TheInvestingIguana

Iggy’s Journal: MAS Holds Its Policy Settings After Two Straight Tightenings

Wed 14 Oct 2026 | Morning

The Numbers

Business Times headlines that MAS held its policy settings, pausing after two straight tightenings, and that Singapore’s GDP grew 5.4% in the third quarter, supported by electronics. I have read the headlines only. Both came out before today’s SGX open at 9am SGT.

The STI closed on Tuesday 13 October at 5,430.50, up 15.02 points or 0.28% (SGX, via SGinvestors.io). UOB rose 1.06% to S$40.93, DBS 0.72% to S$74.47 and OCBC 0.48% to S$29.20.

Wall Street closed on Tuesday with the Dow at 51,670.10 (-0.35%), the S&P 500 at 7,805.45 (-0.02%) and the Nasdaq at 27,204.38 (-0.15%). SGX had closed before that session. Brent was about US$105.20, down about 1.3% and ending a three-session rise, per FinanceFeeds citing Trading Economics.

My Personal Take

Tuesday’s bank bounce was small next to the dividend arithmetic. From the 8 October closes, DBS rose 0.8%, UOB 1.7% and OCBC 0.7%. At Tuesday’s prices, the dividend rise needed to reach my 4.7% hurdle is about 10% for DBS, 21% for UOB and 54% for OCBC, against 9%, 19% and 53% on 8 October. A bounce of under 2% moved each requirement by one or two percentage points. The dividends used are the ones in my tracking: DBS S$3.18 total (6 August), UOB S$1.59 (5 October) and OCBC S$0.89 ordinary (7 September).

Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: A S$15,300 SRS Top-Up Saves S$456 at One Income and S$3,060 at Another. Which One Is Yours?

Tue 13 Oct 2026 | Afternoon

The Numbers

The same S$15,300 SRS contribution saves S$456 in tax at S$40,000 of chargeable income and S$3,060 at S$320,000. The amount put in is identical. The saving is decided by the tax band the contribution comes out of. The exit matters as much as the entry.

SRS cash earning 0.05% sits against a six-month T-bill that cleared at 1.9% on 8 October 2026.

My Personal Take

S$456 is 3.0% of S$15,300 and S$3,060 is 20.0%, so the same contribution returns about 6.7 times as much at the higher income. Idle cash is the second sum. S$15,300 at 0.05% earns S$7.65 a year, and at 1.9% it earns S$290.70, a gap of S$283.05 each year. Relief arrives once, and the yield gap recurs every year the cash sits there. In the episode I set the two against each other at both incomes.

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Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: STI Closed Up 0.25% After Being Up 0.58% Mid-Morning

Tue 13 Oct 2026 | Morning

The Numbers

The STI closed on Monday 12 October at 5,415.48, up 13.59 points or 0.25% (SGX, via Trading Economics). At 10:04am it was up 31.31 points, so it gave back 17.72 points between then and the close.

Wall Street closed on Monday with the Dow at 51,850.55 (+0.38%), the S&P 500 at 7,807.24 (-0.06%) and the Nasdaq at 27,245.90 (-0.44%). The US bond market was closed for the Columbus Day holiday, per AP, so no Treasury yield moved. SGX had closed before that session, so today is the first SGX session after it.

Brent settled at US$106.65, up US$1.93 or 1.84%, the highest settlement since 15 September, per Dow Jones Market Data via Morningstar, which cites Middle East supply concerns. Friday’s settlement in the same series was US$104.72. Business Times headlines that economists expect MAS to tighten monetary policy again in October, though some see room for a pause. I have read the headline only. Beansprout lists Singapore’s advance third-quarter GDP and the MAS policy statement for Wednesday 14 October.

My Personal Take

Monday’s close leaves the STI 286.06 points (5.02%) below its 6 October close of 5,701.54. The 13.59-point gain covers 4.5% of the 299.65 points lost by Friday.

Economists are split between another tightening and a pause, and the MAS statement is due on Wednesday. Today’s Iggy and Angela podcast covers MAS policy.

Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: Sheng Siong Is Down About 10%. The Dividend Is 2.6% and the Warehouse Costs S$520M

Mon 12 Oct 2026 | Afternoon

The Numbers

Sheng Siong’s profit rose 11.9%, but its operating cash flow fell to S$54.8 million. The company attributes the decline to bonuses and earlier vendor payments.

