Slowdown in buyback activity

BUYING fell while selling among directors was low for the third straight week. Filings on Singapore Exchange in the third week of December showed 14 companies recording 41 purchases worth $2.47 million versus two firms with six disposals worth $0.29 million. The number of firms and value were down from the previous week's 18 companies and $18.78 million.

The number of purchases, however, was slightly up from the previous week's 37 transactions. Sales, on the other hand, were not far off from the previous week's three firms and four disposals.

Meanwhile, the buyback activity was low for the first time in the past five weeks with 13 companies that posted 33 repurchases worth $6.65 million. The number of trades and value wer…