Asian Insight Provider - Actionable ideas, CrossASEAN Research

Henry Soediarko

Asian Insight Provider - Actionable ideas

CrossASEAN Research

At CrossASEAN Research we strive to produce unbiased and differentiated on the ground insights on companies across South East Asia. Our Research is produced for the most part after face to face meetings and conversations with company management to dig deep into the long term vision and strategy of the companies we cover. We seek to deliver investable and actionable themes on sectors and markets across SE Asia, often in collaboration with other Insight Providers across the region, pooling the vast experience of the analysts within the Smartkarma Ecosystem. We also offer bespoke work and tailor made trips for our clients. 

Insights across South East Asia

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<div>The vaccine announcement by <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pfizer-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1131:1" rel="noopener">Pfizer Inc (PFE US)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/moderna-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28744:1" rel="noopener">Moderna Inc (MRNA US), </a>
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<div>the laggard Singapore equities market all of a sudden leaped to joy and pushed travel-related names up, playing catch up with the rest of the world.</div>
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<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/singapore-airlines-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:74:1" rel="noopener">Singapore Airlines (SIA SP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sats-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:19962:1" rel="noopener">SATS Ltd (SATS SP)</a> are the go-to stock for Singapore’s reopening air travel that started with the travel bubble with Hong Kong and other low-risk countries to follow. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/comfortdelgro-corp-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:497:1" rel="noopener">Comfortdelgro Corp (CD SP)</a>  is the key beneficiary to the reopening of the Singapore economy, through the switching of work-from-home to work-in-office (higher ridership in the MRTs and buses that contributes to 60% of the company’s revenues), and also from the reopening of the restaurants and malls that increases mobility in the country. The low or non-existent community COVID-19 cases also help to boost the confidence in Comfort Delgro.</div>
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<figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/174/615/original/image_5285658631606463283499.png?1606463282" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="174615"></figure>
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<p>source: Capital IQ</p>
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<p>The trade is to buy ComfortDelgro as it has less risk to the increase in pandemic and less exposure to the cross border travel unlike Singapore Airlines and SATS (whose valuations have run ahead despite the ongoing concern of the industry) that has most of their revenues exposed to the risk of the cross border travel.</p>
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The vaccine announcement by Pfizer Inc (PFE US) and Moderna Inc (MRNA US), 

the laggard Singapore equities market all of a sudden leaped to joy and pushed travel-related names up, playing catch up with the rest of the world.


Singapore Airlines (SIA SP) and SATS Ltd (SATS SP) are the go-to stock for Singapore’s reopening air travel that started with the travel bubble with Hong Kong and other low-risk countries to follow. Comfortdelgro Corp (CD SP)  is the key beneficiary to the reopening of the Singapore economy, through the switching of work-from-home to work-in-office (higher ridership in the MRTs and buses that contributes to 60% of the company’s revenues), and also from the reopening of the restaurants and malls that increases mobility in the country. The low or non-existent community COVID-19 cases also help to boost the confidence in Comfort Delgro.




source: Capital IQ

The trade is to buy ComfortDelgro as it has less risk to the increase in pandemic and less exposure to the cross border travel unlike Singapore Airlines and SATS (whose valuations have run ahead despite the ongoing concern of the industry) that has most of their revenues exposed to the risk of the cross border travel.


2021 High Conviction: Singapore Travel Names in Bumpy Recovery

Covering IPOs, Healthcare and Technology Stocks

Andrei Zakharov

Algosun Global

Equity Bottom-Up

<p style="text-align: justify;">Previous week EU finally approved new contract with the German biotech company CureVac to purchase 225 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine and option to buy additional 180 million doses next year. CureVac plans to initiate global Phase 2b/3 clinical trials as soon as possible and is going to expand its manufacturing capacities to 300 million doses in 2021 and 600 million doses in 2022. New integrated European vaccine manufacturing network will be built in collaboration with several partners. We believe, that one of them is American EV and clean energy company Tesla, working with CureVac on vaccine RNA printer (version 3 is under development). We see further upside for CureVac shares and expect positive Phase 2a and Phase 2b/3 data of its vaccine candidate CVnCoV together with 90%+ efficacy and opportunity to sell ~100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in the European Union this year.  </p>