The shares are about 10% below their S$3.20 price on 2 October. The trailing dividend yield is 2.62%, which is 58 basis points under my 3.2% Forensic Floor and 208 basis points under my 4.7% hurdle. The new warehouse costs S$520 million.

My Personal Take

A single cash flow figure cannot show whether earlier vendor payments are a one-off timing difference or a new payment schedule. Whether payables rebuild is the open question, and only later periods can answer it. Until then I read the 11.9% profit growth and the S$54.8 million of operating cash flow side by side and treat neither as the whole picture. In the episode I go through how I test the current dividend against that cash flow, and why the S$520 million warehouse makes future increases harder to judge.

$Sheng Siong(OV8.SG) 

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Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: STI Up 0.58% at 10:04am After Friday's Small Fall

Mon 12 Oct 2026 | Morning

The Numbers

At 10:04am SGT (data delayed 10 minutes) the STI was 5,433.20, up 31.31 points or 0.58%. That puts Friday's close at 5,401.89, which matches the Beansprout weekly recap. So the STI fell a further 11.07 points (0.20%) on Friday, after Thursday's 195.48-point drop to 5,412.96.

SGX closed on Friday before the US session opened, so this is the first SGX session after Wall Street's Friday rebound: Dow 51,654.95 (+0.83%), S&P 500 7,811.54 (+0.59%), Nasdaq 27,366.17 (+0.64%).

OCBC was S$29.25, up S$0.25 (0.86%) from S$29.00. On the S$0.89 ordinary dividend in my 7 September tracking, that is a 3.04% yield, still under my 3.2% minimum. Sheng Siong was S$2.87, down S$0.05 (1.71%), from an implied S$2.92 on Friday. On its trailing S$0.0755 in dividends that is 2.63%, also under 3.2%. Brent was US$104.72 a barrel on Friday (Yahoo Finance), up 2.42% on the week. Beansprout lists Singapore's advance third-quarter GDP and the MAS policy statement for Wednesday 14 October.

My Personal Take

Against the 6 October close of 5,701.54, the STI is still 268.34 points (4.71%) lower. The 31.31 points gained so far is about a tenth of the 299.65 points lost between 6 October and Friday. The gain is real but small next to the fall.

Sheng Siong was S$3.20 on 2 October, so it is about 10% lower since. The numbers I have cannot say how much of that is Maybank's 9 October downgrade and how much is something else, so I am not assigning it. But I'm definitely eyeballing it.  $Sheng Siong(OV8.SG) 

Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: Temasek Fears an AI Unwind and Plans More AI Exposure. Three Questions Explain How Both Can Hold

Sun 11 Oct 2026 | Afternoon

The Numbers

Temasek reportedly calls an AI unwind its biggest risk, and reportedly plans to raise AI from 6 percent of its portfolio to up to 15 percent by 2031, which is up to two and a half times the current share. I have not read Temasek’s own statement, so both points are as reported. A risk named and an allocation increased at the same time look like a contradiction. The new episode takes three questions to test whether they are one. A dividend that has already been declared does not change because someone names a market risk.

My Personal Take

My first reaction to the headline was that one of the two statements had to be wrong. The episode sets out three questions for checking it.

📺 YouTube https://youtu.be/MK45tljbkU

📩 Substack https://investingiguana.com/p/temasek-fears-an-ai-unwind-and-plans

Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: Maybank Cuts Sheng Siong to Hold and Trims Its Target Price to S$3.12

Sun 11 Oct 2026 | Afternoon

The Numbers

Maybank downgraded Sheng Siong (SGX: OV8) from Buy to Hold and cut its target price to S$3.12 from S$3.22, a cut of 3.1 percent, per a report dated 9 Oct as summarised on SGinvestors.io. Maybank calls the company high quality but says the share price already reflects much of that. Its stated reason is valuation: 28.4 times FY26 earnings and 17.3 times EV/EBIT, against projected net profit growth of 8 percent a year over FY25 to FY28 and a 2.5 percent dividend yield. It trimmed FY26 to FY28 net profit forecasts by 1 to 3 percent and cut its 2028 new store assumption from five to four. $Sheng Siong(OV8.SG) 

Maybank also expects the tailwinds to fade. The S$500 CDC voucher tranche was brought forward from January 2027 to June 2026, which helps FY26 and makes FY27 a harder comparison. Supermarket growth has already slowed to low single digits, the gain from Giant and Cold Storage closures appears largely used up, and Cold Storage’s new owner is expanding Cold Storage On The Go, targeting more than 100 outlets. Every figure above is Maybank’s forecast or view, not company guidance.

