Stocks weaken in line with HK sentiment

THE Straits Times Index (STI) on Tuesday fell 6.31 points to 3,398.26 in a listless session with few redeeming features. Traders said volatility on Wall Street created by interest rate worries was casting uncertainty around world markets and was therefore affecting overall sentiment. Volume here amounted to 1.2 billion worth S$1.2 billion and excluding warrants, there were 174 rises versus 250 falls.

The bulk of the index's loss came in the late afternoon after European markets opened in the red and after the Hong Kong market lost one per cent, prompting speculation that Wall Street will weaken on Tuesday.

The day's most active stock was Noble Group, which continued its slide for a second day by dropping S$0.065 or 6.5 per cent to S$0.935 on volume of 75.3 million. Last week the counter gained around 8 per cent after its senior management raised their stakes in the firm, most likely as a show of confidence following an attack launched by a party known as Iceberg Research.