Singapore’s stock market is attracting income investors in 2025 even after a stellar run in 2024, with the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) yielding around 5%! See the screenshot below from SPDR Straits Times Index ETF website as of 14 Apr 2025. It is rare for an index to be giving such high yields so this can be a good opportunity for income investors.
To put things in perspective:
- Straits Times Index (Singapore): ~4.96% dividend yield
- S&P 500 (USA): ~1.4% dividend yield. U.S. blue chips pay very little, as many firms reinvest profits for growth. Moreover, there’s dividend tax of 30%.
- Hang Seng Index (Hong Kong): ~3.4% yield. Hong Kong’s market is another traditionally high-yield one, but even the Hang Seng’s yield is over 1.5 percentage points lower than STI’s. (Hong Kong’s average yield was lifted by firms like banks and utilities, but dragged down by Chinese tech stocks that pay minimal dividends.)
Singapore’s STI is one of the highest-yielding stock indices in the world at the moment. This reflects the makeup of Singapore’s market – it is heavy with banks, REITs, and mature industries that distribute a significant portion of earnings. Even regional peers like MSCI Asia ex-Japan (which includes China, India, etc.) yield only around 2% because many Asian companies (especially in North Asia) pay modest dividends or none at all. In fact, the STI’s yield of ~5% is closer to what you’d get from high-yield bonds or emerging-market debt, yet it comes from mostly investment-grade companies in a stable economy.
Banks Are Big Contributors to the High Yields
The financial trio of DBS, OCBC, and UOB account for a large portion of the STI (51.44% index weight as of 14 Apr 2025) and have delivered record earnings recently, enabling generous dividends.
- DBS posted an all-time high FY2024 net profit of S$11.4 billion. It hiked its final dividend to 60 cents and even announced an extra “capital return” dividend of 15 cents per quarter for 2025.
- OCBC also saw rising FY2024 profits and maintained a healthy capital ratio, supporting a higher dividend despite a slight narrowing in net interest margin.
- UOB posted record earnings of S$6.05 billion in 2024, raising its full-year dividend to S$1.80 and declaring a special dividend of S$0.50.
These strong profits have greatly boosted the banks’ capital, allowing plans for continued capital returns. Even if margins compress or loan growth slows, the banks are still in a solid position to maintain their attractive 5%-6% dividend yields.
REITs Are the Next Reason For STI’s High Yields
REITs have also been major contributors to the STI’s high yield, as they continue to offer steady payouts despite sluggish performance due to past interest rate hikes, trade tariffs, and economic slowdown.
Industrial/Logistics REITs
This segment gets hit the most considering that trade war reduces demand for production and transportation of goods, and slowing economy adds to the toll.
- Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust (FLCT), Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT), Mapletree Logistics Trust (MLT), CapitaLand Ascendas REIT (CLAR) are more vulnerable except that MIT and CLAR have data centers, which are more resilient in a trade war.
- Currently, these REITs are reporting more than 90% occupancy, and their distribution per unit has been kept relatively stable.
With long-term trends like e-commerce and data usage intact, their logistics and data-center assets should remain in demand, even if growth slows short-term. Long-term investors may see these years as buying opportunities.
Retail & Commercial REITs
These are more shielded from trade tensions as their tenants are service-oriented and focused on domestic demand.
- Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT), which owns suburban malls, boasts a 99% occupancy rate. Shopper traffic and tenant sales are rising.
- CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (CICT), the largest REIT in Singapore, owns a mix of downtown offices and shopping centres with high-90% occupancy. It’s upgrading properties like Clarke Quay and IMM and acquired a 50% stake in ION Orchard to enhance future growth. Singapore’s office and retail markets are holding up well, helping REITs like CICT slightly increase earnings and buck global commercial property trends.
19 STI Constituents With More than 5% Dividend Yield
Below is a screenshot from TradingView showing that 19 STI components are delivering more than 5% yields, going beyond just the banks and REITs.
