Stocks to watch: OCBC, Sembcorp, Yangzijiang, Hong Leong Finance, StarHub, IReit Global

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Friday (Aug 4):

OCBC : The bank on Friday reported a net profit of S$1.7 billion for the second quarter ended June, up 34 per cent from S$1.3 billion last year. The increase was a result of asset growth and higher net interest margin, which registered a 55-basis point increase to 2.26 per cent on the back of higher market interest rates. Shares of OCBC ended Thursday down S$0.15 or 1.1 per cent at S$13.04.

Sembcorp Industries : The group’s net profit after exceptional items for the first half ended June rose 56 per cent to S$608 million from S$389 million in the same period last year. This came as the group reported a drop in cost of sales, which more than offset a 6 per cent drop in revenue Its counter closed up 1.3 per cent or S$0.07 at S$5.6 on Thursday. Yangzijiang Shipbuilding : The group posted a net profit of 1.7 billion yuan (S$324.6 million) for the first half ended Jun 30, up 47 per cent year on year from 1.2 billion yuan on a continuing operations basis, which did not include 194.6 million yuan from the spinoff and listing of Yangzijiang Financial in 2022. The counter closed 1.3 per cent or S$0.02 lower at S$1.55 on Thursday, prior to the announcement.