The risks described below could materially and adversely affect the Company’s results of operations, financial condition, liquidity and cash flows. These risks are not the only risks that the Company faces. The Company’s business operations could also be affected by additional factors that are not presently known to it or that the Company currently considers to be immaterial to its operations.

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The Economic Performance and Value of the Company’s Shopping Centers Depend on Many Factors, Each of Which Could Have an Adverse Impact on the Company’s Cash Flows and Operating Results

The economic performance and value of the Company’s real estate holdings can be affected by many factors, including the following:

Because the Company’s properties consist primarily of shopping centers, the Company’s performance is linked to general economic conditions in the market for retail space. The market for retail space has been and may continue to be adversely affected by weakness in the national, regional and local economies, the adverse financial condition of some large retailing companies, the ongoing consolidation in the retail sector, the excess amount of retail space in a number of markets and increasing consumer purchases through the Internet. To the extent that any of these conditions occur, they are likely to affect market rents for retail space. In addition, the Company may face challenges in the management and maintenance of its properties or incur increased operating costs, such as real estate taxes, insurance and utilities, which may make its properties unattractive to tenants. The loss of rental revenues from a number of the Company’s tenants and its inability to replace such tenants may adversely affect the Company’s profitability and ability to meet its debt and other financial obligations and make distributions to shareholders.

The Company Relies on Major Tenants, Making It Vulnerable to Changes in the Business and Financial Condition of, or Demand for Its Space by, Such Tenants

As of December 31, 2012, the annualized base rental revenues of the Company’s tenants that are equal to or exceed 1.5% of the Company’s aggregate annualized shopping center base rental revenues, including its proportionate share of joint venture aggregate annualized shopping center base rental revenues, are as follows:

The retail shopping sector has been affected by economic conditions as well as the competitive nature of the retail business and the competition for market share where stronger retailers have out-positioned some of the weaker retailers. These shifts have forced some market share away from weaker retailers and required them, in some cases, to declare bankruptcy and/or close stores.

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As information becomes available regarding the status of the Company’s leases with tenants in financial distress or the future plans for their spaces change, the Company may be required to write off and/or accelerate depreciation and amortization expense associated with a significant portion of the tenant-related deferred charges in future periods. The Company’s income and ability to meet its financial obligations could also be adversely affected in the event of the bankruptcy, insolvency or significant downturn in the business of one of these tenants or any of the Company’s other major tenants. In addition, the Company’s results could be adversely affected if any of these tenants do not renew their leases as they expire.

The Company’s Dependence on Rental Income May Adversely Affect Its Ability to Meet Its Debt Obligations and Make Distributions to Shareholders

Substantially all of the Company’s income is derived from rental income from real property. As a result, the Company’s performance depends on its ability to collect rent from tenants. The Company’s income and funds for distribution would be negatively affected if a significant number of its tenants, or any of its major tenants, were to do the following:

Any of these actions could result in the termination of tenants’ leases and the loss of rental income attributable to the terminated leases. Lease terminations by an anchor tenant or a failure by that anchor tenant to occupy the premises could also result in lease terminations or reductions in rent by other tenants in the same shopping centers under the terms of some leases. In addition, the Company cannot be certain that any tenant whose lease expires will renew that lease or that it will be able to re-lease space on economically advantageous terms. The loss of rental revenues from a number of the Company’s major tenants and its inability to replace such tenants may adversely affect the Company’s profitability and its ability to meet debt and other financial obligations and make distributions to shareholders.

The Company Has Variable-Rate Debt and Is Subject to Interest Rate Risk

The Company has indebtedness with interest rates that vary depending upon the market index. In addition, the Company has revolving credit facilities that bear interest at a variable rate on any amounts drawn on the facilities. The Company may incur additional variable-rate debt in the future. Increases in interest rates on variable-rate debt would increase the Company’s interest expense, which would negatively affect net earnings and cash available for payment of its debt obligations and distributions to its shareholders.

