Stocks to watch: Singtel, QT Vascular, Hong Leong Asia

THE following companies have made material announcements before the market's opening on Thursday:

Singtel's Thai associate Advanced Info Service Public Company Ltd (AIS) said it has submitted for arbitration, on Sept 30, a claim for 70 billion baht (S$2.7 billion) from Thai state-owned telco TOT Public Company Ltd on the same day relating to alleged unlawful contract amendments dating back to 2001 and 2002 on the reduction of revenue sharing in prepaid and roaming expenses.

TOT was reportedly asked by Thailand's military government to seek compensation for the longstanding issue before the contract expired on Sept 30.

Medical supplies group QT Vascular and its chief executive officer, Eitan Konstantino, have successfully defended themselves against a patent infringement lawsuit filed by another medical company, AngioScore, the company said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Wednesday evening.

Hong Leong Asia warned on Wednesday evening that it expects to post a loss for its third quarter and nine months ended Sept 30. The expected loss was mainly due to higher losses incurred by its consumer products unit on the back of lower unit sales, it added.