Stocks to watch: Delong, SingHaiyi, Chip Eng Seng, Yangzijiang, Sasseur Reit, AEM Holdings

THE following companies saw new developments that could affect trading of their shares on Friday:

Delong Holdings: Its chief executive Ding Liguo has backed out of an attempt to privatise the Chinese steelmaker, after being required to revise the offer price upwards. The voluntary conditional cash offer of S$7 a share made on Sept 27 was withdrawn on Thursday in an announcement from PrimePartners Corporate Finance, acting for bid vehicle Best Grace Holdings.

SingHaiyi, Chip Eng Seng: SingHaiyi Group managing director Celine Tang is now also construction company Chip Eng Seng Corp's new chairman, after becoming its largest shareholder on Oct 5. Mrs Tang, who also goes by Chen Huaidan, was named to the post on Thursday, said a filing on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) website. She was also appointed non-executive, non-independent director.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding: The mainboard-listed firm has set up a joint-venture shipbuilder in China, with Japan's Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding and Mitsui & Co as partners, it announced on Thursday. Yangzijiang will own 51 per cent of the joint venture, which will produce commercial vessels from April 2019 out of its Taicang yard in Jiangsu, China.

Sasseur Reit: Private equity firm L Catterton Asia is no longer a substantial unitholder of Sasseur real estate investment trust (Reit), after it sold part of its stake in the Reit's sponsor, Sasseur Cayman Holding. Its deemed stake was cut from 58.86 per cent to 1.36 per cent, a regulatory filing late on Thursday showed.

AEM Holdings: Following open market purchases made on Oct 10, Standard Life Aberdeen has increased its deemed interest in mainboard-listed tech solutions provider AEM Holdings to 7.2 per cent, according to a filing with the Singapore Exchange late on Thursday.

SPH Reit: The real estate investment trust sponsored by media group Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) declared a distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.43 Singapore cents for the fourth quarter ended Aug 31, 2018, 0.7 per cent higher from 1.42 Singapore cents a year ago. Net property income fell 1.9 per cent to S$40.98 million as property operating expense rose at a faster pace than gross revenue.