The Company’s Ability to Increase Its Debt Could Adversely Affect Its Cash Flow

At December 31, 2012, the Company had outstanding debt of $4.3 billion (excluding its proportionate share of unconsolidated joint venture mortgage debt aggregating $0.7 billion as of December 31, 2012). The Company intends to maintain a conservative ratio of debt to total market capitalization (the sum of the aggregate market value of the Company’s common shares and operating partnership units, the liquidation preference on any preferred shares outstanding and its total consolidated indebtedness). The Company is subject to limitations under its credit facilities and indentures relating to its ability to incur additional debt; however, the Company’s organizational documents do not contain any limitation on the amount or percentage of indebtedness it may incur. If the Company were to become more highly leveraged, its cash needs to fund debt service would increase

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accordingly. Under such circumstances, the Company’s risk of decreases in cash flow, due to fluctuations in the real estate market, reliance on its major tenants, acquisition and development costs and the other factors discussed in these risk factors, could subject the Company to an even greater adverse impact on its financial condition and results of operations. In addition, increased leverage could increase the risk of default on the Company’s debt obligations, which could further reduce its cash available for distribution and adversely affect its ability to dispose of its portfolio on favorable terms, which could cause the Company to incur losses and reduce its cash flows.

Disruptions in the Financial Markets Could Affect the Company’s Ability to Obtain Financing on Reasonable Terms and Have Other Adverse Effects on the Company and the Market Price of the Company’s Common Shares

The U.S. and global equity and credit markets have experienced significant price volatility, dislocations and liquidity disruptions over the last few years, which caused market prices of many stocks to fluctuate substantially and the spreads on prospective debt financings to widen considerably. These circumstances materially affected liquidity in the financial markets, making terms for certain financings less attractive and, in certain cases, resulting in the unavailability of certain types of financing. Uncertainty in the equity and credit markets may negatively affect the Company’s ability to access additional financing at reasonable terms or at all, which may negatively affect the Company’s ability to refinance its debt, obtain new financing or make acquisitions. These circumstances may also adversely affect the Company’s tenants, including their ability to enter into new leases, pay their rents when due and renew their leases at rates at least as favorable as their current rates.

A prolonged downturn in the equity or credit markets may cause the Company to seek alternative sources of potentially less attractive financing and may require it to adjust its business plan accordingly. In addition, these factors may make it more difficult for the Company to sell properties or may adversely affect the price it receives for properties that it does sell, as prospective buyers may experience increased costs of financing or difficulties in obtaining financing. These events in the equity and credit markets may make it more difficult or costly for the Company to raise capital through the issuance of its common shares or debt securities. These disruptions in the financial markets also may have a material adverse effect on the market value of the Company’s common shares and other adverse effects on the Company or the economy in general. There can be no assurances that government responses to the disruptions in the financial markets will restore consumer confidence, stabilize the markets or increase liquidity and the availability of equity or credit financing.

Changes in the Company’s Credit Ratings or the Debt Markets, as well as Market Conditions in the Credit Markets, Could Adversely Affect the Company’s Publicly Traded Debt and Revolving Credit Facilities

The market value for the Company’s publicly traded debt depends on many factors, including the following:

The condition of the financial markets and prevailing interest rates have fluctuated in the past and are likely to fluctuate in the future. The U.S. credit markets and the sub-prime residential mortgage market have experienced severe dislocations and liquidity disruptions in the last few years. Furthermore, uncertain market conditions can be exacerbated by leverage. The occurrence of these circumstances in the credit markets and/or additional fluctuations in the financial markets and prevailing interest rates could have an adverse effect on the Company’s ability to access capital and its cost of capital.

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In addition, credit rating agencies continually review their ratings for the companies they follow, including the Company. The credit rating agencies also evaluate the real estate industry as a whole and may change their credit rating for the Company based on their overall view of the industry. Any rating organization that rates the Company’s publicly traded debt may lower the rating or decide not to rate the publicly traded debt in its sole discretion. The ratings of the Company’s publicly traded debt are based primarily on the rating organization’s assessment of the likelihood of timely payment of interest when due and the payment of principal on the maturity date. A negative change in the Company’s rating could have an adverse effect on the Company’s revolving credit facilities and market price of the Company’s publicly traded debt as well as the Company’s ability to access capital and its cost of capital.

