Weekly recap: Grab the high interest rates while they last

Over the National Day celebrations, there was much online discussion about finding the best savings account.

This came after GXS announced that it will be cutting the interest rate on its GXS savings pockets to 2.68% p.a. with effect from 17th August 2023. 

Some OCBC customers were also upset after the roll out of a new security feature prevented users from logging onto their internet banking and OCBC Digital app. 

Coincidentally, we also started to see MariBank starting to offer its Savings Account to more customers this week.

With interest rates starting to come down, it is no wonder that someone in the Beansprout community shared that we should “grab them while they last”

How will falling interest rates affect the 6-month Singapore T-bill? We look at what the latest indicators are telling us about whether it might be worthwhile subscribing to the upcoming auction on 13th August. 

If you're still in National Day mood, check out our guide to 9 promotional deals to celebrate Singapore's birthday.

🔻 A SELL SIGNAL?

What happened? 

DBS Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Piyush Gupta sold shares worth about S$3.4 million in the company on 4th August. 

What does this mean?

This is not the first time Piyush Gupta has sold shares in DBS in recent years. As recent as in November last year, he sold 300,000 shares in the range of about S$35 to S$35.50.

However, using buying and selling activity by company executives as a signal generally works better for buying than selling.

In addition, DBS recently reported a record net profit of S$2.69 billion in the second quarter of 2023, as its net interest margin continued to rise and asset quality remains healthy.

Why should I care? 

DBS’ share price fell slightly following the announcement, having risen to above S$34 after its stellar results.

We analyse what the share sale could mean for investors of DBS. 

💡 THE BIG IMPORTANT STORY

Will the T-bill yield fall further in the upcoming auction on 17 Aug?

The closing yield on the 6-month Singapore T-bill has stayed at about 3.75% since the previous auction.

🚗 WHAT'S MOVING

• Genting Singapore reported earnings of $276.7 million for the first half of 2023, up 227.6% compared to the previous year due to a surge in gaming revenue.  The company announced an interim dividend of 1.5 cents per share, an improvement over the one cent payout for the first half of 2022. 

• Sembcorp Industries will be added to the MSCI Singapore Index effective from 1 September. The index is designed to measure the performance of the large- and mid-cap segments of the Singapore market.

• Sabana REIT’s unit holders have voted to remove the REIT’s current manager, with 57.5% of them voting in favour of the move. Unitholders also voted in favour to effect the internalisation of the REIT management function. 

• Lendlease Global Commercial REIT (LREIT) reported a distribution per unit (DPU) of 2.25 cents for the six months ending June, 8.2% lower compared to the previous year. LREIT’s portfolio committed occupancy remained high at 99.9%, but distributions were impacted by higher borrowing costs.

• Alibaba (BABA)'s revenue grew by 14% compared to the previous year, the highest increase since September 2021. 

Source: Bloomberg, CNBC, Financial Times, Business Times, Edge Singapore

🤝 A MESSAGE FROM OUR PARTNER

Revisiting the STI ETF: 3 reasons to consider investing in Singapore

The STI ETF offers exposure to a basket of stocks representing the Singapore economy. 

🤓 WHAT WE’RE LOOKING OUT FOR THIS WEEK

• Monday, 14 August: ComfortDelgro earnings 
• Tuesday, 15 August: SATS earnings
• Wednesday, 16 August: US FOMC meeting minutes
• Thursday, 17 August: SGX earnings, Singapore 6-month T-bill auction
• Friday, 18 August: Xpeng earnings

Source: Bloomberg, SGX