Semiconductor stocks continued to slide as the STI rose 0.1%

Date: October 26, 2026

• DBS, Jardine Matheson & HK Land helped the STI add 0.1%
• Semiconductor stocks continued to come under pressure
• On Wall St, tech/AI stocks took a beating
• All eyes this week on FOMC meeting, earnings announcements from Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft
• Semiconductor materials supplier Mi Material launched IPO at S$1.80 per share
• Keppel Reit to buy 51% stake in Keppel South Central for S$610.9 million
• 56 Stocks Extend Institutional Inflows Amid Continued Market Outflows: SGX Research
• OUE Reit’s Q3 NPI rose 4.6% to S$59.6 million on hospitality strength
• Suntec Reit Q3 DPU up 13.4% on stronger Singapore portfolio performance

 

DBS, Jardine Matheson & HK Land helped the STI add 0.1% at 5,422.16

A modest gain in DBS over the week combined with gains in other index stocks like Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land to add about 7 points or 0.1% to the Straits Times Index at 5,422.16.

The artificial intelligence (AI) theme however, continued to suffer, with sector leaders AEM, UMS and Frencken plunging 10.7%, 8.2% and 9.3% over the week.

Average daily volume was S$1.68 versus S$2b the previous week.

 

On Wall Street tech/AI stocks continued to take a beating

On Thursday tech stocks took a nosedive after Meta earnings reignited an AI trade panic on Wall Street. Investors rotated out of tech and into more defensive areas of the market, whilst the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.6% in its worst single-day drop in more than four months.

The key sticking point was that Meta was free cash flow negative for the first time since the second quarter of 2012, when it went public as Facebook.

It wasn’t just tech getting crushed, though. More specifically, it was the AI trade at large. Non-tech AI names such as GE Vernova and Bloom Energy were among the S&P 500’s biggest laggards. Caterpillar, another stealth AI stock, also tumbled.

The PHLX Semiconductor Index was pummelled, with every single chipmaker stock in the index ending the day lower. Although there was a modest bounce on Friday, all eyes will be on this week’s earnings by Alphabet, Amazon, and Microsoft.

For the week, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.67%, the benchmark S&P 500 lost 1.95%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 4.48%.

 

All eyes on FOMC meeting, earnings announcements from Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft this week

The US Federal Reserve will announce its latest interest rate decision this week. Currently, the futures market is pricing in a 91% chance that rates will remain unchanged at 3.75-4%.

As far as the tech/AI play is concerned, this week will see the latest earnings announcements from Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft.

 

Semiconductor materials supplier Mi Material launched IPO at S$1.80 per share

Mi Material launched its initial public offer last week S$1.80 a share aimed at raising S$215 million. Of that sum, S$139.5 million will come from the IPO, and S$75.5 million from the placements to cornerstone investors.

Mi Material will receive S$157.9 million in net proceeds from the IPO.

Of the 77.5 million shares, 71.3 million are being offered to institutional and other investors in Singapore and overseas, excluding the US; the public offer consists of 6.2 million shares.

The separate cornerstone placements, numbering 41.9 million shares, have been allotted to abrdn Asia, abrdn Malaysia, Amova Asset Management Asia, ArecaCapital, Barings Singapore, Fullerton Fund Management and Manulife Investment Management.

The company will use the proceeds mainly to set up an R&D facility and two fully automated production lines in Texas in the US. It will also refurbish and upgrade the production facilities in Taiwan, expand the production facilities in Malaysia, and set up a R&D lab in Singapore.

Mi Material has no fixed dividend policy, but the board intends to recommend and distribute 20% of its net profit after tax as a dividend from the company’s listing date to Dec 31, 2026, and for FY2027.

 

Keppel Reit to buy 51% stake in Keppel South Central for S$610.9 million

Keppel Reit is buying a 5% stake in Keppel South Central from its sponsor Keppel for a purchase consideration of S$610.9 million. This will strengthen its footprint in Singapore’s prime office market, the real estate investment trust’s (REIT) manager said.

The total value of the 33-storey Grade A commercial building in the Central Business District (CBD) stands at about S$1.2 billion. With 522,500 square feet of net lettable area, this translates to an overall building valuation of about S$2,350 per square foot (psf).

Based on this total valuation, the agreed property value for Keppel Reit’s 51% interest on a 70-year leasehold basis is S$626.2 million.

Investment banking firm Jefferies maintained a “hold” on Keppel Reit after the deal was announced, and kept its target price at S$0.85.