Previous week EU finally approved new contract with the German biotech company CureVac to purchase 225 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine and option to buy additional 180 million doses next year. CureVac plans to initiate global Phase 2b/3 clinical trials as soon as possible and is going to expand its manufacturing capacities to 300 million doses in 2021 and 600 million doses in 2022. New integrated European vaccine manufacturing network will be built in collaboration with several partners. We believe, that one of them is American EV and clean energy company Tesla, working with CureVac on vaccine RNA printer (version 3 is under development). We see further upside for CureVac shares and expect positive Phase 2a and Phase 2b/3 data of its vaccine candidate CVnCoV together with 90%+ efficacy and opportunity to sell ~100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in the European Union this year.  

CureVac Stock May Surge Another 20-30% Under New Bull-Case Scenario

Financials Credit Analyst

Hank Calenti, CFA

CreditContinuum

Credit

<p style="text-align: justify;">Credit risk markets remained decoupled between the US and Asia as spreads on US Caa-rated entities continued to defy gravity. The risk-on wave continued to swell through US risk asses on additional positive vaccine news. Combined with a Goldilocks election outcome whereby President Trump loses the election, but Joe Biden does not win a mandate, spreads on the US Caa-rated complex tightened to inside Asia’s HY index for the first time since 2014. Is it time to sell the Caa bull market?  </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Treasury Secretary Mnuchin’s decision to cancel several underutilized emergency Fed programs at the end of the year may raise expectations for the Fed to expand its asset purchase program or target its purchases more directly along the Treasury curve at its December meeting. We are set-up for disappointment.  </p><p style="text-align: justify;">Against this background, Asia’s HY Additional Tier 1 underperformed Subordinated and Senior Unsecured securities as near-term global growth concerns outweighed vaccine progress. Most of the underperforming bond were issued over the last three months. This suggests these may have been issued at the top of the market, in spread terms. Amongst Additional Tier 1 bonds, Hong Kong-headquartered banks led advances. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bank-of-east-asia-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:341:1" rel="noopener">Bank of East Asia's (23 HK)</a> announcement that it would call its 5.5% coupon December-callable AT1 bond aided sentiment. We first recommended that investors overweight this security in mid-February within <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bank-of-east-asia-overweight-short-call-at1-on-refinancing-ability" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:36787" rel="noopener">Bank of East Asia: Overweight Short-Call AT1 on Refinancing Ability</a> and recently re-iterated this call within <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bank-of-east-asia-buy-the-inefficient-capital-securities" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:42753" rel="noopener">Bank of East Asia: Buy the Inefficient Capital Securities</a>. Victory lap over.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Concurrently, Turkish HY Senior Unsecured bank bonds again materially outperformed their global peers following delivery of a more orthodox monetary policy regime. Nonetheless, Turkish bank bonds continue to trade wide of similarly rated entities in other emerging markets.  Given the starting point for a potential Turkish bank bond rally, we anticipate a virus versus vaccine market immunity in Turkish-bank bonds returns over the near term.  <strong> </strong></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Over US$13 billion was raised by financial institutions in USD, Euros and Sterling across the credit continuum. Amongst higher-yield issued securities, the UK Co-operative Bank’s Caa1 rated bond makes India’s <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/iifl-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20197:1" rel="noopener">IIFL Finance's (IIFL IN)</a> US$-bond look cheap in comparison. However, unlike India where every bank rescue requires a liability moratorium, the Co-operative Bank resolution three years ago was not damaging to the financial system. India’s rescue of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lakshmi-vilas-bank-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17552:1" rel="noopener">Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB IN)</a> this week is no exception. For our views on this please see: <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/lakshmi-vilas-bank-dbs-rescue-is-a-wasted-option" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:45471" rel="noopener">Lakshmi Vilas Bank: DBS Rescue Is a Wasted Option</a>.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">US$-debt issuance should be slowed by the upcoming US holiday on Thursday. We could see a short-lived resurgence in early December and then drift sideways until heavy issuance re-emerges in January.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Market Outlook: </strong>Over the near term, tension between longer-term optimism from vaccine driven economies and the shorter-term reality of increasing Coronavirus lockdowns are likely to weigh on the market in the coming weeks. Positive vaccine news combined with a goldilocks US election outcome lowers the likelihood of excessive US federal stimulus. This should cap additional upward pressure on US Treasury yields until vision increases on likely H2 ’21 US economic growth, post-vaccine distribution. Reflation remains on hold. This could limit US dollar weakness and limit positive impacts on reflationary beneficiaries such as bank valuations and Emerging Markets (EM) assets.</p>

