Stocks to watch: SIA, Olam, StarHub, ComfortDelGro, Tianjin Zhong Xin, Metro

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Monday:

Singapore Airlines (SIA): The flag carrier will resume flights to Dubai, Tokyo-Haneda, Moscow and Munich, and increase the frequency of flights to the US, Europe and South Africa from January 2021. Non-stop flights from Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York to Singapore will also resume from Jan 18. SIA shares closed at S$4.43 on Friday, up S$0.01 or 0.2 per cent.

Olam International: The agri-food giant on Monday said it is set to acquire a US-based chile pepper business for US$108.5 million, in line with its effort to expand its Spices portfolio. Olam shares closed at S$1.55 on Friday, down S$0.04 or 2.5 per cent.

StarHub: The telco has appointed Nikhil Eapen, currently the deputy chief executive officer at parent company ST Telemedia, as its new chief executive officer. StarHub shares closed at S$1.29 on Friday, down S$0.01 or 0.8 per cent, before this announcement.

ComfortDelGro: Taxi drivers will get at least S$300 a month in additional rental relief from cab operators in the first half of next year, as the sector continues to be hit by low demand caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. ComfortDelGro Taxi chief executive Ang Wei Neng noted that while passenger numbers had grown to about 70 per cent of pre-Covid levels, the lower fares meant that drivers were earning less per trip. The counter closed at S$1.71 on Friday, down S$0.03 or 1.7 per cent.

Tianjin Zhong Xin Pharmaceutical Group: The mainboard-listed firm on Sunday said Jinhushen Biological Medical Science and Technology will be acquiring a 67 per cent stake in its controlling shareholder Tianjin Pharmaceutical Holdings for an undisclosed sum. The counter last traded at US$1.09 on Thursday. Tianjin Zhong Xin on Monday morning requested the lifting of a trading halt it called for last Thursday.

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Metro Holdings: The mainboard-listed property group with retail operations has set up a new UK student accommodation fund with Lee Kim Tah Holdings and Woh Hup Holdings. The fund, which has a first close of £60 million (S$108 million), will acquire seed property Red Queen, Warwick for £21.5 million. Metro shares closed flat at S$0.71 on Friday.

Chip Eng Seng: The mainboard-listed firm is selling a property in Australia for A$65 million (S$65.6 million) to a trust related to American real estate developer Greystar. The deal is expected to be completed on March 31 next year. Shares of Chip Eng Seng closed unchanged at S$0.44 on Friday, before the announcement.

Singapore Medical Group (SMG): The Catalist-listed firm is in talks with a third party on a possible share transaction, it said in a filing to the Singapore bourse late on Friday. This was in response to a query from its sponsor CIMB Bank Singapore regarding the "unusual price movements" and the significant volume of trading in the company's shares that day. SMG shares rose three Singapore cents or 11.3 per cent to close at 29.5 cents on Friday.

Penguin International: The firm said on Monday that its executive chairman and managing director are in non-binding discussions with a potential investor in relation to a possible share transaction. However, the company, which builds high-speed aluminium craft, noted that there is no certainty any deal will materialise from the discussions. Shares of Penguin International rose S$0.02 or 4.2 per cent to close at S$0.50 on Friday.