Prices drift lower in thin volume

WIKIPEDIA defines Chinese water torture as a process in which water is slowly dripped onto a person's forehead, allegedly driving the restrained victim insane.

Although it would be a slight exaggeration to say that trading representatives and retail investors in the local stock market have been undergoing their own version of the Chinese water torture for many months now - after all, most are still sane as far as we can tell - it is a fact that a slow decline in stock prices accompanied by a drying up of liquidity such as that experienced here can be a torturous process to endure.

Such was the case once again on Tuesday when the Straits Times Index (STI) dropped 5.53 points to 3,454.04 with turnover amounting to 1.8 billion units worth S$973 million. It was again a wholly forgettable session much like the dozens which preceded it, one of which the only distinguishing feature was that it did not have any.