Credit risk markets remained decoupled between the US and Asia as spreads on US Caa-rated entities continued to defy gravity. The risk-on wave continued to swell through US risk asses on additional positive vaccine news. Combined with a Goldilocks election outcome whereby President Trump loses the election, but Joe Biden does not win a mandate, spreads on the US Caa-rated complex tightened to inside Asia’s HY index for the first time since 2014. Is it time to sell the Caa bull market?  Treasury Secretary Mnuchin’s decision to cancel several underutilized emergency Fed programs at the end of the year may raise expectations for the Fed to expand its asset purchase program or target its purchases more directly along the Treasury curve at its December meeting. We are set-up for disappointment.  Against this background, Asia’s HY Additional Tier 1 underperformed Subordinated and Senior Unsecured securities as near-term global growth concerns outweighed vaccine progress. Most of the underperforming bond were issued over the last three months. This suggests these may have been issued at the top of the market, in spread terms. Amongst Additional Tier 1 bonds, Hong Kong-headquartered banks led advances. Bank of East Asia's (23 HK) announcement that it would call its 5.5% coupon December-callable AT1 bond aided sentiment. We first recommended that investors overweight this security in mid-February within Bank of East Asia: Overweight Short-Call AT1 on Refinancing Ability and recently re-iterated this call within Bank of East Asia: Buy the Inefficient Capital Securities. Victory lap over.Concurrently, Turkish HY Senior Unsecured bank bonds again materially outperformed their global peers following delivery of a more orthodox monetary policy regime. Nonetheless, Turkish bank bonds continue to trade wide of similarly rated entities in other emerging markets.  Given the starting point for a potential Turkish bank bond rally, we anticipate a virus versus vaccine market immunity in Turkish-bank bonds returns over the near term.   Over US$13 billion was raised by financial institutions in USD, Euros and Sterling across the credit continuum. Amongst higher-yield issued securities, the UK Co-operative Bank’s Caa1 rated bond makes India’s IIFL Finance's (IIFL IN) US$-bond look cheap in comparison. However, unlike India where every bank rescue requires a liability moratorium, the Co-operative Bank resolution three years ago was not damaging to the financial system. India’s rescue of Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB IN) this week is no exception. For our views on this please see: Lakshmi Vilas Bank: DBS Rescue Is a Wasted Option.US$-debt issuance should be slowed by the upcoming US holiday on Thursday. We could see a short-lived resurgence in early December and then drift sideways until heavy issuance re-emerges in January.Market Outlook: Over the near term, tension between longer-term optimism from vaccine driven economies and the shorter-term reality of increasing Coronavirus lockdowns are likely to weigh on the market in the coming weeks. Positive vaccine news combined with a goldilocks US election outcome lowers the likelihood of excessive US federal stimulus. This should cap additional upward pressure on US Treasury yields until vision increases on likely H2 ’21 US economic growth, post-vaccine distribution. Reflation remains on hold. This could limit US dollar weakness and limit positive impacts on reflationary beneficiaries such as bank valuations and Emerging Markets (EM) assets.

Bank Credit Weekly: Virus Vs. Vaccine: Time to Sell the Caa-Bull?

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Equity Capital Markets

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<p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/japan-airlines-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1184:1" rel="noopener">Japan Airlines (9201 JP)</a> plans to raise around US$1.4bn in order to shore up its balance sheet and aid its longer term transformation.</p>
<p> I have covered the background of the deal in my earlier write-up, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/japan-airlines-placement-given-the-uncertain-outlook-might-need-further-correction" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Japan Airlines Placement - Given the Uncertain Outlook, Might Need Further Correction</a>.</p>
</div><div><div id="annotable-executive_summary-2">In this insight, I'll talk about the updates since then.</div></div>


Japan Airlines (9201 JP) plans to raise around US$1.4bn in order to shore up its balance sheet and aid its longer term transformation.
 I have covered the background of the deal in my earlier write-up, Japan Airlines Placement - Given the Uncertain Outlook, Might Need Further Correction.
In this insight, I'll talk about the updates since then.

