Reuters: Hot Stocks: STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Shares rise at midday; Olam up

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STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Shares rise at midday; Olam up Jun 6th 2012, 04:51 Wed Jun 6, 2012 12:51am EDT Singapore's main index rose by midday, led by gains in commodity trader Olam International Ltd, on hopes that policymakers will unveil fresh stimulus measures to counter the global slowdown and as data showed the U.S. services sector improved last month. The benchmark Straits Times Index gained 1.05 percent to 2,740.67 points. Olam was the top gainer in the index, rising 3.2 percent to S$1.60. Morgan Stanley said that Olam's stock price correction, which saw its shares plunge about 30 percent since the start of May, was overdone. "We remain overweight, as we find valuation attractive and the food business solid," said Morgan Stanley in a report. Although it cut its target price for Olam to S$2.50 from S$3.40, saying its non-food businesses would be a drag on its earnings this year, the broker said the outlook for 2013 will be better, driven by growth in the food business. However, gains in the STI may be limited as investors remained cautious ahead of the European Central Bank's monthly rate-setting meeting later on Wednesday. "Investors are waiting for more details on whether there will be another round of quantitative easing, and ahead of the ECB meeting. The attention is still on Europe, and pending other economic data from the U.S.," said Ng Kian Teck, lead ananlyst at SIAS Research. 1245 (0445 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 11:32 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Swiber soars on contract wins Shares of Singapore's Swiber Holdings Ltd rose as much as 9.7 percent on Wednesday to a three-week high after the offshore services firm said it had been awarded projects worth a total of $830 million in Asia and the Middle East. By 0325 GMT, shares of Swiber were up 7.8 percent at S$0.555 with 8.6 million shares changing hands, about thrice the average volume traded over the past five sessions. Swiber's contract wins increase its order book to $1.8 billion, CIMB Research said in a report. Swiber will fare better this time in the face of the euro zone crisis and falling oil prices compared to the global financial crisis in 2008, due to secure earnings visibility till the end of 2013, CIMB said. For Swiber's statement, click 1128 (0328 GMT) (Reporting by Leonard How in Singapore; leonard.how@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 11:00 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Maybank starts Sheng Siong at 'buy' Maybank Kim Eng has initiated coverage on Singapore grocery chain operator Sheng Siong Group Ltd with a 'buy' and a target price of S$0.52, citing strong earnings growth prospects driven by higher population and disposable income. Sheng Siong, which has nearly 30 outlets, started trading on the Singapore Exchange in August 2011 after raising S$116 million through an initial public offering (IPO). It has risen nearly a fifth from the IPO price. At 0255 GMT, it was up 3.9 percent at S$0.400. Sheng Siong's recurring net earnings are expected to grow at a compounded average of 8.5 percent a year for 2012-2014, driven partly by higher margins, Maybank said, adding the firm is expected to be a recession-resilient business as it targets the low-to-middle income group. Maybank cited research firm Frost and Sullivan as saying Singapore's grocery market sales are expected to grow by 4-5 percent in 2011-12 and slow down to 1.5-2.5 percent in 2014-15. The local supermarket industry is worth S$4.3 billion ($3.34 billion). Sheng Siong's grocery stores compete with larger players including Dairy Farm International Holdings Ltd's Cold Storage chain. Its chief executive officer Lim Hock Chee told Reuters the company plans to have at least 50 outlets in Malaysia over the longer term to tap the fast growing population and rising income in the neighboring country. ($1 = 1.2864 Singapore dollars) 1055 (0255 GMT) (Reporting by Harry Suhartono in Singapore; harry.suhartono@thomsonreuters.com ************************************************************ 10:29 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Intraco jumps after tycoon buys stake Shares in Intraco Ltd jumped 22 percent to their highest in more than 11 years after Singapore tycoon Oei Hong Leong bought a large stake in the materials trading company. By 0219 GMT, Intraco shares were up 19.8 percent at S$0.695, their most expensive since November 2000. Over 7.3 million shares had been traded by that time, compared with a full-day average volume of 4.9 million over the last five sessions. Oei bought 20.8 million Intraco shares through the open market and via a married deal at around S$0.50 per share, according to a stock exchange filing. Oei now holds a 21 percent stake in Intraco. "Retail investors believe Oei spotted an undervalued company, that's why they are buying into the stock now," said a local trader. Intraco also said last week TH Investments Pte Ltd had bought a 29.89 percent stake in Intraco from Hanwell Holdings Ltd for about S$18.3 million. TH Investments is controlled by crane company Tat Hong Holdings Ltd. For related statements click 1006 (0206 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 8:38 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index futures up 0.3 pct Singapore index futures were up 0.3 percent, signalling a positive start for the benchmark Straits Times Index. Asian shares nudged up on Wednesday but were capped by concerns that Europe's financial strains could intensify without a global response, as Spain warned that it was being shut out of credit markets. 0837 (0037 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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