Bulls And Bears
Singapore stocks tumble, tracking US market sell-off
• Sharp falls on Wall Street spark losses in key Asian markets • STI drops 34.64 points, losers outnumber gainers 339-152 • Shares of local banks DBS, UOB, OCBC decline 1%-1.6%
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Yong Jun Yuan
The carnage on Wall Street overnight had its inevitable fallout here with local shares going into a tailspin, although the bloodshed was less than many had expected.
By the time the dust had settled, the Straits Times Index (STI) was down 1.1 per cent or 34.64 points to 3,190.71 with losers outstripping gainers 339 to 152 on trade of 1.42 billion shares worth $1.38 billion.
While inflation fears were behind the heavy sell-off across major United States indexes, IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong noted that an increase in Covid-19 cases in China also dampened hopes of a quick easing of virus restrictions.
"China's zero-Covid stance is having a knock-on impact on trade activities in the region," he said.
In addition, Mr Yeap noted that investors appear to be waiting for more concrete policy from China after Tencent posted its slowest revenue gain of 0.1 per cent, while earnings slumped 51 per cent.
Sharp falls on Wall Street - the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 3.6 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 4 per cent and the Nasdaq tumbled 4.7 per cent - triggered falls in most key Asian markets.
Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.9 per cent, the Kospi in Seoul declined 1.3 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng tumbled 2.5 per cent, while the Kuala Lumpur Composite slipped 0.4 per cent.
Australian shares ended a four-day rally to close down 1.7 per cent despite unemployment hitting its lowest level since 1974.
The STI's top performer was Thai Beverage, which rose 1.4 per cent to 70.5 cents, while Wilmar International was the biggest loser, shedding 2.1 per cent to $4.12.
The local banks were also in the red. DBS fell 1 per cent to $30.89, UOB lost 1.3 per cent to $28.51 while OCBC dropped 1.6 per cent to $11.63.
