SGX Weekly Review | Sea Ltd stock Soars to 52-week High; DBS Sees Over 60% Upside in NIO; Top Glove Rallies 16%

Market Snapshot

Singapore stocks rose this week, with the STI up 1.52% as renewed optimism around the city-state’s banks gives a lift to the wider market.

Analysts highlighting the ability of lenders to maintain profitability despite expectations of lower interest rates. Banks’ stable dividend payouts are also enticing investors.

$DBS Group Holdings Ltd.(D05.SI)$ rose 2.95% this week; $UOB(U11.SI)$ rose 1.43%; $OCBC(O39.SI)$ rose 0.74%.

$Top Glove(BVA.SI)$ soared 16%; $YZJ Shipbldg(BS6.SI) rallied 12%; $Yanlord Land(Z25.SI)$ rose 8.5%.

Market News

$Top Glove(BVA.SI)$ Proposes Bonus Warrants Issue

Top Glove shares rocketd 16% this week. Top Glove Corporation Bhd has announced a proposed bonus issue of warrants with an exercise price set at RM1.27 per warrant, reflecting a 9.6% premium over the recent average share price. For warrants listed on the Singapore Exchange, the exercise price is translated to SGD0.38 per warrant. This strategic move aims to enhance shareholder value amid fluctuating market conditions.

$YZJ Shipbldg(BS6.SI)$ Secures Another US$2.6 Bln Contracts

YZJ Shipbldg SGD shares surged 11.6% this week. The maritime vessel maker announced on Monday that it had secured another US$2.6 billion in shipbuilding contracts, taking its order wins to US$14.3 billion in the year to date. This follows the company’s quarterly business update on Nov 7, where it reported having secured US$11.6 billion worth of order wins in the year to date, exceeding its target of US$4.5 billion for the 2024 financial year.

$Sea Ltd(SE)$ stock soars to 52-week high

Singapore-based internet services company Sea Limited's U.S.-listed stock surged to a 52-week high on Thursday, reaching a price level of $118.58.

Sea stock has surged more than 187% this year. The huge rally has been helped by Shopee's momentum, as Sea faces challengers for the online shopping in Southeast Asia.

"Shopee has achieved market share gains and profits while some competitors have struggled," JPMorgan analyst Ranjan Sharma wrote in a recent client note. Sharma rates Sea stock a positive overweight.

DBS Sees Over 60% Upside in $NIO(NIO.SI)$ Shares

Hong Kong-based carmaker NIO Inc. has seen its shares drop by more than 45% year-to-date. However, DBS forecasts a potential 60% growth in the stock.

NIO Inc. has recently received a Buy rating from DBS, which predicta a 63.4% upside in its shares. Analyst Rachel Miu reiterated a Buy rating on NIO stock earlier this week, though she lowered her price target from HK$65 to HK$58. Miu remains optimistic about the company’s upcoming product lineup, which is expected to boost its market reach and top-line growth.

NIO's Singapore-listed shares soared 5.4% this week.

$SingPost(S08.SI)$ to Divest Australia Business for A$1 Billion

Singapore Post (SingPost) has entered into a share purchase agreement to divest its Australian business at an enterprise value of A$1 billion (S$870 million).

The enterprise value translates into A$775.9 million in cash and generates an expected gain on disposal of about S$312.1 million, subject to adjustments determined at the time when the deal is completed.

The buyer is Pacific Equity Partners, an Australia-headquartered private equity fund.

Singapore Medical Insurance Costs Projected to Rise by 12% Next Year: Survey

Medical insurance costs in Singapore are projected to remain high, with a 12 per cent increase expected in 2025, going by the findings of the WTW Global Medical Trends Survey released on Tuesday (Dec 3).

In the wider Asia-Pacific (Apac), insurers are expecting medical costs to go up by 12.3 per cent next year, up from 11.9 per cent in 2024.

But Audrey Tan, WTW’s head of health and benefits for Singapore and South-east Asia, said the medical inflation rate of the city-state appears to be moving into “a stable trend” in the coming year.

Mainstream Car COE Premium Spikes by 4.6% to S$94,000

The Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premium for the mainstream car category, Category A, has increased by 4.6 per cent or S$4,111 to S$94,000 in December’s first round of COE bidding.

The only other category to go up in price was the commercial vehicle category, while premiums for the big car, open and motorcycle categories all dipped.