SGX Weekly Review | Trump Comeback Sparks 5% Surge in STI; UOB Soars 11%; DBS Jumps 9%

Singapore shares rallied this week, with the $STI(STI.SI)$ up 4.75% in the last five trading days. The stock market reacted positively to the results of US presidential elections.

Trump was elected the 47th President of the US, four years after he was voted out of the White House. International investors are confident that Trump's stance on industrial policy, tax cuts, and trade tariffs will fuel growth in the US and benefit equities.

Market News

$Singapore Airlines(C6L.SI)$' Half-Year Profit Nearly Halves on Rising Costs

Singapore Airlines (SIA) reported a half-year profit on Friday that nearly halved year-on-year, reflecting intensifying market competition coupled with higher fuel costs and expenses.

Airlines globally have ramped up the number of flights and routes to cater to robust air travel demand, which has resulted in increased competition, putting pressure on ticket prices and squeezing profit margins.

The city state's flag-carrier said net profit slumped to S$742 million ($561.61 million) for the six months ended Sept. 30 from S$1.44 billion reported a year ago. The airline's total expenses rose to S$8.70 billion for the half-year, a 14.4% rise, on the back of a jump in both fuel and non-fuel costs.

$DBS(D05.SI)$ Shares Surge 9% on Buyback Plan, Profit Beat

DBS Group unveiled a multi-billion dollar share-buyback program, as wealth management fees and markets trading income drove third-quarter profit.

Southeast Asia’s biggest lender said the S$3 billion ($2.25 billion) buyback is underpinned by a strong capital position and earnings generation. This follows a series of record earnings and above-peer returns to investors in recent years under the tenure of Chief Executive Officer Piyush Gupta, who will retire in March. His successor Tan Su Shan said she will continue the approach of returning capital.

$UOB(U11.SI)$ Shares Jump 11% After CEO Says Will Consider Share Buyback

United Overseas Bank will consider a share buyback, among other options, Chief Executive Officer Wee Ee Cheong says at an earnings briefing on Friday.

The bank is “actively” looking to take full advantage of capital management, hopefully by the end of the year, according to Wee. UOB has excess capital of about S$2 billion ($1.5 billion) to S$2.5 billion, said Chief Financial Officer Lee Wai Fai.

The lender reported higher-than-expected earnings for the third quarter, driven by record fees underpinned by wealth management. Trading and investment income also rose.

$OCBC(O39.SI)$ Says 2024 Targets on Track After Q3 Profit Beat

Singapore's Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp said it was firmly placed to achieve its 2024 targets after posting on Friday a 9% rise in third-quarter net profit that beat market expectations.

Southeast-Asia's second-largest lender by assets after compatriot DBS said July-September net profit increased to S$1.97 billion ($1.49 billion) from S$1.81 billion a year earlier, beating the mean estimate of nearly S$1.91 billion from analysts polled by LSEG.

OCBC said it was set to achieve full-year net interest margin, a key profitability gauge, at around the 2.20% level, as well as low single-digit loan growth, full-year credit costs in the range of 20 basis points and return on equity above 14%.

$SingPost(S08.SI)$’s H1 Profit Rises 97.3% to S$22.6 Million

SingPost’s net profit for the first half ended September nearly doubled to S$22.6 million on higher revenue.

This represented a 97.3 per cent increase from S$11.5 million in H1 FY2023, as revenue rose 20 per cent to S$992.4 million from S$827.3 million a year prior.

Earnings per share (EPS) excluding distributions to perpetual securities holders stood at S$0.0076, up 181.5 per cent from S$0.0027 in H1 FY2023.

Singapore, Indonesia Looking to Cooperate in Energy, Food Security: PM Wong

Singapore and Indonesia are looking to cooperate in energy security and sustainability, among several areas aligned to Indonesia’s priorities, the city-state’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said during his introductory visit to Jakarta on Wednesday (Nov 6).

“This can be a new growth engine for both our countries, especially when we realise cross-border energy exports, as well as cross-border carbon capture and storage projects in the coming years,” he said in a joint press conference with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.

The Week Ahead

$Seatrium(5E2.SI)$, $Grab(GRAB)$, $Sea(SE)$, $Singtel(Z74)$, and $Frasers Cpt Tr(J69U)$ are set to announce their Q3 2024 earnings next week.

$Seatrium(5E2.SI)$：Monday, Nov. 11, before the Singapore market opens

$Grab(GRAB)$: Monday, Nov. 11, after the US market closes

$Sea(SE)$: Tuesday, Nov. 12, before the US market opens

$Singtel(Z74)$：Wednesday, Nov. 13, before the Singapore market opens

$Frasers Cpt Tr(J69U)$：Wednesday, Nov. 13, before the Singapore market opens