Bargain-hunters look to US REITs

NEW YORK: As the S&P 500 approaches fresh highs, some investors hope to pick up bargains in the battered US real estate sector, where values of some major stocks have been cut in half this year.

Coronavirus-fuelled lockdowns and a major shift toward working from home have weighed on residential and retail US real estate investment trusts (REITs). The sector has slid 7% this year compared with a 3% gain on the S&P 500.