Market Snapshot

Singapore stocks opened higher on Thursday. STI up 8%; Yangzijiang Shipbuilding up 11%; UOB, DBS, Seatrium up 10%; Nio, Sembcorp up 5%.

Stocks to Watch

ST Engineering: The company’s urban solutions business has secured a S$1.4 billion contract to provide turnkey rail services for the new Taichung mass rapid transit Blue Line. The contracted scope covers a period of about 14 years, and is expected to start in the second quarter of 2025. Shares of ST Engineering closed 0.6 per cent or S$0.04 lower at S$6.30 on Wednesday.

Share buybacks

SGX: The bourse operator on Wednesday purchased 150,000 shares for a total of S$1.8 million at the price range of S$12.08 to S$12.15 each, which will be held as treasury shares. The counter closed 0.8 per cent or S$0.10 higher at S$12.12, before the announcement.

SIA: The group on Wednesday bought back 522,500 shares at a price range of S$5.91 to S$6.05 per share at a total consideration of S$3.1 million. The maximum number of shares authorised for purchase is about 148.9 million. Shares of SIA ended 0.8 per cent or S$0.05 lower at S$5.99, before the announcement.

DBS Group Holdings: The bank on Wednesday spent a total of S$26.1 million to repurchase 700,000 of its shares at a price range of S$36.88 to S$37.86 each. All the repurchased shares were cancelled. The counter closed 2.2 per cent or S$0.84 lower at S$37.16, before the announcement.

UOB: The lender on Wednesday bought back 100,000 of its shares for a total of S$3.1 million at a price range of S$30.71 to S$31.38 per share. It cancelled half the shares and stored the rest in treasury. Shares of UOB ended 3.6 per cent or S$1.14 lower at S$30.99, before the announcement.

Venture: The company on Wednesday purchased 10,000 shares for a total of S$104,196 at S$10.41 per share. Its shares closed 4.7 per cent or S$0.51 lower at S$10.40, before the announcement.

SG Local News

Healthcare Spending Could Hit S$30 Billion a Year by 2030: Ong Ye Kung

Spending on healthcare in Singapore could soon become the single biggest item in the government’s coffers, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, as he assured Singaporeans that their basic healthcare needs will continue to be affordable.

In 2025, the government has set aside S$20.9 billion for health, second only to spending on defence, which has a budget of S$23.4 billion.

Citing the trajectory of government healthcare expenditure, which had gone up from S$9 billion in 2015, the year he joined politics, to S$18 billion in 2024, Ong predicted that by 2030, it would likely be close to S$30 billion a year.

Sembcorp Inks Joint Venture to Develop Green Hydrogen, Renewables in India

Indian refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) on April 8 signed a joint venture agreement with Sembcorp to develop green hydrogen and renewable energy projects across India.

The joint venture will also consider projects in green ammonia production and bunkering, emissions reduction for port operations as well as other green fuel technologies.

The deal comes at a time when India is looking to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and boost investments in renewable energy to meet its target of having at least 500 gigawatts (GW) capacity of clean energy by 2030.