Singapore stock market's malaise runs deep and is multi-fold

IT would be somewhat unkind to conclude that this week's market stoppage - the second in a month and third this year - is simply another dismal chapter for a market in malaise. But there is no denying that something is amiss. The numbers don't lie.

Stockmarket turnover fell 21 per cent in the financial year ended June 30, 2014, to S$286 billion, according to Singapore Exchange (SGX). That is the lowest turnover since fiscal 2006, when the size of the total market was less than what it is worth today. Looking at turnover as a proportion of market capita…