Is deal boon or bane for taxis? Jury is still out

Singapore

WITH Uber set to bow out from South-east Asia, industry analysts say that uncertainty looms over the impact on taxi giant ComfortDelGro.

Investors may have sensed that Uber's retreat marks an easing of the pressures on the disrupted taxi industry. ComfortDelGro's counter saw a brisk churn of 19.83 million shares on Monday, ticking upwards by S$0.05, or 2.51 per cent, to S$2.04 amid a slightly weaker market.

But the Uber-Grab merger could cast a pall over ComfortDelGro's planned acquisition of Uber-owned rental car business Lion City Holdings. The deal, announced in…