The Company’s Cash Flows and Operating Results Could Be Adversely Affected by Required Payments of Debt or Related Interest and Other Risks of Its Debt Financing

The Company is generally subject to the risks associated with debt financing. These risks include the following:

If a property is mortgaged to secure payment of indebtedness and the Company cannot make the mortgage payments, it may have to surrender the property to the lender with a consequent loss of any prospective income and equity value from such property, which may also adversely affect the Company’s credit ratings. Any of these risks can place strains on the Company’s cash flows, reduce its ability to grow and adversely affect its results of operations.

The Company’s Financial Condition Could Be Adversely Affected by Financial Covenants

The Company’s credit facilities and the indentures under which its senior and subordinated unsecured indebtedness is, or may be, issued contain certain financial and operating covenants, including, among other things, leverage ratios and certain coverage ratios, as well as limitations on the Company’s ability to incur secured and unsecured indebtedness, sell all or substantially all of its assets and engage in mergers and certain acquisitions. These credit facilities and indentures also contain customary default provisions including the failure to pay principal and interest issued thereunder in a timely manner, the failure to comply with the Company’s financial and operating covenants, the occurrence of a material adverse effect on the Company and the failure of the Company or its majority-owned subsidiaries (i.e., entities in which the Company has a greater than 50% interest) to pay when due certain indebtedness in excess of certain thresholds beyond applicable grace and cure periods. These covenants could limit the Company’s ability to obtain additional funds needed to address cash shortfalls or pursue growth opportunities or transactions that would provide substantial return to its shareholders. In addition, a breach of these covenants could cause a default or accelerate some or all of the Company’s indebtedness, which could have a material adverse effect on its financial condition.

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Property Ownership Through Partnerships and Joint Ventures Could Limit the Company’s Control of Those Investments and Reduce Its Expected Return

Partnership or joint venture investments may involve risks not otherwise present for investments made solely by the Company, including the possibility that the Company’s partner or co-venturer might become bankrupt, that its partner or co-venturer might at any time have different interests or goals than the Company and that its partner or co-venturer may take action contrary to the Company’s instructions, requests, policies or objectives, including the Company’s policy with respect to maintaining its qualification as a REIT. Other risks of joint venture investments include impasse on decisions, such as a sale, because neither the Company’s partner or co-venturer nor the Company would have full control over the partnership or joint venture. These factors could limit the return that the Company receives from such investments or cause its cash flows to be lower than its estimates. There is no limitation under the Company’s Articles of Incorporation, or its code of regulations, as to the amount of funds that the Company may invest in partnerships or joint ventures. In addition, a partner or co-venturer may not have access to sufficient capital to satisfy its funding obligations to the joint venture. Furthermore, if credit conditions in the capital markets deteriorate, the Company could be required to reduce the carrying value of its equity method investments if a loss in the carrying value of the investment is considered an other than temporary decline. As of December 31, 2012, the Company had $613.0 million of investments in and advances to unconsolidated joint ventures holding 206 operating shopping centers.

The Company’s Real Estate Assets May Be Subject to Impairment Charges

On a periodic basis, the Company assesses whether there are any indicators that the value of its real estate assets and other investments may be impaired. A property’s value is impaired only if the estimate of the aggregate future cash flows (undiscounted and without interest charges) to be generated by the property are less than the carrying value of the property. In the Company’s estimate of cash flows, it considers factors such as expected future operating income, trends and prospects, the effects of demand, competition and other factors. If the Company is evaluating the potential sale of an asset or development alternatives, the undiscounted future cash flow considerations include the most likely course of action at the balance sheet date based on current plans, intended holding periods and available market information. The Company is required to make subjective assessments as to whether there are impairments in the value of its real estate assets and other investments. These assessments have a direct impact on the Company’s earnings because recording an impairment charge results in an immediate negative adjustment to earnings. There can be no assurance that the Company will not take additional charges in the future related to the impairment of its assets. Any future impairment could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations in the period in which the charge is taken.

