELES-CBRE’s Capital Value Index shows a 9.6% increase in year-over-year capital values for real estate in the Americas in first-quarter 2012. FULL STORY

Hines Global REIT Acquires 158,000-SF Office Building in Australia

HOUSTON-Making its first move in the "land down under," the locally based REIT pays more than $91 million to Australian real estate company Empirica Management for ownership of the class A, fully leased asset. FULL STORY

Westfield Agrees to $1.1B US Mall Sale

SYDNEY-Starwood is buying a majority interest in seven centers, with another, Eastland, being sold in a separate transaction. The sale will go toward debt and projects such as the WTC. FULL STORY

Dexus Confirms US Warehouse Sale for $770M

SYDNEY-The 65 properties, about 16.6 million square feet, are being bought by Blackstone Real Estate Partners VII. This sale allows Dexus to remove all US sites not on the West Coast. FULL STORY

Macquarie Plans $2B for US, Canadian Infrastructure

SYDNEY-The locally based firm has created a large fund for infrastructure investment, according to a Reuters article today. FULL STORY

Westfield Sells, Partners on $5.4B of Retail

SYDNEY-The mall giant has sold a 45% interest in 12 US properties for a joint venture with CPPIB, and divested its interests in three UK malls to Hermes Real Estate. FULL STORY