A filing to the Singapore Exchange (SGX) dated Oct 27 said Malaysia' s Employment Provident Fund (EPF) trimmed its stake in glove manufacturer Riverstone Holdings on Oct 25.

 

EPF - which is a federal statutory body under Malaysia' s Ministry of Finance - sold 1 million Riverstone shares worth a total of S$884,000, which works out to a price of S$0.884 apiece. The transaction took EPF' s stake in the company down to 5.98 per cent from 6.05 per cent previously. Shares of Riverstone closed at S$0.89 on Oct 25.

 

EPF had previously pared its stake in Riverstone on Sep 20, selling 284,900 shares for a total of S$287,207.69. This took EPF' s stake in Riverstone down to 6.98 per cent from 7 per cent previously.

 

Apart from Riverstone, EPF has also been cutting its stake in another glovemaker, Top Glove, over several instances in September and October this year.

 

The most recent sale of 200,000 Top Glove shares by EPF was announced in a filing on Oct 25.

 

Glove makers such as Riverstone and Top Glove have been key beneficiaries of the Covid-19 pandemic. The companies enjoyed record revenues and profits amid a surge in demand.

 

But with the speedy rollout of vaccines across the world, these glove manufacturers are now bracing for a decline in demand and average selling prices of gloves. Analysts generally expect an adverse impact on earnings in the near- to medium-term.