Market Snapshot

Singapore stocks opened lower on Friday. STI fell 0.5%; Thomson Medical rose 2.13%; Suntec Reit rose 1.7%.

Stocks to Watch

Suntec Real Estate Investment Trust (Suntec Reit): Property tycoon Gordon Tang and his wife Celine have raised their mandatory conditional cash offer to acquire all units of the Reit to S$1.19 apiece. The offer was made solely to comply with the take-over code and the duo intends to maintain the listing status of the Reit on the Singapore bourse. Units of Suntec Reit ended 0.8 per cent or S$0.01 higher at S$1.20 on Wednesday, before the news.

China Everbright Water: The environmental services group has issued its first tranche of medium-term notes for 2025 with a principal amount of 1.5 billion yuan (S$279.6 million) and a 1.78 per cent coupon rate. The first tranche comes with a maturity period of five years, said the company on Wednesday. Shares of China Everbright Water ended flat at S$0.245, before the announcement. 

Tan Chong International: The car dealer is expecting an unrealised loss of HK$29 million (S$5.1 million) on its investments designated at fair value through other comprehensive income for the year ended Dec 31, 2024. On Wednesday, the group attributed the loss to share price changes in its listed investments, which are “marked to market”. Shares of Tan Chong closed flat at HK$1.04, before the news. 

SG Local News

Micron to Spend $7 Billion Building Singapore Memory Chip Plant

Micron Technology Inc. is investing $7 billion over the next several years to expand its manufacturing footprint in Singapore, as artificial intelligence boosts demand for advanced memory chips.

The US company broke ground on a new facility in the city-state on Wednesday, saying the plant is set to start operating in 2026. It will be used to package high-bandwidth memory chips, a type widely seen in AI data centers, and create about 1,400 jobs.

Malaysia Unveils Tax Breaks for New Economic Zone With Singapore

Malaysia unveiled a slew of tax incentives to lure investors to its joint special economic zone with Singapore that seeks to add $26 billion per year to the Malaysian economy by 2030.

Special company tax rates of 5% for 15 years and lower income taxes for knowledge workers were part of the package unveiled by Malaysia’s Finance Ministry and Johor state government on Wednesday. The incentives are effective from Jan. 1, according to a statement.

The package came a day after the leaders of Singapore and Malaysia officially launched the zone that links the border region. The Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone is nearly twice the size of China’s Shenzhen — the city bordering Hong Kong whose success Malaysia is hoping to emulate with the SEZ.

Singapore Passes Key Bill to Tackle Workplace Discrimination

Singapore’s parliament on Wednesday passed a landmark bill to safeguard workers against biases based on factors such as age and nationality, the Straits Times reported.

During the eight-hour debate on the Workplace Fairness Bill spread over two days, some members of the parliament said the bill excludes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Some also highlighted the challenges faced by platform workers, smaller businesses and the cost of racial and religious discrimination.

Big-Car COE Premium Rockets to S$121,501, Highest Level in over a Year

CERTIFICATE of Entitlement (COE) bidding for 2025 is off to a racing start as the premium for larger, more powerful cars – those classified as Category B – spiked 11.5 per cent or S$12,501 to S$121,501.

The premium is higher now than in all of 2024, where the peak was S$116,002 in October’s first round of bidding. The last time the premium was higher was during December 2023’s first round of bidding when it was S$130,100.