Market Snapshot

Singapore stocks opened lower on Wednesday. STI down 0.26%; Thomson Medical up 2.4%; Top Glove up 2%; CityDev up 1%; YZJ Shipbldg down 2.3%; DBS Group down 0.7%.

Stocks in Focus

CapitaLand Investment (CLI): The global real asset manager on Wednesday announced the launch of its first onshore master fund in China, the CLI RMB Master Fund. The fund has a total equity commitment of five billion yuan (S$921 million) and is set to contribute 20 billion yuan to CLI’s funds under management when fully deployed. The counter ended Tuesday unchanged S$2.53.

City Developments Ltd (CDL): The property developer posted first-quarter sales revenue of S$1.9 billion for its property development segment in the Singapore market, driven by the launch of its joint venture condominium project, The Orie, in Toa Payoh. Overall, the revenue translates to an increase of 85 per cent in volume and 155 per cent in sales value, said the group in its operational update on Tuesday, for the quarter ended Mar 31. The group said that its other projects continue to register good sales, including Lumina Grand, its executive condominium project in Bukit Batok, and The Myst in Upper Bukit Timah Road. The counter ended S$0.02 or 0.4 per cent lower at S$4.73 before the announcement.

Singapore Post (SingPost): The company has appointed Teo Swee Lian, 65, to the board as chairman-designate and non-independent non-executive director with effect from May 21. Her appointment comes at the conclusion of a search by the SingPost board to succeed Simon Israel, the postal services company said in a bourse filing on Wednesday. Teo will assume the role of chairman at the conclusion of SingPost’s next annual general meeting when Israel retires after nine years at the helm. Teo’s portfolio includes board and directorship roles with Singtel and AIA Group. The counter closed 0.9 per cent or S$0.005 lower at S$0.565 on Tuesday.

SIA Engineering: The mainboard-listed company signed fresh services agreements with national carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its low-cost subsidiary Scoot on Tuesday, in a deal expected to yield a total labour revenue of S$1.3 billion. The new agreements took effect from Apr 1 for a term of two years, with a one-year extension option, said the company. The signing supersedes earlier contracts inked in April 2023. SIAEC’s support of the SIA and Scoot fleets includes maintenance, repair and overhaul, as well as fleet management support services. The counter ended S$0.01 or 0.4 per cent higher at S$2.44 before the announcement.

Delfi: The chocolate confectioner ran up a 27.2 per cent drop in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation to US$17 million for the first quarter ended Mar 31, from US$23.3 million the year before. Net sales fell some 0.5 per cent to US$149.8 million from US$150.7 million. In a business update on Tuesday, Delfi attributed the performance to “weaker regional currencies”, particularly the rupiah, as well as to lower sales in its agency brands business after certain agency partners in Indonesia cut back on promotional spending for their products during the period. Shares of Delfi closed flat at S$0.71 before the announcement.

SLB Development: The company’s shareholders approved the scheme resolution proposed by Lian Beng Group’s board of directors – which comprises the controlling Ong family – to acquire and privatise the property player. It is expected to delist on or around Jul 2, said its board of directors in a bourse filing on Tuesday evening. At the scheme meeting on Tuesday morning, 99 independent shareholders who make up some 96.1 per cent of the total present and voting, gave their nod of approval. This represented about 99.9 per cent of the scheme shares, higher than the approval benchmark of 75 per cent. Four shareholders, or 3.9 per cent, were against the scheme. The expected last day of trading for the counter will fall on or around Jun 12, followed by books closure at 5 pm on Jun 17. The counter closed flat at S$0.23 on Monday, before the company called for a trading halt. It resumes trading on Wednesday.

Dasin Retail Trust (DRT): The trustee-manager of DRT rebutted criticism from its former alternate director, who claimed in a resignation letter that his input was snubbed and key financial reports were not published despite his reminders, among other complaints. In a bourse filing on Tuesday, the trustee-manager set out to address the assertions Zhang Zhongming raised in an Apr 15 e-mail that saw him resigning from his position as alternate director for Zhang Zhencheng – noting that it “disagrees with his allegations”. Zhang Zhongming is the nephew of Zhang Zhencheng, who is a non-executive director and shareholder of the trustee-manager. Zhang Zhongming noted in his exit letter that he was resigning effective immediately, believing that staying in his position “serves no useful purpose”. In response to the resignee’s claim that his “requests, suggestions and feedback have been consistently ignored since early 2023 by the majority directors”, the trustee-manager maintained there were “valid reasons and grounds”. It raised examples of the resignee’s “repeated insistence that the invalid extraordinary general meeting of DRT… was valid, contrary to the legal advice received”. Units of DRT closed S$0.002 or 10 per cent lower at S$0.018 before the announcement.

SG Local News

Singapore Central Bank Chief Says US Dollar Assets Irreplaceable

Dollar-based assets have “enduring advantages” and remain virtually irreplaceable in the global financial system despite the US losing its top triple-A credit rating, according to Singapore’s central bank chief.

“They are the dominant, safe assets for use in the financial system, deeply embedded,” Monetary Authority of Singapore Managing Director Chia Der Jiun said at the Qatar Economic Forum on Tuesday. “The $28-trillion Treasury market is fundamental and systemic to the global financial system and there is no alternative for this point.”

Moody’s Ratings last week stripped the US of its top credit rating, a landmark move that casts doubt on the nation’s status as the world’s highest-quality sovereign borrower. In lowering the US by one notch below the highest investment-grade position, the credit rater joins Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings in downgrading the world’s biggest economy. US long-dated debt initially sold off in response to the Moody’s downgrade.