3 best-performing Singapore blue chip stocks in March

What happened?

Markets were volatile in March 2026.

After the escalation in the Middle East conflict, we looked at how the oil price spike could affect Singapore blue chip stocks and what the Fed’s latest signal could mean for Singapore equities, as higher oil prices raised fresh concerns about inflation, interest rates and the broader market outlook. 

Against this backdrop, some parts of the market have come under pressure. 

We recently shared that Singapore REITs have pulled back in March, with the rise in bond yields putting renewed pressure on interest-rate-sensitive names.

At the same time, we also saw some Singapore blue chip stocks that stayed resilient despite the oil price surge. 

In this article, we examine the 3 best-performing Singapore blue chip stocks in March 2026, and whether their latest results, business momentum and dividend outlook are strong enough to support the rally.

3 best-performing Singapore blue chip stocks in March 2026

#1 - Sembcorp Industries Ltd (SGX: U96)

Sembcorp Industries is a Singapore-based energy and urban development group. It has a growing renewables platform across Asia, alongside its Gas and Related Services business.

As of 31 March 2026, Sembcorp’s share price stood at S$6.63, representing a gain of about 12.2% over the past 1 month.

Notably, this marks a sharp turnaround from mid-March. In our earlier look at the worst-performing Singapore blue chip stocks as of 13 March 2026, Sembcorp was still down 4.63% year-to-date with its share price at S$5.77. 

Since then, sentiment towards Sembcorp Industries appears to have improved, as investors see the company as one of the potential beneficiaries of higher gas prices and continued market volatility.

This is mainly because of its gas business. Sembcorp imports gas into Singapore, and in the past, higher gas prices and sharper price movements have generally had a positive impact on the business. This has come from gains on its gas hedging positions, as well as the potential for higher trading volumes and better margins in its gas trading operations.

At the same time, the impact on its power business is expected to be limited. This is because higher fuel costs for its power plants are usually passed through under long term contracts. Sembcorp also takes steps to manage its exposure to gas prices, which helps to reduce the effect of short term price swings.

While Sembcorp Industries also has water and power plants in Oman and the UAE, which contribute about 8% of its net profit, the company has said that these operations have not been affected so far.

The earlier weakness came after a softer set of FY2025 results. 

For the year ended 31 December 2025, Sembcorp reported revenue of S$5.8 billion, down 10% year on year, while net profit fell to S$984 million. 

The main drag came from the Gas and Related Services segment, where lower contribution from the UK business and weaker generation spreads in Singapore weighed on earnings. 

Even so, net profit before exceptional items and deferred payment note foreign exchange movements was broadly stable at S$1.003 billion.

Operationally, there were still areas of resilience beneath the softer headline numbers. 

In Gas and Related Services, segment net profit slipped to S$701 million from S$728 million.

Management highlighted that around 79% of its Singapore gas-fired portfolio is contracted for five years and above, even though 47% of capacity will need to be re-contracted during the year. 

It also secured 120MW of new long-term contracts in 2025 and a further 150MW load from Micron in January 2026, pointing to continued demand from data centres and high-tech manufacturing.

The group is also investing for future demand. 

Its 600MW hydrogen-ready plant in Singapore is expected to be completed in 4Q2026, while the planned Alinta acquisition should further strengthen its earnings base and recurring cash flow over time. 

Its renewables business also continued to expand. Operational capacity increased from 13.1GW to 15.0GW, with 3.6GW of new projects added since end-2024. 

This helped support a 5% increase in renewables net profit to S$192 million, even though the China portfolio continued to face curtailment and tariff pressure. 

In Integrated Urban Solutions, net profit rose to S$178 million from S$173 million, while operational gross floor area increased to 1.065 million sqm and occupancy improved to 96% from 76%, helping to strengthen recurring income.

On dividends, Sembcorp proposed a final dividend of 16.0 cents per share, bringing the total FY2025 dividend to 25.0 cents per share, up from 23.0 cents in FY2024.

Based on Sembcorp’s share price of S$6.63 as of 31 March 2026, that implies a trailing twelve month (TTM) dividend yield of about 3.8%.

Consensus is forecasting a FY26 dividend of S$0.267, implying a dividend yield of around 4.0%.

