SingPost shares dive again on Thursday, prompting SGX query

SHARES in Singapore Post (SingPost) fell further on Thursday, prompting a query from the Singapore Exchange (SGX) for unusual price movements.

On Thursday, the counter lost nine more cents, or nearly 6.5 per cent, to close at S$1.30, with about 31 million shares changing hands.

This came after shares in SingPost declined 4.5 per cent to a 21-month low of S$1.39 on Wednesday, following a 1.4 per cent drop on Tuesday. The last time SingPost was queried by SGX was on Jan 6, when its stock lost 6.2 per cent in a day. At that point, SingPost responded it was "not aware of any information not previously announced which may explain the trading activity".

In a release on Thursday morning before the market opened, SingPost announced that it was cutting its stake in GD Express Carrier through a sale to Yamato Asia, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Yamato Holdings Co.

SingPost - which currently holds some 290.74 million shares or 23.3 per cent in GDEX - is selling 137.42 million shares at RM1.74 per share for a total of RM239.1 million (about S$78.4 million). SingPost's stake in GDEX will decrease to 11.2 per cent after the deal goes through.

The deal is subject to the completion of a private placement of about 124.89 million shares to Yamato Asia by GDEX, representing 9.09 per cent of GDEX's enlarged capital. SingPost is expected to recognise a net gain of approximately S$64 million from the sale.

SingPost has hit a rough patch since the shock resignation of outgoing chief executive Wolfgang Baier on Dec 10, followed by numerous concerns flagged over the group's corporate governance.