• On 5 Nov, the STI surpassed the preceding 2021 year high made on 30 April, with further gains on the 8 Nov morning session taking the STI to a 3,270.65 high. This level was last seen in January 2020, with the January 2020 high at 3,283.89. This has taken the STI 2021 YTD total return to 18%, outpacing the 4% gain of the FTSE Asia Pacific Index.
   
• Between the STI highs of 30 April and 5 Nov, of the 100 most traded Singapore stocks, 42 stocks outpaced the STI, with the 42 generating median price gains of 11% and net institutional inflows of S$1.2 billion. These 42 stocks included stocks of the Energy, Technology, Industrial and REIT Sectors, that were also among the stronger sectors across the globe for the period.
   
• The strongest performers of the 100 stocks from 30 April to 5 Nov were RH Petrogas, CFM, Hatten Land, Rex Intl, PropNex, Geo Energy, Frencken, Tuan Sing, IFAST and Raffles Medical. Geo Energy, Rex Intl, Raffles Medical, Frencken and Tuan Sing also ranked among the 25 of the 100 stocks with the highest net institutional inflows proportionate to market cap for the period.

On 5 November, the Straits Times Index (“STI”) posted a new high for 2021, breaking above the 3,237.23 high formed back on 30 April, with a morning session high of 3,248.07. The morning session on 8 November saw the STI extend its gains and trade at a fresh high of 3,270.65, a level last seen on 21 January, 2020. This has taken the STI to within 0.4% of the January 2020 high of 3,283.89.

The recent STI gains have boosted its 2021 year-to-date gain to 17.9% as of the end of the 8 November morning session, which has quadrupled the return of the FTSE Asia Pacific Index.

While the STI ended last week 0.8% above its 30 April high, as many as 42 of the 100 most traded Singapore stocks generated price returns in excess of 0.8% over the period. As a group, these 100 stocks comprise some 70% of the total stock market capitalisation of all stocks listed on Singapore Exchange, while contributing  more than 85% of the day-to-day turnover.

With the 100 stocks generating a median decline of 1.4% between 30 April and 5 November, the average price performance was a skewed gain of 10.4% due to a number of outlier performances. Aside from the comparative resilience of Energy, Technology, Industrial and REIT Sectors for the period, that were also among the stronger sectors across the globe, a number of Real Estate (excl. REITs) stocks also led the local market over the period. This reverberated to the STI, with the two strongest STI stocks over the period, Hongkong Land and CapitaLand Investment.

The 10 strongest performers of the 100 stocks from 30 April to 5 Nov were all non-STI stocks, and tabled below. Note that Geo Energy Resources, Rex International Holding, Raffles Medical Group, Frencken Group and Tuan Sing Holdings also ranked among the 25 of the 100 stocks with the highest net institutional inflows proportionate to market cap for the period. Note that Hatten Land, Rex International Holding and CFM Holdings are listed on the Catalist Board.

 Source: SGX, Refinitiv, Bloomberg (Data as of 5 November 2021)

As tabled above, as many as three Energy stocks were among the top 10 performers of the actively traded stocks over the six months. The price of Brent Crude Oil gained 24% from US$67.25/bbl on 30 April to US$83.60/bbl during the 8 November morning session. Much of the oil price gain has been attributed by the IMF to the global economic recovery, which remains an upside risk along with lower global production capacity from reduced investment in 2020-21, and OPEC+ price support. At the same time key downside risks to the price of oil include the economic impacts of resurgences of the Delta variant, higher output from uncommitted OPEC+ members and higher output from US shale oil producers.

As noted in a recent interview, Rex International Holding’s production in Oman in its 1HFY21 (ended 30 June) was almost on par with the production for the entire FY20, and with the Brent Crude Oil price increasing four-fold from about US$20/bbl in April 2020 to above US$80/bbl at present, and production costs maintained at US$80,000 per day, higher production levels have translated into lower costs per barrel for the company. For Geo Energy Resources, China and Indonesia remain the Group’s core markets, contributing 57% and 27% respectively to the Group’s total revenue in 1HFY21 (ending 30 June). For its 1HFY21, Geo Energy Resources reported revenue increased 37% YoY to US$220 million. The group highlighted it delivered 5.4 million tonnes of coal in 1HFY21 with an average selling price per tonne of US$40.97, with the Average ICI4 coal price at US$47.78 per tonne in 1HFY21, up from US$30.61 per tonne in 1HFY20. The company also noted that the ICI4 coal price as at 18 August 2021 was at US$71.45 per tonne, up US$23.67 from 1HFY21. On 13 October, Geo Energy Resources announced it had completed redemption of all outstanding bonds and expects a strong second half performance in view of higher volumes and heightened coal prices.

The global theme of resilient investment also saw PropNex and iFAST Corporation rank among the top 10 performers of the actively traded stocks over the six months.

Earnings have also mattered for the tabled stocks, exemplified by Tuan Sing posting a fifteen-fold increase in 1HFY21 net profit to $100.7 million. Raffles Medical Group’s Profit after Tax grew 138.4% in its 1HFY21 (ended 30 June) to S$38.8 million, while the Group also expanded its operations beyond air-border screening and pre-event testing to include vaccination centres, pre-departure swabbing of cruise passengers, as well as operating dedicated polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing centres to conduct tests for those exposed to new COVID-19 clusters as they emerge. RafflesHospitalShanghai, a 770,000 square-foot, 12 storey facility with a capacity of 400 beds, will start receiving patients in late July.

On the technology front, Frencken Group has benefited from higher orders for both front-end and back-end semiconductor equipment from customers in Europe and Asia, reflecting the continued growth of the global semiconductor industry amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hatten Land introduced a number of strategic initiatives on 16 September that included an MOU with Singapore Myanmar Investco to Undertake ‘Green’ Crypto Mining Activities in Melaka, a Strategic Partnership Agreement with Bursa-Listed Nestcon Berhad for a Solar Energy Initiative, and a proposed Share Placement to prominent investors to accelerate the group’s new growth initiatives.

CFM Holdings announced on 3 June it had entered into a Sale and Purchase Agreement in relation to the proposed acquisition of 51% of the issued share capital of SING-SWE MM Biotechnology Pte Ltd. SING-SWE MM Biotechnology Pte Ltd was incorporated on 7 May 2021 and is involved in the distribution and sale of pharmaceutical products with the exclusive distribution rights to certain viral test and detection kits, including inter alia, nucleic acid quick tests, rapid antigen tests, antibody rapid tests, and thalassemia screening kits in Europe, Africa, South Asia, South-East Asia and Middle East, and intends to invest in and develop its own products in related fields. As a result of higher revenue generated and lower admin/marketing/finance/tax expenses, CFM Holdings also recorded a profit after tax of S$417k for its FY21 (ended 30 June) as compared to a loss after tax of S$703k in FY20.

The full 100 most traded Singapore-listed stocks in the 2021 year to 5 November are tabled below.  

 Source: SGX, Refinitiv, Bloomberg (Data as of 5 November 2021)