Find out how much dividends you would have received as a shareholder of Sembcorp Industries in the past 12 months with the calculator below.

Related links:

• Sembcorp Industries share price history and share price target
• Sembcorp Industries dividend history and dividend forecast

#2 - Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX: S68)

Singapore Exchange is Singapore’s main stock exchange and runs a multi-asset platform spanning equities, derivatives, fixed income, currencies, data and index services.

As of 31 March 2026, SGX’s share price stood at S$19.52, representing a gain of about 8.1% over the past 1 month. 

SGX is seen as a possible beneficiary of higher market volatility, as periods of uncertainty tend to lead to more trading in the stock market.

At the same time, Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index, or STI, has held up better than the S&P 500. This is likely due to Singapore’s reputation as a relative safe haven, as well as the support from dividend-paying stocks in the index.

Even before tensions in the Middle East escalated, trading activity on SGX had already picked up. In February, securities daily average value reached S$2.1 billion, the highest level since 2020.

Support from efforts to revive the Singapore stock market, including the Equities Market Development Programme, has also helped to broaden trading interest beyond the largest stocks. In particular, turnover in small and mid cap stocks rose 135% year on year in February.

Retail investor participation also increased sharply. Retail daily turnover climbed 45% year on year in February, reaching its highest level in 13 years.

Earlier, we have seen how the improvement in trading activity has helped to boost SGX's revenue and net profit. 

For 1H FY2026 (six months ending December 2025), net revenue rose 7.6% year on year to S$695.4 million, while adjusted net profit increased 11.6% to S$357.1 million. Adjusted operating profit margin also improved to 61.6% from 60.2%. 

The improvement was broad-based across the business. 

In cash equities, securities daily average traded value rose 19.5% to S$1.51 billion, supporting a 16% increase in Equities-Cash net revenue. 

In derivatives and currencies, SGX recorded record commodities volume growth of 24.2%, while SGX FX average daily volume climbed 32.3% to a record US$180 billion. 

Equity derivatives volume was broadly stable at 91 million contracts. 

Taken together, this suggests that the stronger earnings were supported by higher activity across several of SGX’s key business lines rather than by a single one-off boost.

Management also continued to highlight execution discipline. 

Adjusted expenses rose by 3.8%, with SGX continuing to invest in sales and product capabilities as well as platform modernisation, while maintaining its FY2026 expense and capex guidance. 

At the same time, it reiterated that its multi-asset strategy remains on track to deliver medium-term organic revenue growth of 6% to 8%, and that it remains committed to increasing its quarterly dividend by 0.25 cents through FY2028.

SGX declared an interim quarterly dividend of 11.0 cents per share in the recent quarter.

If SGX maintains its current 1H FY2026 dividend run rate and guidance, that would imply about 44.5 cents per share for a full year. Based on the share price of S$19.52, that works out to an annualised yield of about 2.3%.

Find out how much dividends you would have received as a shareholder of Singapore Exchange in the past 12 months with the calculator below.

Related Links:

• SGX share price history and share price target
• SGX dividend history and dividend forecasts

#3 - Wilmar International limited (SGX: F34)

Wilmar International is Asia’s leading agribusiness group, with operations spanning edible oils, oilseeds crushing, consumer products, sugar, plantations and feed and industrial products.

As of 31 March 2026, Wilmar’s share price stood at S$3.85, representing a gain of about 8.8% over the past 1 month.

Earlier, we shared that Wilmar could stand to benefit from higher crude oil prices, as this may help to support palm oil prices.

With energy supply becoming tighter, there may also be greater interest in alternative fuels such as palm-based biodiesel. This could help to keep demand for palm oil feedstock firm.

We have also seen share prices of other palm oil companies, including First Resources, rise sharply alongside the recent jump in oil prices, as seen in the chart below.

For Wilmar, however, some of this benefit may be offset by pressure on its other businesses, which could face higher transport and insurance costs.

Wilmar had also been weighed down by several regulatory issues in 2025. These included large provisions of US$782 million for matters related to Indonesia, US$104 million for legal cases in China, and US$150 million linked to irregularities in Pakistan.

With these fines now paid, the market appears to believe that most of these legacy regulatory concerns are largely behind the company.