Japan Airlines Placement - Tricky Tricky, Needs to Correct

<p>Moderna may announce its first interim results of the late-stage trial of its COVID-19 vaccine mRNA-1273 as soon as this month. Pfizer and BioNTech confirmed its mRNA-based vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 has already achieved success in first interim analysis from Phase 3 study. With 90%+ efficacy and study enrolled 43,538 participants Pfizer and BioNTech believe that a vaccine may effectively prevent COVID-19. BioNTech used mRNA-based approach and its vaccine candidate BNT162b2 consists of messenger RNA, that provides instructions for human cell to make immunogen, which activates the body’s immune response.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Therefore, we see that unproven mRNA approach shows first promising results and this platform technology may also target solid tumors and many forms of cancer. Looks like leading mRNA-based vaccine producers (Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, CureVac) are going to win the race leaving behind adenovirus-based COVID-19 vaccine producers (J&amp;J, AstraZeneca, CanSino Biologics). Shares of BioNTech rose 19% in November while shares of Moderna and CureVac jumped 30% and 43% respectively this month. We believe that positive data from Moderna’s late stage study may drive stocks of mRNA-based vaccine producers to new highs.   </p>

Moderna may announce its first interim results of the late-stage trial of its COVID-19 vaccine mRNA-1273 as soon as this month. Pfizer and BioNTech confirmed its mRNA-based vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 has already achieved success in first interim analysis from Phase 3 study. With 90%+ efficacy and study enrolled 43,538 participants Pfizer and BioNTech believe that a vaccine may effectively prevent COVID-19. BioNTech used mRNA-based approach and its vaccine candidate BNT162b2 consists of messenger RNA, that provides instructions for human cell to make immunogen, which activates the body’s immune response.Therefore, we see that unproven mRNA approach shows first promising results and this platform technology may also target solid tumors and many forms of cancer. Looks like leading mRNA-based vaccine producers (Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, CureVac) are going to win the race leaving behind adenovirus-based COVID-19 vaccine producers (J&amp;J, AstraZeneca, CanSino Biologics). Shares of BioNTech rose 19% in November while shares of Moderna and CureVac jumped 30% and 43% respectively this month. We believe that positive data from Moderna’s late stage study may drive stocks of mRNA-based vaccine producers to new highs.   

Success of Moderna’s COVID-19 Vaccine May Give a Boost to Stocks of Messenger RNA Companies

United States

Moderna, Inc. operates as a biotechnology company. The Company focuses on the discovery and development of messenger RNA therapeutics and vaccines. Moderna develops mRNA medicines for infectious, immuno-oncology, and cardiovascular diseases.

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Moderna (MRNA US)

2021 High Conviction: Singapore Travel Names in Bumpy Recovery

Long ComfortDelgro as it has less risk to the increase in pandemic unlike Singapore Airlines and SATS (whose valuations have run ahead despite the...

Henry Soediarko

CureVac Stock May Surge Another 20-30% Under New Bull-Case Scenario

We see further upside potential for CureVac shares as the probability of success is increasing for its vaccine candidate CVnCoV and key mRNA-based...

Andrei Zakharov

Bank Credit Weekly: Virus Vs. Vaccine: Time to Sell the Caa-Bull?

Is it time to sell the Caa-bull market? Some AT1 bonds seem to be at a market top. We are set-up for disappointment. Nonetheless, we anticipate...

Hank Calenti, CFA

Japan Airlines Placement - Tricky Tricky, Needs to Correct

Japan Airlines (9201 JP) plans to raise around US$1.4bn in order to shore up its balance sheet and aid its longer term transformation.

Sumeet Singh

Success of Moderna’s COVID-19 Vaccine May Give a Boost to Stocks of Messenger RNA Companies

mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine producers made a big step forward to defeat coronavirus and prevent future pandemics around the world

Andrei Zakharov

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