Making investment decisions : a look at the performance of the industrial and commercial sector in the Singapore market.

• Main Authors: Chua, Wan Ping., Lee, Boon Kheng., Tan, Khee.
• Other Authors: Nanyang Business School
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: DRNTU::Business::Finance::Investments
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/51931
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This report presents the findings of our empirical study on the performance of 16 selected Industrial and Commercial stocks on the Singapore Stock Exchange. In line with the rapid development of the Stock Exchange of Singapore and the government’s privatisation plan, share investment has gained tremendous interest among Singaporeans in the last few years. Among the four sectors listed on the Main Board, viz., the Industrial and Commercial Sector, the Finance Sector, the Hotel Sector and the Property Sector, the Industrial and Commercial Sector is the largest in terms of the number of companies listed, number of investors and amount of shares owned. Individuals formed the bulk of the investors in this sector. Our analyses on the selected companies’ stocks listed under the Industrial and Commercial Sector were conducted using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) and were based on data of a ten-year period, viz., May 1985 to April 1995. Our study shows that the performance of the various selected stocks of the Industrial and Commercial Sector is influenced by endogenous as well as exogenous factors. Although the prevailing economic climate and the companies’ profitability do affect the performance of respective stocks, another important factor influencing performance at the stock market is the perception of the investors. As such, the performance of some stocks may lack logical explanation. We hope to provide some insight into the performance of the Industrial and Commercial Sector through our study of the performance of selected companies listed under the sector.