The Company’s Acquisition Activities May Not Produce the Cash Flows That It Expects and May Be Limited by Competitive Pressures or Other Factors

The Company intends to acquire existing retail properties only to the extent that suitable acquisitions can be made on advantageous terms. Acquisitions of commercial properties entail risks, such as the following:

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In addition, the Company may not be in a position or have the opportunity in the future to make suitable property acquisitions on advantageous terms due to competition for such properties with others engaged in real estate investment that may have greater financial resources than the Company. The Company’s inability to successfully acquire new properties may affect the Company’s ability to achieve its anticipated return on investment, which could have an adverse effect on its results of operations.

Real Estate Property Investments Are Illiquid; Therefore, the Company May Not Be Able to Dispose of Properties When Desired or on Favorable Terms

Real estate investments generally cannot be disposed of quickly. In addition, the federal income tax code imposes restrictions, which are not applicable to other types of real estate companies, on the ability of a REIT to dispose of properties. Therefore, the Company may not be able to diversify its portfolio in response to economic or other conditions promptly or on favorable terms, which could cause the Company to incur losses and reduce its cash flows and adversely affect distributions to shareholders.

The Company’s Development and Construction Activities Could Affect Its Operating Results

The Company intends to continue the selective development and construction of retail properties in accordance with its development underwriting policies as opportunities arise. The Company expects to phase in construction until sufficient pre-leasing is reached and financing is in place. The Company’s development and construction activities include the following risks:

Additionally, the time frame required for development, construction and lease-up of these properties means that the Company may wait several years for a significant cash return. If any of the above events occur, the development of properties may hinder the Company’s growth and have an adverse effect on its results of operations and cash flows. In addition, new development activities, regardless of whether they are ultimately successful, typically require substantial time and attention from management.

If the Company Fails To Qualify as a REIT in Any Taxable Year, It Will Be Subject to U.S. Federal Income Tax as a Regular Corporation and Could Have Significant Tax Liability

The Company intends to operate in a manner that allows it to qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. However, REIT qualification requires that the Company satisfy numerous requirements (some on an annual or quarterly basis) established under highly technical and complex provisions of the Code, for which there are a limited number of judicial or administrative interpretations. The Company’s status as a REIT requires an analysis of various factual matters and circumstances that are not entirely within its control. Accordingly, it is not certain that the Company will be able to qualify and remain qualified as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax

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purposes. Even a technical or inadvertent violation of the REIT requirements could jeopardize the Company’s REIT qualification. Furthermore, Congress or the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) might change the tax laws or regulations and the courts could issue new rulings, in each case potentially having retroactive effect that could make it more difficult or impossible for the Company to continue to qualify as a REIT. If the Company fails to qualify as a REIT in any tax year, the following would result:

Even if the Company remains qualified as a REIT, it may face other tax liabilities that reduce its cash flow. The Company may also be subject to certain federal, state and local taxes on its income and property either directly or at the level of its subsidiaries. Any of these taxes would decrease cash available for debt service obligations and distribution to the Company’s shareholders.

Compliance with REIT Requirements May Negatively Affect the Company’s Operating Decisions

To maintain its status as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Company must meet certain requirements on an ongoing basis, including requirements regarding its sources of income, the nature and diversification of its assets, the amounts the Company distributes to its shareholders and the ownership of its shares. The Company may also be required to make distributions to its shareholders when it does not have funds readily available for distribution or at times when the Company’s funds are otherwise needed to fund capital expenditures or debt service obligations.

