SINGAPORE shares closed lower on Friday (Mar 15), tracking a decline across most regional markets as investor sentiment was hit by inflation concerns.
The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.4 per cent or 13.44 points to close at 3,172.96. For the week, the market barometer was up 0.8 per cent from last Friday’s close.
Let's take a look at some noteworthy events in the local area:
SIA Prices US$500 Million Notes Due 2034 at 5.296% Yield
Singapore Airlines has priced US$500 million of 10-year, 5.25 per cent bonds at a re-offer price of 99.646 per cent of their nominal value to yield 5.296 per cent.
The fixed-rate notes will bear a coupon of 5.25 per cent per annum until their maturity on Mar 21, 2034, said DBS on Thursday (Mar 14). The coupon will be paid semi-annually.
DBS and Citigroup are joint global coordinators for the bond. They are also the joint bookrunners with HSBC and JPMorgan.
Singapore's Job Vacancies Rise to 79,800, While Re-Entry Rate of Retrenched Workers Falls in Q4
Job vacancies in Singapore edged up slightly in the fourth quarter of 2023, while a lower re-entry rate of 61.5 per cent was observed among residents six months after retrenchment, according to the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) Labour Market Report on Thursday (Mar 14).
Job vacancies grew to 79,800 in December, from 78,200 in September, after falling for six consecutive quarters since peaking in March 2022.
The ratio of job vacancies to unemployed persons, at 1.74, has been rising since March 2021 when it was 0.96, indicating a “moderately tight labour market”, said MOM.
Economists Upgrade Singapore 2024 Growth Forecast, Survey Shows
Economists have upgraded Singapore's 2024 growth forecast, according to a survey by the country's central bank published on Wednesday, with better-than-expected external growth seen as the top upside driver for the economy.
The median forecast of 23 economists surveyed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore is for the economy to grow 2.4% this year, up from a forecast of 2.3% in December's survey.
SingTel Looking to Sell Significant Optus Stake to Brookfield
Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) is looking to sell a significant stake in its wholly owned Australian unit Optus to Canadian private equity giant Brookfield, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday.
Southeast Asia's largest telco operator is in advanced talks with Brookfield over the stake sale, the source said, declining to be named as the information is not public yet.
Earlier on Wednesday, SingTel dismissed a report by the Australian Financial Review (AFR) that it was in advanced talks to sell Optus in a deal that could value Australia's second-largest telecommunications group at up to A$18 billion ($11.90 billion).
Singapore Moves to Make Visitor Travel In and Out Even Easier
Singapore is making it even easier for people to come and go from the tropical city-state, allowing drivers crossing into the country through two land checkpoints to use a QR code instead of their passports.
Travelers arriving and departing Singapore via Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints will from March 19 only need a scanned single QR code, which they can generate prior to arriving and which can be used for all people in a vehicle, the nation’s Immigration & Checkpoints Authority said in a statement.
Overall wait times, which can often stretch to hours in busy periods when workers are trying to cross the border from Malaysia, should be reduced by around 30% if most car travelers use the QR code for clearance, the authority said.
Singapore Home Sales Fall on Lack of Projects in Cooling Market
Singapore home sales fell in February on a lack of new project launches, adding to evidence that the market is cooling.
Developers sold 149 new private homes last month, figures released Friday by the Urban Redevelopment Authority show. That’s the fewest on record for the month of February, and down from the 281 sold in January. Monthly sales data only began being released in mid-2007.
Comments