Three pairs of parents ushered in the Chinese New Year to the cries of Singapore's first 'Horse' babies, all boys born at the stroke of midnight on Friday.

Ashden Tee and Keefe Gan were born simultaneously at Raffles Hospital, while a baby boy who has not yet been named was born at Parkway East Hospital.

Ashden is the fourth Horse baby in his family: his parents, Mr Dennis Tee Jyh Eng and Ms Lee Bab Ing, both 35, were also born in the Year of the Horse, as was Mr Tee's 60-year-old mother. Their first child is a girl born in the Year of the Rabbit.

"He was a very active baby when he was still in her belly, always moving and kicking like a horse," joked Mr Tee, the director of an IT security firm, while the couple's first son snoozed quietly in a nearby cot. "You could see his hands and feet moving around."

Mr Gan Thong Hoe, 37 and Ms Yao Yi Zhen, 31 also welcomed their first son with Keefe's birth. Their daughter Clarabelle was born on Labour Day in 2011.

"I went into labour on Labour Day," quipped Ms Yao. "And now I had my son on Chinese New Year. They both have special birthdays."

Both families received $888 in cash, a necklace and a gold-plated palm-sized horse figurine from giftmaker Risis, who have for ten years celebrated the birth of the first Chinese New Year babies with the families. They also received hampers and a surprise celebration dinner from the hospital, and were upgraded from single rooms to deluxe rooms.

Meanwhile in Parkway East Hospital, Madam Sharifah Nurulhuda Mohtar Bahron, 31, and Mr Syed Omar Alhadad, 35, celebrated the birth of their fourth child. They received hampers and a room upgrade to VIP suite in the hospital's new maternity wing from Parkway, along with $888, a necklace and a gold orchid tray from Risis. All three families also received hampers and $684 in cash from Dettol.

Said the newborn's beaming grandmother, Mona Alsagoff: "I was in the mosque yesterday praying for the baby to come out safe and healthy on Friday because it's a good day for Muslims."