Buybacks surge, buying stays flat

BUYING remained flat for the second straight week while selling by directors fell, based on Aug 4-8 filings on Singapore Exchange. Nine companies recorded 24 purchases worth S$2.86 million versus four firms with four disposals worth S$4.6 million. The number of firms and value on the buying side were not far off from the previous week's four-day totals of five companies and S$2.6 million. The number of purchases, however, was sharply up from the previous week's 11.

On the selling side, the number of trades and value were down from the previous week's eight disposals worth S$5.8 million. The number of companies, however, was not far off from the previous week's three.

While buying by directors was flat last week, buyback activity surged with seven companies posting 36 repurchases worth S$13.1 million, up from the previous week's four firms, 16 trades and S$6.1 million respectively.