BUZZ — Citi sees upside for Australian real estate sector ahead of property conference

* Citi sees its Australian Real Estate Conference next week as a "critical inflection point" for the sector * Brokerage expects management commentary to be more reassuring than what current market positioning suggests * Retail REITs could provide the biggest positive surprise at the conference, with near-full occupancy across retail landlords Vicinity Centres, GPT Group and Charter Hall — Citi * Says data centre demand remains structurally intact and sees Goodman Group approaching key leasing milestones ahead of its November 4 quarterly update * Stable sales volumes at Stockland Corporation and Mirvac Group would be a positive surprise relative to bearish sentiment towards the Australian housing market — Citi * Real Estate sub-index down 17.3% YTD (Reporting by Paridhi Minda in Bengaluru) ((Paridhi.minda@thomsonreuters.com;)