Berlian Laju Tanker (B66.SG) is up 9.1% at $0.06, with over 144 million shares traded so far, making it the most active stock on the SGX. The next most active is UniFiber (P30.SG), up 11.1% at $0.05, with over 67 million shares traded. 

No news today on either stock; a dealer at a local brokerage says the moves are part of the recent trend bringing penny stocks back into vogue. “It’s the trend with all the penny stocks right now. I think analysts, and probably investors too, are hunting around for stocks that are below NAV or that have been neglected and underperforming.” 

 

He says Berlian’s NAV/share is between $0.095 and $0.10, “so perhaps people feel more comfortable rating it a little higher while the economic recovery looks a little more lasting.” 

 

In Indonesia, Berlian rose 2.8% Thursday, “so maybe it’s just playing catch up or getting some arbitrage interest.” 

 

UniFiber’s reported NAV/share at end-September was US$0.0451, around $0.058.