Singapore business news in brief

UNITED Overseas Land Ltd (UOL), the property arm of Singapore's No. 2 bank, United Overseas Bank Ltd, will probably sell its 4% stake in the bank to institutional investors in the next three weeks, banking sources said yesterday. 

The stake sale, worth up to S$865mil, will reduce veteran banker Wee Cho Yaw's control over UOB, one of Singapore's two family-controlled lenders. – Reuters 

TOURIST spending on shopping rose an estimated 77% in June during the Great Singapore Sale (GSS) from a year ago, according to Global Refund Singapore (GRS), with a good pick-up in high-end sales underlining the country's efforts to target the regional rich. 

The Singapore Business Times quoted Rodney Teo, the managing director of GRS – the largest goods and services tax refund agency in the republic – as saying that while last year was a low base because of the lingering effects of the SARS outbreak on tourism, tourist spending on shopping in June was still up an impressive 56% from the June 2002 levels. Actual figures are still being finalised.

For another perspective from The Straits Times, a partner of Asia News Network, click here.

 

The stake sale, worth up to S$865mil, will reduce veteran banker Wee Cho Yaw's control over UOB, one of Singapore's two family-controlled lenders. – Reuters