Analysis: bears get that sinking feeling as HPH Trust gets into deep water

Yantian represents over half of HPH Trust's annual throughput Image © Foo Piow Loong

Six years ago, Hutchinson Port Holdings (HPH) Trust’s IPO grabbed the headlines. Not only was its orderbook oversubscribed, but its prospects as a spin-off of Hutchinson Port Holdings, the world’s biggest port operator by throughput, seemed rosy.

But the high hopes were short-lived.

The value of the trust – floated in the heyday of the post-credit crisis boom in Singapore – plunged 30% in eight months; and now, a full business cycle later, analysts remain bearish, despite a depressed valuation for the ...