Shares of AEM Holdings surge 5% after mention in Budget 2025 speech; SGX dips
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Shares of SGX fell 1.2 per cent to close at $12.81.
PHOTO: ST FILE
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SINGAPORE - Shares of AEM Holdings surged after the local semiconductor solutions provider was highlighted in Prime Minister Lawrence Wong’s Budget 2025 speech.
The mainboard-listed company saw its share price climb more than 5 per cent to $1.64 on Feb 18, before closing the day at $1.61, up 4.6 per cent. Over seven million shares changed hands.
In his Budget statement on strengthening Singapore’s enterprise ecosystem, PM Wong, who is also Finance Minister, cited AEM as an example of the Republic’s strong pipeline of promising companies,
AEM’s products serve a critical role in the chip production process by helping to detect manufacturing defects or design flaws.
PM Wong pointed out that the company has a global footprint, with manufacturing plants and research and development teams across Asia, Europe and the US.
The boost in share price comes amid a turbulent period for AEM.
The company suffered a 36.9 per cent decline in revenue year on year for the first half of the 2024 financial year, from $275.2 million to $173.6 million.
AEM also said in January 2024 that it had found a shortfall in its inventories following an internal stocktaking exercise, which it expected to negatively impact the group’s profitability for the 2023 financial year.
The shortfall is estimated to be between $17.9 million and $25.1 million.
It was caused by human error in transactions with AEM’s enterprise resource planning system, the company said, adding that its fourth-quarter 2023 profit before tax would be adjusted.
In 2023, shares of marine and offshore company Mooreast Holdings jumped after it was cited in the Budget statement as an example of a promising company eligible to receive assistance in building capabilities in new and existing areas.
In response to queries from The Straits Times, AEM non-executive chairman Loke Wai San said: “Many of our acquisitions have focused on new capabilities, which we believe are beginning to yield results and attract new customers, as recently announced.”
Shares of the Singapore Exchange fell 1.2 per cent to close at $12.81, after PM Wong announced that he will accept recommendations by a review group to introduce tax incentives for Singapore-based companies and fund managers that choose to list here
These include corporate income tax rebates of 20 per cent for primary listings and 10 per cent for secondary listings.
Fund managers which invest substantially in Singapore-listed equities will also receive tax incentives, PM Wong said.
Two other listed companies, Sats and Venture Corporation, were also mentioned in the Budget 2025 speech.
Sats closed the day at $3.35, up more than 1.8 per cent, while Venture closed at $12.95, up 0.4 per cent.