On payments already made, Sheng Siong’s last two were a 3.80-cent final and a 3.75-cent interim, S$0.0755 in total per the SGX notices. At S$3.20, the 2 Oct delayed quote I have, that is 2.36 percent, under the 3.2 percent minimum I track. I have no later price.

My Personal Take

The word downgrade made me expect a problem with the business, so I read for what changed. The profit forecasts moved 1 to 3 percent and the target price moved 3.1 percent, which are similar in size, and the reason given is the price paid for the earnings. I cannot check Maybank’s forecasts, so I am treating this as one broker’s statement about price. The dividend payments are the part I can check.

Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy’s Journal: The Price of Retirement Income: What S$1,000, S$2,000 and S$3,000 a Month Actually Cost Today

Sat 10 Oct 2026 | Midday

The Numbers

The same S$2,000 a month needs S$600,000 at CPF’s 4 percent floor rate, but S$1.25 million at the 1.92 percent six-month T-bill yield. The gap is S$650,000, and it comes from the yield assumed, not from any difference in lifestyle. My 4.7 percent hurdle asks for S$510,638. A dividend can be cut, while the T-bill yield resets at every auction.

For someone still saving, the target moves whenever the yield moves. At 1.92 percent, S$200,000 pays S$320 a month. At 4 percent, the same S$200,000 pays S$667 a month. CPF’s 4 percent is a useful yardstick, but it is not money you can generally draw monthly in the way T-bill income can be drawn.

My Personal Take

I redid the S$2,000 sum before writing it down. S$24,000 a year divided by 4 percent is S$600,000, and divided by 1.92 percent is S$1.25 million. Both answers are correct for their own yield. The T-bill yield resets at each auction, so a target built on it describes today and may not describe next year. I now write the yield next to every target figure, because a target with no yield beside it cannot be checked.

The Members Edition of this episode is free for everyone. (I will post the full article on LongBridge community) 

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Not financial advice. Iggy’s Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: DBS, OCBC and UOB Each Fell More Than 4% in One Day. Who Is Giving You the Reason?

Fri 09 Oct 2026 | Midday

The Numbers

On 8 Oct, DBS closed down 4.7 percent, OCBC down 4.3 percent and UOB down 5.2 percent, per Singapore Business Review citing SGX. The reports I read give four different reasons, from profit-taking to Citi's cut of OCBC to Sell, and they show no announcement from any of the three banks in the two sessions. Most of what is quoted describes market mood or views about price, not facts about the companies. The new episode sorts the reasons by who is giving them.

My Personal Take

Two of the reasons are easy to place. Profit-taking describes what sellers did, not what a bank did. Citi's cut on OCBC is a forecast and a valuation from one broker, not a result from the bank. Neither is something DBS, OCBC or UOB said about itself, and a price fall that follows no statement from the company is a count of decisions by buyers and sellers. I keep the source of each reason next to the reason, because a reason with no source attached is easy to mistake for a fact.

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Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: Crystal Jade's Holding Companies Are in Receivership, but the Restaurants Are Open. What That Means

Thu 08 Oct 2026 | Midday

The Numbers

On 30 Sep, receivers from Kroll were reported over two Crystal Jade holding companies, one in Singapore and one in Hong Kong. Little Big Red Dot reports that the restaurants remain open and that key members of management continue to oversee operations. Mothership counted 13 Singapore outlets remaining after five closures in 2026, with the company calling those closures part of an ongoing review of its outlet network.

The reports I read do not state the debts, the lenders, or why receivership was the route chosen. Crystal Jade has no listed shares, so there is no share price to watch. The new episode is about reading any announcement like this one.

My Personal Take

I put my own three questions to the reports first. On what happened and to which entity, the reports give a clear answer: receivers over two holding companies. On reasons, the receivership has none stated, and the closures have one stated by the company. On where anyone stands in the creditor line, I cannot place anyone, because no figures are reported. Two of three answered, and the third is the one that decides who is affected.

