To The Moon

Market Snapshot

Singapore stocks opened lower on Friday. STI fell 0.3%; NIO fell 5%; DBS fell 0.8%; OCBC fell 0.4%; Yangzijiang Shipbuilding rose 2%; SingPost rose 0.9%.

Stocks to Watch

$Prudential(K6S.SI)$: The company on Thursday announced a joint venture with India’s HCL Group’s promoter company Vama Sundari Investments (Delhi) to operate a standalone health insurance business. Prudential and Vama will have 70-30 stakes in the venture, which is subject to regulatory approvals. Prudential is eyeing growth in India, looking at opportunities to grow its life and health businesses, said chief executive officer Anil Wadhwani during an earnings call after the release of its 2024 financial year results on Thursday. Prudential reported a 2 per cent dip in new business profit to US$3.08 billion. On a constant exchange rate basis, the new business profit would have been up 11 per cent. Overall, profit for FY2024 rose 41 per cent to US$2.4 billion. On a constant exchange rate basis, profit would have been up 43 per cent. Shares of Prudential ended Thursday flat at US$8.21.

$Top Glove(BVA.SI)$: The Malaysian glove manufacturer reported a net profit of RM30.3 million (S$9.1 million) for its second quarter ended Feb 28, 2025, reversing from a net loss of RM51.2 million a year ago. This translated into a basic earnings per share (EPS) of 0.38 sen, from a basic loss per share (LPS) of 0.64 sen for Q2 of FY2024. The group attributed its improved performance to a sustained uptrend in glove orders on the back of recovering global demand, as well as trade diversions resulting from US tariffs on Chinese glove exports. The company will continue to reopen temporarily closed factories once current utilisation reaches around 70 per cent, and will aim to increase its running capacity by 10 billion pieces by the end of FY2025. Shares of Top Glove ended Thursday unchanged at S$0.275.

$ValueMax(T6I.SI)$: The pawnbroking chain has raised S$71.7 million through two separate three-month digital securities commercial papers that closed on Thursday, the company said in a bourse filing on the same day. Both papers were issued on Mar 3 and received “strong demand” from investors, ValueMax said. One of them is its three-month Series 014 Issuance, which raised S$23.4 million in gross proceeds. The digital securities will be listed on the ADDX digital platform on Friday (Mar 21). Separately, the company raised S$48.29 million through its three-month Series 008 SDAX Issuance. This was issued on the Singapore’s Digital Asset Exchange (SDAX) on Thursday (Mar 20). ValueMax shares fell S$0.005, or 0.95 per cent, to close at S$0.52 on Thursday.

$Fu Yu(F13.SI)$: Its largest shareholder Victor Lim made a new request to table resolutions for the removal and appointment of directors at the company’s upcoming annual general meeting, the precision plastic parts maker said in a Thursday bourse filing. This follows Lim’s two previous attempts to requisition extraordinary general meetings for the directors’ appointments and removals. The company said it would update shareholders on any developments and urged caution in dealing with its shares. Shares of Fu Yu ended Thursday at S$0.10, up by 2 per cent or S$0.002 before the announcement.

$BlackGold Natural Resources(41H.SI)$: The Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) has reprimanded three directors and the chief financial officer (CFO) of BlackGold Natural Resources for breaching listing rules, citing failure to implement adequate internal controls and risk management systems, as well as failure to promptly disclose material information. SGX RegCo noted that while the CFO and the CEO were aware of material information that required immediate disclosure, they failed to escalate such information to the board in a timely manner. Despite the regulator’s requests, the company was also not able to produce any evidence to substantiate the existence of internal controls it purportedly implemented at the material time. Trading in the shares of BlackGold Natural Resources has been suspended since Jun 15, 2023. The company has been placed under judicial management since Jan 26, 2024. It was last traded at S$0.003.

SG Local News

Creditors File over S$198M in Claims Against Troubled Qoo10, but Only S$34,650 Recovered

More than S$198 million in claims have been submitted by creditors to the liquidator of beleaguered online marketplace Qoo10, but only S$34,650 has been recovered, according to minutes of the latest creditors’ meeting seen by The Straits Times.

Of the sum recovered, S$20,000 was from Qoo10’s 11 bank accounts with DBS Bank, S$14,150 was from rental deposits that were held by landlords of employees, and S$500 came from the disposal of office furniture and IT equipment.

According to information submitted by Qoo10 founder and chief executive Ku Young-bae to the liquidator, AAG Corporate Advisory, Qoo10’s total assets are valued at S$685.6 million.

Tan Boon Liat Building’s S$1.15 Billion Collective Sale Closes with No Bids

The collective sale of freehold Tan Boon Liat Building has moved into private treaty talks, after a tender closed on Tuesday (Mar 18) with no bids at the asking price of S$1.15 billion.  

The Business Times understands that there were expressions of interest for the large plot, and parties have now entered a 10-week private treaty period due to conditions placed.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) had advised that building owners consider rezoning the site to residential with commercial use on the first storey, and for the plot ratio to be raised from 3.1 to 4.9, marketing agent Cushman & Wakefield said. 

Jurong West Sees 318mm of Rain During Monsoon Surge, Surpassing Singapore's March Average

Various areas of Singapore experienced above-average rainfall over Mar 19 and Mar 20 due to a monsoon surge, with Jurong West recording the highest total amount of 318mm, said national water agency PUB on Thursday (Mar 20).

In eastern Singapore, the highest rainfall recorded was 298.4mm.

Both amounts are above Singapore's average monthly rainfall of 209.7mm for March, PUB said in a Facebook post.