Between Oct 5 and 6, Avarga : U09 0% executive chairman Tong Kooi Ong acquired 243,000 shares at an average price of S$0.169 per share.

 

With a consideration of S$41,165 this increased his deemed interest in the company from 32.52 per cent to 32.54 per cent. Tong is also on the board of Taiga Building Products, a subsidiary of the group that is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada.

 

He is also a nominee director of Khazanah Nasional and sits on the board of M+S Pte Ltd. For its H1FY23 (ended Jun 30), the building products segment continued to contribute more than 95 per cent of the group&rsquo s total revenue.

 

The group total revenue for H1FY23 was S$864.7 million, compared to S$1.379 billion for H1FY22.

 

Revenue from the building products business of Taiga for H1FY23 was S$847.9 million compared to S$1.353 billion over the same period the previous year.

 

The fall in revenue from Taiga was largely due to lower selling prices for its commodity products during the period under review.

 

The group noted that Taiga&rsquo s financial performance is primarily dependent on the residential construction, renovation, and repairs markets in North America, adding that these markets are affected by the strength or weakness in the general economy and so are influenced by interest rates and other general market indicators.

 

Taiga caters to both the primary housing and renovation markets with its primary and secondary markets in Canada and the United States respectively.

 

The writer is the market strategist at Singapore Exchange (SGX). To read SGX&rsquo s market research reports, visit sgx.com/research.