BUSINESS TIMES: 10 Stocks to Watch (includes Oxley, Food Empire)

Stock

Stock price (29 Dec '17)

ComfortDelGro

$1.98

Food Empire

67.5 c

FJ Benjamin

7.9 c

Keppel Corp

$7.35

Oxley Holdings

65.5 c

SembCorp Industries

$3.03

Singapore Airlines

$10.67

Singapore Exchange

$7.44

StarHub

$2.85

Thai Beverage

92 c

Source: BT

Food Empire chairman Tan Wang Cheow at an international F&B exhibition. Photo: CompanyRussia will be on centrestage as the host of the World Cup 2018. For some investors, this could mean it’s time to watch developments at Food Empire, which makes over 40 per cent of its revenue from Russia, RHB Securities noted in a research report: "Although instant coffee is a matured sector in Russia, we believe the uplift in economic activity aided by the World Cup would help to raise overall domestic consumption."

Moreover, it added, there is a currency mismatch between Food Empire's revenue, which is in the Russian ruble, and raw material costs, which are in US dollars. "Hence, any potential appreciation of the ruble would be a positive driver for its gross margin. Since the Crimea crisis, the board has given the group a mandate to diversify out of its core markets in the CIS (Commonwealth of independent States) region."

Already, Food Empire has made headway in Vietnam and 2018 will see it continuing to grow its presence in Myanmar and China.