Banks, Singtel drive STI all-time of 5,072.34 on Tuesday

Date: May 25, 2026

• The STI gained 79 points or 1.6% at 5,068.15 driven by all-time highs for DBS and OCBC
• On Tuesday, the index hit a new all-time closing high of 5,072.34
• Wall St rose to new highs despite pressure from bond market
• Keppel in focus after M1-Simba merger collapses
• CDL’s Singapore property sales fall to S$609.6 million in Q1, global hotel RevPAR rises 4.3%
• Nio Q1 net loss narrows to 332.1 million yuan as revenue doubles
• Singtel’s 2H profit down 20.9% at S$2.2b, says keen to play a part in industry consolidation
• Co-working firm JustCo ends 17.6% below IPO price in lacklustre mainboard debut

 

The Straits Times Index closed 79 points or 1.6% higher at 5,068.15 thanks to a new all-time closing highs for DBS and OCBC and notwithstanding the pressure on Singtel in the latter half of the week following the release of disappointing results.

Earlier in the week, the STI closed at a new high of 5,072.34 on Tuesday when DBS gained 2%, OCBC 1.7% and Singtel 2.3%.

Average daily volume was S$2.3b versus S$2.58b the previous week.

 

New highs on Wall St despite pressure from the bond market

The week kicked off with stocks under pressure from the bond market, with the yield on the 30-year Treasury note rising on Tuesday to highs not seen since 2007. Higher yields mean lower bond prices–and when the bond market is under such intense pressure, stocks fall.

Inflation has added pressure, too, with many commodities recently rising in price. Consider the CoreCommodity Index, which has risen 31% in 2026. The last time the index was up 30% or more year-to-date through May 22 was back in 2022. At the time, the index was 35% higher, while the S&P 500 was off 18%.

Sentiment improved midweek as optimism grew around a possible temporary ceasefire framework between Washington and Tehran. Oil prices reversed earlier gains and briefly moved back below US$100/bbl as traders weighed reports of ongoing diplomatic discussions.

For the week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 2.1%, the S&P 500 rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.5%.

 

Keppel in focus after M1-Simba merger collapses

The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) on Monday said it had halted its assessment of the proposed consolidation between M1 and Simba Telecom until further notice.

This comes as it learnt that mobile network operator Simba could have been using radio frequency bands that it was not assigned to provide mobile services.

Last August, Keppel announced plans to sell M1’s telco business to Simba for S$1.4 billion in an all-cash deal as part of its capital recycling programme. On Monday, Keppel said the proposed divestment will be removed from its announced monetisation for 2025.

Between Monday and Tuesday, Keppel’s shares lost S$0.37 or 3.5% at S$10.23. However they rebounded strongly to finish the week at S$10.91.

 

CDL’s Singapore property sales fall to S$609.6 million in Q1, global hotel RevPAR rises 4.3%

City Developments Ltd (CDL) last week reported a decline in its first-quarter Singapore property sales, while its global hotel operations recorded higher revenue per available room (RevPAR).

For the three months ended Mar 31, the group and its joint venture associates sold 242 units with a total sales value of S$609.6 million, down from the year-ago period’s 795 units with S$1.9 billion in sales value.

The sales were driven mainly by the launch of its 246-unit freehold Newport Residences in January, the developer said in an operational update. It noted that in contrast, its Q1 2025 showing benefited from the launch of the larger 777-unit The Orie.

Newport Residences recorded an average selling price of about S$3,200 per square foot. To date, it has sold 192 or 78 per cent of the units.

The group’s hotel operations recorded a 4.3% increase in global RevPAR to S$144.80 for the latest quarter, from S$138.80 the year before. This was on the back of RevPAR growth in Australasia (17.7%), Singapore (7.5%), Europe (4.7%) and New York (4%), it said.

As at Mar 31, CDL’s net gearing ratio stood at 72%, factoring in the fair value of investment properties and the Tanjong Rhu acquisition. Its interest cover stood at 2.7 times.

