Market Snapshot
The Singapore stock market rose 0.1% this week. Singapore Airlines shares fell 1.5%, following a deadly turbulence-hit flight.
In terms of other individual stocks, DBS rose 0.5%; UOB rose 0.9%; Seatrium fell 1.9%; NIO fell 10.1%; Keppel fell 0.9%; Sembcorp fell 3.6%; Yangzijiang Shipbuilding rose 8.6%.
SG Local News
Singapore Posts Fastest Growth in 18 Months as Outlook Improves
Singapore's economy grew 2.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024, the quickest pace in 18 months, data showed on Thursday as the government said it expected manufacturing and trade-related sectors to improve over the course of 2024.
The growth matched a preliminary estimate released last month and was stronger than the 2.5% forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. It was the fastest pace since the economy grew 4.1% on a year-on-year basis in the third quarter of 2022.
Edward Robinson, deputy managing director of the economic policy group at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), said after the data that current monetary policy settings were appropriate.
Singapore Core Inflation Rate Holds Steady at 3.1% in April
Singapore’s core inflation rate was unchanged in April from the prior month, giving the central bank room to wait and watch amid risks to economic growth from geopolitical tensions and diverging global monetary policy paths.
Core inflation, which excludes private transport and accommodation and is closely watched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, came in at 3.1% in April from a year ago, according to a joint statement Thursday from the MAS and the Ministry of Trade and Industry. That matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists, and was the same as the March rate.
The data allows policymakers the room to watch how peers move, even as the city-state’s government flagged a global desynchronization of monetary policy cycles as one of the risks to its economic outlook. Such divergence could lead to greater volatility in capital flows and currency fluctuations, the MTI said earlier Thursday, while retaining its domestic growth forecast for 2024 at between 1% and 3%.
"Extreme Turbulence" on Singapore Airlines Flight Kills 1 and Injures Dozens
One passenger died and 71 people were injured when their Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore encountered severe turbulence Tuesday, throwing passengers and crew around the cabin and forcing the plane to make an emergency landing in Bangkok.
The Boeing 777-300ER was about 10 hours into its flight and midway through meal service when it hit turbulence while flying over Myanmar’s Irrawaddy Basin, according to the airline.
SingTel Annual Profit More Than Halves on $2.3 Bln Impairment Charge
Singapore Telecommunications posted a 64% drop in full-year net profit on Thursday hit by a S$3.1 billion ($2.30 billion) impairment charge, majority of which relates to its mobile network operation unit Optus.
Australia's second-largest telecom company Optus has been marred by multiple setbacks, including a massive network-wide outage in the country, data breaches and steep declines in fixed carriage revenue amid increased capital costs.
Southeast Asia's largest telecom firm said net profit for fiscal year 2023 was S$795 million, compared with S$2.23 billion a year ago.
The telco forecast a earnings growth rate of high single digits to low double digits for fiscal 2025, adding that it was focused on lifting core performance at Singtel Singapore and Optus and scaling growth engines such as NCS and Nxera with a leaner cost structure.
Singapore Sells Green Bond, Adding to Global Deals Record
Singapore sold a green bond with a maturity of around 30 years on Tuesday, pushing global sales higher and in-line with its vow to raise S$35 billion ($26 billion) in environment-focused financing by 2030.
The city-state tapped the market for S$2.5 billion through its latest offering and set a yield of 3.3%, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified.
Singapore is part of a global borrowing rush to finance projects that provide environmental benefits and support sustainable development. Governments and corporates have sold a record $260 billion worth of green bonds this year, an increase of 7% over the same period in 2023, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Singapore Boosts Food Sources as Local Vegetable Supply Drops
“It has not been an easy journey for local farms,” the Singapore Food Agency said in a report released on Monday. The agency attributed the decline to delays during the pandemic, inflationary pressures, higher energy prices and labor costs.
Singapore, one of the world’s most densely populated countries, imports nearly everything its population consumes. The island has a goal to produce 30% of its nutritional needs locally by 2030 to cut reliance on imports and cushion itself from the impact of supply disruptions.
Singapore raised its food supply sources to 187 countries and regions in 2023, up from 183 the previous year. The city approved mutton from Spain and chickens from Indonesia.
AstraZeneca to Build $1.5 Billion Drug Plant in Singapore
AstraZeneca Plc plans to build a $1.5 billion manufacturing facility in Singapore to make antibody-drug conjugates as the UK drugmaker pushes to beef up its ability to produce the next-generation cancer treatments.
The plant will be Astra’s first drug-conjugate facility to produce the medicines from start to finish, the company said in a statement Monday. It’s scheduled to open in 2029 and will emit zero carbon from the start.
Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot is working to ensure Astra can independently supply drugs to major markets as the US pushes to reduce the industry’s reliance on China. Shortages during the pandemic also underscored the need for local production.