Here’s a quick rundown of the other high-yielding names:
- Singapore Airlines (SIA) resumed dividends following a sharp rebound in earnings. Net profit for the Oct–Dec 2024 quarter surged 147% year-on-year to S$1.6 billion—but this was largely due to a one-off accounting gain of S$1.1 billion from its merger of Vistara with Air India. Excluding the gain, net income actually fell 20% year-on-year. As a cyclical business, SIA still faces uncertainties around fuel prices and travel demand. Management expects air travel to remain healthy into 2025, though passenger yields are expected to normalize post-pandemic. Even so, SIA has paid out about 48 cents per share in dividends over the past year, translating to a high single-digit yield at current prices—a striking figure, though much of the recent profit is non-recurring.
- Venture Corporationis an electronics manufacturing firm caught in the crosswinds of US-China trade tensions. While its revenue is mainly from Singapore and Asia Pacific, a portion of its output is likely destined for the U.S., making it indirectly exposed to tariffs. FY2024 saw declines in both revenue and net profit amid a tough electronics cycle, yet management has maintained its dividend per share at 75 cents since FY2020—a sign of its financial discipline.
- Jardine Cycle & Carriage, Jardine Matheson Holdings, and Hongkong Land have seen some struggles recently. JC&C, which owns 50% of Indonesia’s Astra, reported a 22% drop in net profit in 2024 due to weakness in Indonesia and Vietnam. Jardine Matheson divested Cold Storage and Giant Singapore at what many see as unattractive prices, reflecting operational challenges. Hongkong Land, however, offers a more positive outlook—it is restructuring to spin off its development arm and focus on becoming a pure property investment platform.
- Yangzijiang Shipbuilding has been the best-performing STI stock over the past decade, riding the wave of China’s rise as the world’s largest shipbuilder. In 2024, it delivered another strong year, with earnings per share rising roughly 60%. While a trade war may dampen global shipping activity and hurt future ship orders, the recent rally in Yangzijiang’s share price is backed by strong fundamentals—not just speculation.
- Genting Singapore may surprise investors as a defensive play. Gaming often proves resilient in economic downturns, with many turning to it in hopes of quick financial relief. While Chinese tourist numbers haven’t fully recovered, Genting is investing in its future with the “RWS 2.0” expansion and exploring new ventures like a potential resort in Thailand. These moves may weigh on near-term cash flows but could lift future earnings.
- Keppel Corporation completed a major transformation in 2024 by exiting the rig-building business. Despite one-off legacy losses, its overall net profit remained stable. Declines in property and infrastructure earnings were offset by growth in asset management and data centres. Now operating under an “asset-light” model, Keppel is focusing on recycling capital into higher-return areas. The company has maintained an annual dividend of around S$0.34 per share.
- Wilmar reported FY2024 revenue of US$67.4 billion—flat from the previous year—while net profit fell ~23% to US$1.17 billion due to thinner margins from weaker commodity prices and refining spreads. Slower global growth may pressure its palm oil business, but tariffs could also raise food input prices and stoke inflation—potentially benefiting commodity producers like Wilmar. The company remains diversified and well-positioned to ride out market volatility.
Income Investors Should Still Love the Singapore Stock Market
For income investors, the Singapore stock market—specifically the STI—remains a fertile hunting ground. A near-5% yield from a diversified basket of blue-chip companies, paired with the potential for moderate capital gains, is compelling in today’s climate.
A simple way to tap into this opportunity is via the STI ETF, which conveniently bundles these high-dividend names into one instrument. Alternatively, investors can hand-pick companies with more resilience and less trade war exposure. Either way, the point about investing during challenging periods is this: you’re likely buying low, and a high dividend yield is a sign that the stock could be undervalued.
In a world where developed-market yields are shrinking and economic uncertainty looms, Singapore’s equity market continues to shine as a rare blend of stability, income, and value.