Singapore stocks are likely to come under pressure on Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s dour assessment of the US recovery sent shares on Wall Street reeling overnight.

Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index (.FTSTI) fell 0.76% on Wednesday to 2,926.09 points.

Neptune Orient Lines (NEPS.SI), the world’s fourth-largest container shipping firm, has placed an order with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (042660.KS) for new container ships worth US$1.2 billion ($1.65 billion).

Malaysian planter Kulim Berhad (KULM.KL) has sold its oleochEmical plant to a unit of Singaporean agribusiness firm Wilmar (WLIL.SI) for 450 million ringgit ($192.8 million).

Keppel Corp (KPLM.SI), the world’s largest offshore oil rig-maker, said on Wednesday it has secured two contracts worth $170 million from two customers in Brazil.

CapitaMall Trust (CMLT.SI) said it had a distributable income of $73.05 million in the second quarter, up 7.5% from the year-earlier period. Its distribution per unit rose 7.5% from a year ago to 2.29 cents.

Pacific Shipping Trust (PFST.SI) had a distribution per unit of 0.793 US cents (1.093 cents) for the second quarter, 20% lower than the year-ago period as the trust choose to retain a larger amount of cash.

HLN Technologies (HLNS.SI) said it expects to be profitable for the first half of 2010 compared with a loss in the year-earlier period, due to a recovery in the global economy and an increase in demand for its aluminium and polymeric products.

Renewable Energy Asia’s (REAG.SI) subsidiary has signed a memorandum of understanding with Jiangsu Maritime Engineering Services to acquire the latter’s subsidiary Nantong Huaishuo Investment.