OREANDA-NEWS. Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) and Singapore Exchange (SGX) today announced the establishment of a strategic partnership, where a subsidiary of TWSE, Global Link Securities Co. Ltd, will join SGX as a remote trading member, a significant first step towards wider partnership between the two exchanges.

The agreement will allow TWSE member brokers to directly trade SGX-listed securities, thus making such international trades more efficient and cost effective for Taiwan investors. Trading of Singapore listed securities through Global Link is expected to go live in second quarter of 2016.

To allow Taiwan investors, both institutional and retail, explore and better appreciate the long-term investability and investment opportunities in Singapore’s equities market, SGX and TWSE will jointly launch a series of market education and awareness programmes in Taiwan.

Through investments in SGX-listed stocks, Taiwan investors can look forward to the attractive dividend yields that listed companies on SGX offer. The average dividend yield of the Straits Times Index (STI) constituents stood at 4.2% as at 31 December 2015, well above the average of Asian markets at 2.5%. There are more than 30 Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and stapled trusts listed on SGX, which generated an average dividend yield of 7.2% in 2015.

This partnership will also provide Taiwan investors with access to sectors such as REITs and Business Trusts, Healthcare, Consumer and Digital among others that SGX is traditionally strong in. The Healthcare sector was SGX’s best performing sector in 2015, with the SGX All Healthcare Index generating a 12.2% total annual return, against the backdrop of global market volatility.

As at end December 2015, 769 companies with a total market capitalisation value of S$904.8 billion are listed on SGX.

Mr Loh Boon Chye, Chief Executive Officer, SGX, commented, “We are delighted to extend our partnership with TWSE. We warmly welcome Global Link, TWSE’s subsidiary as a remote trading member and are pleased to deliver greater convenience and choice to international investors accessing the Singapore market. By expanding our connections internationally, Singapore’s equities market will continue to deepen, with listed companies able to target an ever-increasing investor pool.”

Mr Sush-der Lee, Chairman of TWSE, said: “The signing of today’s Agreement is the next stage of our ‘step-by-step’ cooperation with SGX. We also hope to welcome Singapore investors to trade the Taiwan market by way of a trading link sometime in the future. We hope that this type of cooperation between exchanges will make it easier for brokers everywhere to offer streamlined and cost effective cross-border investment services.”