📺 YouTube https://youtu.be/Oo0LHAFHV2Q

📩 Substack https://investingiguana.com/p/crystal-jades-holding-companies-are

Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: Parkway Life REIT's Dividend Rose 14.6% on 1.6% Less Revenue. The Reason Is One Lease Clause. 🦖

Wed 07 Oct 2026 | Midday

The Numbers

Parkway Life REIT's revenue fell 1.6 percent in the first half of 2026, while its distribution per unit rose 14.6 percent, from 7.65 cents to 8.77 cents. Both figures come from the REIT's own results announcement. I found the reason for the gap, and it sits in one lease clause that does not show up on the first page of the results. $ParkwayLife Reit(C2PU.SG) 

At the 5 Oct close of S$3.95, the last 12 months of distributions give a trailing yield of 4.15 percent. That clears the 3.2 percent minimum I track, but sits 55 basis points below my 4.7 percent hurdle. In my tracking, Parkway Life REIT is flagged for caution, with the yield below the hurdle at that price.

My Personal Take

What I can say with confidence is limited to what the REIT's own statements show: the revenue fall, the distribution rise, and a new buyer's starting yield at S$3.95. What I cannot say is that the rise will repeat, and I am not forecasting it. A payout that jumps tells me the cash arrived. It does not tell me why, and the reason was not on the first page, which is why I went through the statements line by line.

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Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: OCBC Split Decision, Why Citi and UOB Kay Hian Disagree

Wed 07 Oct 2026 | Midday

The Numbers

$OCBC Bank(O39.SG) 

OCBC shares fell as much as 5.2 percent today. The Edge Singapore reports that Citi analyst Tan Yong Hong cut OCBC to Sell on 6 Oct with a target price of S$27.50, and Citi expects third-quarter earnings to be flat year on year. UOB Kay Hian points the other way, citing first-half earnings growth of 22 percent and the bank's wealth management business.

Two brokers, one bank, opposite conclusions. A negative rating does not mean the bank itself has changed, and the new episode shows how both views can stand at the same time.

My Personal Take

A heavy-volume day tells me investors reacted. It does not tell me which note is right. The question I am putting to each of the two calls is what result would prove it wrong, and when that result arrives. The episode sets that out for Citi and for UOB Kay Hian. Personally, I'm making some movements too, but that should not influence my content. 

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Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

Iggy's Journal: OCBC Falls 4.2% After Citi Cuts It to Sell

Wed 07 Oct 2026 | Morning

The Numbers

Intraday prices from Longbridge in morning trade: OCBC S$30.84, down 4.22%. DBS S$77.51, down 1.34%. UOB S$42.92, down 1.83%. The STI is at 5,637.05, down 1.13%. OCBC's volume is about 6.75 times its normal level, so this is heavier selling than an ordinary down day.

The Edge Singapore reports that Citi analyst Tan Yong Hong downgraded OCBC to Sell on 6 Oct with a target price of S$27.50. That target is 2.0 times OCBC's book value of S$13.73 at 30 Jun. Citi forecasts 1.8 times price to book for 2027, on a long-term return on equity of 13 percent. Citi expects third-quarter 2026 earnings to be flat year on year and softer than the Street, with a CET1 ratio, the main measure of a bank's capital strength, of 13.3 percent, down 70 basis points. Citi also says OCBC's price-to-earnings multiple has re-rated 46 percent this year, and that its dividend yield sits only 70 basis points above the Singapore 10-year government bond yield.

By my arithmetic, S$27.50 is about 11 percent below this morning's price, and OCBC trades at about 2.25 times book value.

I have found no news specific to DBS or UOB today. Their falls may be sympathy selling after OCBC, but I have not confirmed that.

This is one broker's view. The same analyst put Sell ratings on DBS, OCBC and UOB in August 2024, and all three have traded far higher since. That does not make this call wrong. It does mean one note is not a verdict. OCBC usually reports third-quarter results in early November, and I have not confirmed the date. Those results will show earnings and CET1, so Citi's call can be checked against the numbers.

(more in comments) 

$OCBC Bank(O39.SG)

Wall Street's S&P 500 Closes at a Record; STI Rose 0.7% on Tuesday

Wed 7 Oct 2026 | Morning

The Numbers

On Tuesday the Dow rose 0.49% to 51,521.28, the S&P 500 rose 0.58% to 7,818.93, a record close per Dow Jones Market Data, and the Nasdaq rose 0.45% to 27,599.79. BBN Times and TheStreet attribute the gains to lower oil prices and easing bond yields. The 10-year Treasury yield fell 3.6 basis points to 5.275% and the 2-year fell 4.2 basis points to 4.791%. Brent settled at US$97.41, down 2.90%, per Arbiterz, which cites higher loadings through the Strait of Hormuz. Business Times separately reports Iran stepping up ship attacks there. USD/SGD was 1.2776.