Operationally, Wilmar reported a stronger FY2025 performance. 

For the year ended 31 December 2025, Wilmar’s revenue rose 4.5% year on year to US$70.4 billion, EBITDA increased 9.9% to US$4.27 billion, and net profit climbed 20.6% to US$1.41 billion. 

Reported earnings were also helped by a net one-off gain, including a remeasurement gain related to Wilmar’s increased stake in the AWL Agri business. Nevertheless, core net profit rose 9.7% to US$1.28 billion. 

Operationally, the picture was more mixed across the group’s segments. 

In Food Products, sales volume rose 5% to 34.7 million MT, with Consumer Products volume up 6% and Medium Pack and Bulk up 5%. 

Revenue for the segment increased 7% to US$30.9 billion, but profit before tax fell 10% to US$449.7 million as stronger flour and rice profitability was offset by weaker sugar results. 

Feed and Industrial Products remained the largest earnings contributor. 

Segment profit before tax rose 4% to US$861.0 million, helped by higher crushing margins and improved sugar merchandising activities, even though overall sales volume slipped 1% to 68.0 million MT. 

Within the segment, tropical oils volume rose 3% and oilseeds and grains volume rose 9%, while sugar volume fell 26%, reflecting a weaker sugar environment.

Plantation and Sugar Milling also saw improved full-year profitability, with segment profit before tax rising 32% to US$356.5 million. 

This was supported by higher palm oil prices and stronger sugar sales in the first half of the year. However, fresh fruit bunch production declined 2% to 4.04 million MT due to unfavourable weather in Indonesia. 

Crude palm oil production still edged up 1% to 1.52 million MT, while extraction rates improved slightly. 

The balance sheet and cash flow picture improved. Capital expenditure declined to US$1.08 billion from US$1.57 billion, while net debt to equity improved to 0.91x from 0.94x.

On dividends, Wilmar proposed a final dividend of 10.0 Singapore cents per share, bringing the total FY2025 dividend to 14.0 cents per share. 

Based on Wilmar’s share price of S$3.85 as of 31 March 2026 and consensus estimates, Wilmar is expected to pay an FY2026 dividend of S$0.145 per share, which translates to a forward yield of about 3.7%. 

Find out how much dividends you would have received as a shareholder of Wilmar International in the past 12 months with the calculator below.

Related links:

• Wilmar share price history and share price target
• Wilmar dividend history and dividend forecast

What would Beansprout do?

It is encouraging to see that despite the recent market weakness and volatility, there are still opportunities in Singapore blue chips, with Sembcorp Industries, SGX and Wilmar posting gains of 8% or more in March.

Across the 3 names, SGX stands out for the clearest earnings visibility, supported by stronger trading activity, solid half-year results and a more predictable dividend outlook. However, its valuation is less attractive after the market rally, and SGX offers forward dividend yield of just about 2.3%.

Sembcorp offers a more balanced mix of income and growth, with its rally supported by gas contracting amid volatility in energy prices. It also has a medium-term story backed by long-term contracts and renewables growth, while offering the highest forward dividend yield among the three at about 4.0%.

Wilmar’s share price has been supported by improved sentiment towards palm oil related companies with higher oil prices, and its forward dividend yield of about 3.7% remains decent. However, compared with SGX and Sembcorp, its outlook still appears more dependent on commodity prices and trade conditions.

For me, the key is not to chase these stocks simply because they were among the best-performing blue chips in March. 

What matters more is what drove the rally, whether earnings can stay resilient, and whether the current price still offers a good balance of upside, downside and dividend support.

With higher oil prices, learn more about how Singapore blue chip stocks may be impacted here. As interest rate cut expectations moderate, learn how Singapore blue chip stocks may be impacted here.

As volatility continues, learn more about what we are doing with our portfolios amid the Middle East conflict here. 

If you’d like to screen for other Singapore stocks with attractive dividend yields and potential upside, you can explore our Singapore dividend stocks screener. 

If you prefer broad exposure to blue chips without picking individual names, you can also learn more about the Straits Times Index (STI).

Is there a Singapore blue chip stock you are looking out for amid the market volatility? Share with us in the comments below or in our Telegram group!

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