 

Singtel’s 2H profit down 20.9% at S$2.2b, says keen to play a part in industry consolidation

Singtel on Thursday posted a net profit of S$2.2b for its second half ended 31 March, 20.9% in the year-ago period mainly due to lower exceptional gains from its India associate, Airtel.

The dip translated into earnings per share (EPS) of S$0.1335, down from S$0.1688 a year earlier.

On Thursday, Singtel’s shares fell S$0.32 or 6.4% to S$4.70 on volume of 118.1m. They continued to slide, losing another S$0.11 or 2.34% on Friday at S$4.59. The loss for the week was S$0.23 or 4.8%.

Excluding exceptional items, the group’s underlying net profit for H2 rose 10.6% to S$1.4 billion whilst revenue came in at S$7.4 billion, up 2.7%.

For FY2026, the group’s net profit rose 39.5% to S$5.6 billion, from S$4 billion the year before.

The board proposed a final ordinary dividend of S$0.103 a share, totalling S$1.7 billion for the financial year ended Mar 31.

This comprises a core dividend of S$0.07 a share and a value realisation dividend of S$0.033 a share, bringing Singtel’s total annual dividend to a record S$0.185 a share.

The telco said it is “seeking clarification” from the regulators on its ability to participate in the consolidation of Singapore’s telecommunications space, in the wake of news that the proposed sale of M1 to Simba Telecom has collapsed.

“We have always been actively seeking to participate in consolidation,” said Singtel group CEO Yuen Kuan Moon at the telco’s FY2026 full-year results briefing.

He noted that the group would consider taking part in a market consolidation if regulators give it the green light. An environment with four telcos, he said, is “definitely not sustainable”.

 

Nio Q1 net loss narrows to 332.1 million yuan as revenue doubles

Electric vehicle maker Nio a net loss of 332.1m yuan (S$62.5m) for its first quarter ended 31 Mar, narrowing from a net loss of about 6.8 billion yuan a year earlier.

Revenue stood at 25.5 billion yuan, more than doubling year on year from 12 billion yuan.

This came as vehicle sales jumped 129.2% to 22.8 billion yuan on higher delivery volumes and a higher average selling price driven by a favourable product mix.

Other sales grew 31.2% to 2.75 billion yuan mainly due to an increase in the sales of parts, accessories and after-sales vehicle services, the provision of power solutions, and higher revenues from car financing services.

Giving its outlook for Q2, Nio said it expects to deliver between 110,000 and 115,000 vehicles, representing an increase of 52.7 to 59.6% from the previous corresponding period.

It expects Q2 revenue to be between 32.78 billion and 34.44 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 72.4 to 81.2%.

 

Co-working firm JustCo ends 17.6% below IPO price in lacklustre mainboard debut

Shares of flexible workspace operator JustCo closed 17.6% below their offer price in a tepid mainboard debut on Friday.

This marked Singapore Exchange’s fifth listing and second mainboard debut in 2026.

The counter opened at S$0.835, 11.2% or S$0.105 below its IPO price of S$0.94 per share. It ended the day at S$0.775, which is S$0.165 below its IPO price, with 10.9 million shares changing hands.

DBS, in its capacity as stabilising manager for the IPO, said that it bought 3.4 million JustCo shares on Friday at between S$0.80 and S$0.87 apiece.

The lacklustre debut follows the close of JustCo’s IPO of 32.1 million offering shares, which was 3.4 times subscribed.

The offering included an international offer with a placement of 25.8 million shares to institutional and other investors in Singapore, as well as to foreign institutional and selected investors outside the US.

The international offer was 3.6 times subscribed, representing S$91.9 million of demand.

Meanwhile, the Singapore public offer component comprised 6.3 million shares; 1,069 valid acceptances were received for nearly 17 million shares, amounting to around S$15.9 million received and a subscription rate of 2.7 times.