Reuters: Hot Stocks: STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Singapore shares fall to near 6-month low

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STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Singapore shares fall to near 6-month low Jun 1st 2012, 05:08 Fri Jun 1, 2012 1:08am EDT Singapore shares fell to a near six-month low by midday, as poor factory data from China added to concerns that Europe's worsening debt crisis is likely to hurt global economic growth. Investors were also cautious ahead of U.S. non-farm payroll data due out later on Friday. At 0457 GMT, the benchmark Straits Times Index was 0.5 percent lower at 2,758.02, recovering from an intraday low of 2,737.99, the lowest since Jan. 16. The fall was largely because factory data from China came in below expectations, causing companies with exposure to China such as CapitaLand to underperform the market, said Ng Kian Teck, lead analyst at SIAS Research. CapitaLand shares were down 1.2 percent at S$2.51. China's purchasing managers index for May, an indicator of the country's industrial activity, fell more than expected to 50.4 percent, down from April's 13-month high. "Tonight, there will be quite a lot of important numbers coming out from the U.S., particularly to do with the non-farm payrolls and unemployment rate for May. This would also largely determine how the market would perform next week, especially for Singapore," Ng said. "So I think most of the investors are still standing on the sidelines and are waiting for more news to be out before they adjust their portfolio." 1257 (0457 GMT) (Reporting by Leonard How in Singapore; leonard.how@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 10:41 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-OCBC cuts Sakari to 'hold' OCBC Investment Research downgraded its rating on Singapore-listed Indonesian coal mining firm Sakari Resources Ltd to 'hold' from 'buy,' citing lower coal prices. Shares of Sakari fell 1.38 percent to S$1.42 and have fallen 22.3 percent so far this year. Sakari's share price has plunged about 32 percent since it reported first quarter results on April 30, underperforming the Straits Times Index's 8.6 percent fall in the same period. Sakari's share price drop was partly due to its poor earnings in January-March and a continued fall in coal prices, said OCBC, and lowered its target price on the stock to S$1.45 from S$2.29. The broker cut its coal price assumption by 10 percent to $76 per tonne, resulting in a 48 percent fall in its 2012 earnings forecast for Sakari. "If coal prices continue to remain depressed or drift lower, this would further jeopardise the company's targeted average selling price of around $85-$90 per tonne for this year," OCBC said. 1017 (0217 GMT) (Reporting by Leonard How in Singapore; leonard.how@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 10:06 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Baker Tech surges on court ruling Shares in offshore marine company Baker Technology Ltd jumped as much as 20 percent to a one-month high after a Singapore court ruled in its favour in a lawsuit. Baker Technology shares were 14.6 percent higher at S$0.315, with over 6 million shares traded. This was 14 times its average daily volume over the last five sessions. Singapore's high court dismissed a lawsuit filed by rigbuilder Sembcorp Marine Ltd to stop Baker from selling a stake in PPL Shipyard to a consortium of buyers including Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) Ltd. "With the conclusion of the lawsuit, and barring a successful appeal by SembMarine, Baker would finally be able to recognise a deferred gain of S$58.2 million from the sale of PPL Holdings," said DMG & Partners in a note. This would lift Baker's net tangible assets per share by 8 Singapore cents to S$0.32, the broker said. To read related story click 0951 (0151 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 08:49 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index futures down 0.6 pct Singapore index futures were 0.6 percent lower, indicating a weaker start for the benchmark Straits Times Index . Asian shares eased on Friday, with China's factory activity data and a U.S. jobs report due later in the session making investors cautious as the escalating euro zone debt crisis threatened to further undermine growth worldwide. To read related story click (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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