SG Market (22 May 13)

SG Market: S’pore shares are likely to see muted trading as investors wait out for indications as to whether US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony before Congress will signify any change in the monetary easing stance. The BOJ policy meeting this morning may also set the early tone for Asian bourses. Meanwhile, the STI is expected to mull along with a negative bias with overhead resistance capping the index at 3,480 and underlying support at 3,424 level. Stocks to watch for: *DBS: Bank Indonesia (BI) has given the nod for DBS to purchase a 40% stake in Bank Danamon, falling short of the majority control it had sought. But the Indonesian central bank assured that DBS may be allowed additional stake if S’pore meets its reciprocity conditions. MAS has welcomed the BI approval and affirmed that is exploring further access for Indonesian banks to operate here. Meanwhile, DBS disclosed it has yet to receive written notification of the BI approval and still hopes to acquire a controlling stake. *Boustead: 4QFY13 revenue rose 11% y/y to $146.1, while net profit declined 15% to $27.7m due to lower one-off gains. For FY13, revenue grew 26% to $513.2m, setting up record net profit of $81.4m (+46%), boosted by tax write-backs and refund, and gains from disposal of investments totaling $14.5m. Excluding these items, the group would still have achieved record earnings with respectable growth of 20%. The strong performance was led by its real estate solutions and geo-spatial technology divisions. Together with new contract wins, order book now stands at over $378m. Group is proposing a final DPS of 3¢ plus special 2¢, making a total DPS of 7¢ for the full year vs 5¢ in FY12. *Religare Healthcare Trust: FY13 results were largely in line with estimates. DPU of 3.55¢ for the period 19 Oct 12 to 31 Mar 13 represented an annualized yield of 8.75% for unitholders who acquired the units at IPO. Gurgaon Clinical Establishment, the largest asset within the RHT portfolio, is now fully operational and a key growth driver. The trust expects to benefit from the burgeoning healthcare industry in India which offers significant opportunities. *China Fishery: Intends to make a new voluntary cash offer for Peruvian fishmeal producer Copeinca ASA by topping rival Cermaq’s NOK59.70 bid after the expiry of its earlier extended offer on 23 May. The new offer is subject to China Fishery not obtaining the 50.01% minimum acceptance level upon expiry of its first offer and Cermaq shareholders voting down its proposed rights issue to fund its competing bid for Copeinca. Cermaq, in turn has a conditional offer from Norwegian salmon fish farmer Marine Harvest on the table provided it rejects the Copeinca transaction. *NH Ceramics: Signed MoA with Kim Soon Lee for the proposed sale of its Tuas Properties and the E-Centre Property for $17m via asset sale of the properties or transfer of shares in NH Enterprises, which hold the properties. *Creative Technology: Unveils the new Creative Dxm Signature Series modular wireless speaker system that is iOS and Android-enabled, giving users the flexibility to link up with other audio devices and placing the speakers anywhere in a room to enjoy the best sound quality. Prices range from $249-399. *Cosco: Secured contract of over Rmb500m to build a 28,000 cbm LNG vessels for a Chinese ship owner with delivery scheduled in 1Q15.