In Singapore, the STI rose 37.21 points (0.7%) to 5,701.54, with 267 gainers against 232 losers and S$1.9 billion traded on 958 million securities. Business Times says DFI Retail Group led the index. DBS was the most active stock by value: 3.9 million shares worth S$303.5 million. SingStat reported August retail sales up 0.7% year on year, against 1.3% in July, and 1.6% excluding motor vehicles.  

My Personal Take

Yesterday I said I would read the bank closes before saying what lifted the index. The answer, per Business Times, was DFI Retail Group. I had been half-expecting a bank, and I should admit that when the index moves, I look at DBS first without really deciding to. It is the biggest name and the one most of us own, so I assume it is the story.

The DBS number I kept coming back to was S$303.5 million over 3.9 million shares, which is about S$77.80 a share. At that price a 10-share lot is about S$778, where a 100-share lot was about S$7,780. For a moment the smaller figure felt like a cheaper stock. It is the same share at the same price, and the yield per dollar is identical whether the ticket is S$778 or S$7,780. I do not yet know whether the lower entry point changes how people trade, or only how they feel about trading. Next January's first quarterly review will show me more than one busy Tuesday. 🦖

STI Closes 0.66% Higher at 5,701.5; Active REITs Are Flat to Up

Tue 6 Oct 2026 | Close

The Numbers

The STI closed at 5,701.5, up 37.21 points (+0.66%), per SGX data at 5:16pm, delayed 10 minutes. Among the 25 most active counters, Top Glove rose 14.58% to S$0.275, Golden Agri-Resources rose 3.23% to S$0.320 and Genting Singapore rose 0.81% to S$0.625. Singtel fell 0.47% to S$4.25, Seatrium fell 0.50% to S$1.98 and CapitaLand Investment fell 0.81% to S$2.45. $Top Glove(BVA.SG) 

Seven REITs and trusts are in that list. CapitaLand Ascott Trust rose 1.81% to S$0.845, Mapletree Logistics Trust rose 0.93% to S$1.09, Keppel REIT rose 0.59% to S$0.850 and CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust rose 0.45% to S$2.25. CapitaLand Ascendas REIT (S$2.22), Mapletree Industrial Trust (S$1.84) and Lendlease REIT (S$0.550) were unchanged. None fell. DBS, OCBC and UOB are not among the 25 most active counters.

My Personal Take

This morning I wrote that I could not say whether Singapore moved with the US 10-year this week. Today gives me a different clue, and not the one I wanted: the REITs and trusts among the most active counters were flat to higher on a day the index rose 0.66%. One day on seven names is thin, and it does not replace an SGS print. It also took me a while to notice that the three local banks are missing from the active list, so I do not know what lifted the index. I will read their closes before saying anything about it. If the 10-year SGS has moved well above 2.49% and REITs still held, I would take that more seriously than one day's prices. 🦖

Not financial advice. Iggy's Forensic Compliance Standards apply.

OCBC Securities Removes Its Minimum Commission on Online SGX Trades From 5 October

Tue 6 Oct 2026 | SGX Daily Pulse Podcast

The Numbers

OCBC Securities removed its minimum commission on online SGX trades from 5 October. Its managing director cited one transaction falling from S$25 to about S$2. The firm says roughly a quarter of its clients' Singapore holdings are odd lots, often built up through scrip dividend schemes. The change is aimed at investors adding S$500 to S$1,000 at a time, while trades of S$50,000 to S$100,000 will see little difference. Today's podcast explains why a fixed minimum falls hardest on small trades. SGX also cut board lots for 11 stocks, including DBS, OCBC and UOB, on the same day. $OCBC Bank(O39.SG) 

My Personal Take

On Monday I wrote that the board lot cut reduces the cash for one lot to a tenth and moves no yield. This is the other cost of a small trade, and it changed on the same day. It took me a while to see that both changes mostly affect people with small amounts and leftover shares. I only have OCBC Securities' own figures, so I do not know how much of the saving other brokers match. Another broker's rate table would tell me whether this is one firm's move or a wider one. Let's see..... 🦖

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