“We like the redeployment of proceeds from lower-yielding Japan and (South) Korea divestments into a higher-yielding Singapore asset,” said its analysts.

“However, potential equity fundraising could create a near-term overhang, while the income support structure may raise questions around the asset’s underlying earnings yield before stabilisation.”

Maybank said it is maintaining a “buy’’ on the back of attractive valuation (6.3% yield, 0.7x P/BV) and favourable demand-supply dynamics with an unchanged dividend discounted model target price of S$1.00.

Completion of the deal will be subject to the approval of unitholders at an extraordinary general meeting, expected to be held in the fourth quarter of this year.

The transaction, which includes the repayment of S$462.1 million in existing shareholder loans, is expected to be completed in the second quarter of next year.

The manager of Keppel Reit said the acquisition offers a pro forma distribution per unit accretion of 2.01 per cent and an “attractive” initial property yield of 4.3%.

 

56 Stocks Extend Institutional Inflows Amid Continued Market Outflows: SGX Research

Despite net institutional outflows across each of the three weeks ended 16 Oct, 56 stocks recorded positive five-day net institutional inflow in all three weekly periods, said SGX Research in a 19 Oct report.

“Among the 56 stocks, Sembcorp Industries recorded the highest cumulative net institutional inflow at S$43.9 million, followed by Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) at S$37.7 million and DFI Retail Group at S$22.7 million’’.

“Hutchison Port Holdings Trust, Genting Singapore and StarHub followed with cumulative inflows of S$8.4 million, S$6.0 million and S$4.3 million, respectively. Together, the six stocks accounted for approximately S$123 million of cumulative institutional inflow across the three-week period’’.

The 56 stocks included companies that remained in positive year-to-date institutional flow territory and companies that attracted more recent institutional buying.

“DFI Retail Group, Hutchison Port Holdings Trust, Food Empire Holdings, Hong Fok Corporation, The Hour Glass and Chuan Hup Holdings remained in positive year-to-date institutional flow territory as at 16 Oct’’ said SGX Research.

“In contrast, Singtel, Sembcorp Industries, Genting Singapore and StarHub remained in net institutional outflow positions for the year to date despite recording net inflow in each of the three weekly periods’’.

 

OUE Reit’s Q3 NPI rose 4.6% to S$59.6 million on hospitality strength

OUE Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) posted a 4.6% year-on-year increase in net property income (NPI) to S$59.6 million for the third quarter ended Sep 30, as stronger hospitality performance offset weaker contributions from its commercial portfolio.

Revenue rose 3.1% to S$72.6 million, from S$70.5 million the year before whilst financing costs fell 12.4% year on year to S$18.9 million, supported by the manager’s capital management initiatives.

OUE Reit’s aggregate leverage stood at 42.1% at the end of the quarter, up from 41.5% as at Jun 30, while its weighted average cost of debt remained unchanged at 3.6% per annum.

The Reit said aggregate leverage would fall to 37.1% if net proceeds from the planned divestment of Crowne Plaza Changi Airport were used to repay existing loans. The divestment of the airport hotel is expected to be completed on Oct 30, unlocking S$498.5 million in net cash proceeds.

A S$20 million special distribution is expected to commence from the 2027 financial year, with payments spread evenly over the first two years following completion of the divestment.

Separately, OUE REIT confirmed it was in exclusive talks with IOI Properties Group and CapitaLand Investment (CLI) over the sale of its One Raffles Place property, clarifying that no binding agreement has yet been executed.

“OUE Reit is currently in exclusivity with entities linked to IOI Properties and CapitaLand Investment with respect to the sale of the property,” the manager noted.

“Negotiations between the parties and due diligence by the purchasers are currently still ongoing, and parties have yet to enter into any binding agreement for the sale.”

It added that “there is no certainty that any transaction will materialise”.

 

Suntec Reit Q3 DPU up 13.4% on stronger Singapore portfolio performance

Suntec Reit’s distribution per unit (DPU) rose by 13.4% year-on-year to S$0.02017 for its third quarter ended Sep 30, from S$0.01778 the year before.

Gross revenue was up 5.2% to S$123.6 million for the third quarter, from S$117.5 million in the year-ago period.

This was due to stronger operating performance across its Singapore office and retail portfolio, the manager said.

Net property income grew 6.2% on the year to S$83.4 million for the third quarter, from S$78.5 million.

Distributable income rose 14.3% year on year to S$59.9 million, from S$52.4 million. The distribution will be paid out on Nov 27, after books closure on Oct 30.