As a REIT, the Company must distribute at least 90% of its annual net taxable income (excluding net capital gains) to its shareholders. To the extent that the Company satisfies this distribution requirement, but distributes less than 100% of its net taxable income, the Company will be subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on its undistributed taxable income. In addition, the Company will be subject to a 4% non-deductible excise tax if the actual amount paid to its shareholders in a calendar year is less than the minimum amount specified under U.S. federal tax laws. From time to time, the Company may generate taxable income greater than its income for financial reporting purposes, or its net taxable income may be greater than its cash flow available for distribution to its shareholders. If the Company does not have other funds available in these situations, it could be required to borrow funds, sell its securities or a portion of its properties at unfavorable prices or find other sources of funds in order to meet the REIT distribution requirements and avoid corporate income tax and the 4% excise tax.

In addition, the REIT provisions of the Code impose a 100% tax on income from “prohibited transactions.” Prohibited transactions generally include sales of assets that constitute inventory or other property held for sale to customers in the ordinary course of business, other than foreclosure property. This 100% tax could affect the Company’s decisions to sell property if it believes such sales could be treated as a prohibited transaction. However, the Company would not be subject to this tax if it were to sell assets through its TRS. The Company will also be subject to a 100% tax on certain amounts if the economic arrangements between the Company and its TRS are not comparable to similar arrangements among unrelated parties.

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Dividends Paid by REITs Generally Do Not Qualify for Reduced Tax Rates

In general, the maximum U.S. federal income tax rate for dividends paid to individual U.S. shareholders is 20%. Due to its REIT status, the Company’s distributions to individual shareholders generally are not eligible for the reduced rates.

The Company’s Inability to Realize Anticipated Returns from Its Retail Real Estate Investments Outside the United States Could Adversely Affect Its Results of Operations

The Company may not realize the intended benefits of transactions outside the United States, as the Company may not have any prior experience with the local economies or culture. The assets may not perform as well as the Company anticipated or may not be successfully integrated, or the Company may not realize the improvements in occupancy and operating results that it anticipated. The Company could be subject to local laws governing these properties, with which it has no prior experience, and which may present new challenges for the management of the Company’s operations. In addition, financing may not be available at acceptable rates, and equity requirements may be different from the Company’s strategy in the United States. Each of these factors may adversely affect the Company’s ability to achieve anticipated return on investment, which could have an adverse effect on its results of operations.

The Company’s Investments in Real Estate Assets Outside United States Will Be Subject to Additional Risks

International investments and operations generally are subject to various political and other risks that are different from and in addition to risks inherent in the investment in real estate generally discussed in these risk factors and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012. The Company’s investments in consolidated and unconsolidated joint ventures with international real estate assets in Brazil, Russia and Canada will be subject to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and the uncertainty of foreign laws and markets including, but not limited to, unexpected changes in the regulatory requirements such as the enactment of laws prohibiting or restricting the foreign ownership of property, political and economic instability in certain geographic locations, labor disruptions, difficulties in managing international operations, potentially adverse tax consequences, laws restricting the Company’s ability to return profits to the United States, additional accounting and control expenses and the administrative burden associated with complying with a variety of foreign laws. Furthermore, the Company is subject to laws and regulations, such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or similar local anti-bribery laws, that generally prohibit companies and their employees, agents and contractors from making improper payments to governmental officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. Failure to comply with these laws could subject the Company to civil and criminal penalties that could materially adversely affect the Company’s results of operations or the value of the Company’s international investments.

Changes in foreign currency exchange rates may also adversely impact the fair values and earnings streams of the Company’s international holdings and thus the returns on the Company’s non-U.S.-dollar denominated investments. Although the Company may hedge some or all of its foreign currency risk, subject to the REIT income qualification tests, the Company may not be able to do so successfully and may incur losses on these investments as a result of exchange rate fluctuations.

The Company Is Subject to Litigation That Could Adversely Affect Its Results of Operations

The Company is a defendant from time to time in lawsuits and regulatory proceedings relating to its business. Due to the inherent uncertainties of litigation and regulatory proceedings, the Company cannot accurately predict the ultimate outcome of any such litigation or proceedings. An unfavorable outcome could adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition or results of operations.

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Any such litigation could also lead to increased volatility of the trading price of the Company’s common shares. For a further discussion of litigation risks, see “Legal Matters” in Note 9 — Commitments and Contingencies to the Consolidated Financial Statements.