Singapore shares ended flat this week. STI index crossed the 5,000 mark on Thursday but experienced a decline of nearly 1.6% on Friday due to profit-taking in major banking stocks, while the 2026 budget also triggered a pullback.
In terms of individual stocks, First Resources, Boustead up over 9%; YZJ Shipbldg, Keppel up over 8%; UMS up over 7%; DBS dropped 3.8%; ShengSiong sank over 7%.
Market News
DBS Stock Drops 3.78% After Q4 Net Profit Misses Forecasts, Flags Rate Headwinds in 2026
Singapore's biggest bank DBS on Monday maintained expectation that net profit this year will dip slightly from 2025's, after posting a 10% drop in fourth-quarter earnings that was weighed down by a lower net interest margin. Shares dropped 3.78% for the week.
DBS, which is also Southeast Asia's largest bank by assets, said October-December net profit dropped to S$2.26 billion ($1.78 billion) from S$2.52 billion a year earlier.
That missed the mean estimate of nearly S$2.55 billion from two analysts, according to LSEG data.
For the period, overall group net interest margin, a key profitability gauge, stood at 1.93% as compared to 2.15% the previous year, with net interest income impacted by lower domestic rates. Return on equity declined to 13.5% from 15.8% a year ago.
Keppel to Divest 86.83% Stake in Keppel Philippines Properties for PHP 472.7 Million
Keppel Ltd. shares rose over 8% for the week. Keppel said on Wednesday that it and its wholly owned units, Keppel Management Ltd. and Molten Pte. Ltd., together with 64%-owned Kepwealth, Inc., have agreed to sell their entire 86.83 per cent holding in Keppel Philippines Properties, Inc. to Forward Synergy Group, Inc. for about PHP 472.7 million (approximately 10.5 million Singapore dollars).
Keppel will receive around PHP 471.0 million (about 10.4 million Singapore dollars), reflecting its 98 per cent economic interest in the shares being sold.
UMS Integration Shares Likely to Extend Gains
UMS Integration's share price could extend gains, based on technical analysis, Phillip Securities Research's Zane Aw says in a commentary. On Wednesday, the share price broke out to the upside from a bullish flag pattern between S$1.25 and S$1.35, which it had been trading in since mid-January, the analyst notes. UMS shares rose 7.2% for the week.
The moving average convergence divergence indicator is also showing an increasing momentum trend, which supports the bullish continuation view, he says. The share price is expected to extend the uptrend to S$1.45, the analyst adds.
Boustead Singapore Shares Rise 9% After Getting a Buy Rating from OCBC Group
$Boustead(F9D.SI) shares rose over 9.18% for the week. The engineering and technology company is planning to spin off its logistics and industrial assets into a Singapore REIT. A similar REIT spin-off by Centurion Corp. weighed on its shares, and the same could potentially happen to Boustead Singapore's stock, OCBC Group Research analyst Ada Lim says.
However, shares might improve over the medium term given greater investor interest in small and mid-cap stocks in Singapore amid the equities market overhaul, she adds. OCBC raises its fair-value estimate to S$2.45 from S$2.02 as shares have exceeded the previous estimate. The bank reiterates its buy rating.
Singapore PM Wong Crafts Budget for “More Dangerous“ World
Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong unveiled a budget he said would help the city-state thrive as it faces a “more dangerous” world, marked by technological challenges and globalization on the retreat.
In a 1.5-hour speech, Wong detailed increased funding for the nation’s priority areas such as artificial intelligence, innovation and defense, while also ramping up support for low-income households and workers, the elderly and small businesses.
“Standing still is not an option. We cannot wait for conditions to turn more favorable, nor can we fall back on strategies designed for a previous era,” Wong said in his annual budget speech in Parliament on Thursday.