STI declines 2.31%, some Asian markets retreat on poor PMI

THE adage "sell in May and go away" loomed large on the first trading day of the month in Singapore, as the Straits Times Index (STI) bucked last week's upward trend by retreating 60.54 points or 2.31 per cent to close at 2,563.69 points on Monday. 

Singapore's market performance was in line with most Asian markets' dismal trading, as several countries in the region reported record-low factory output in April. 

Bloomberg reported that the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) across South-east Asia contracted further to post their weakest readings since the series began, citing data released by IHS Markit on Monday. India's PMI also dropped to a record low as output crashed amid a 40-day lockdown. Taiwan, Japan and South Korea fell to their lowest levels since 2009.

Singapore will release its PMI at 9 pm on Monday.

The FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index lost 31.19 points to end at 1,376.59. Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index declined 4.18 per cent or 1,029.79 points to 23,613.80.

The Australian market was one of the few bright spots in a sea of red.  The ASX 200 index rose 1.41 per cent to 5,319.8.

Japan and China markets were closed for a holiday.

On the STI, Jardine Strategic was the best performer among the 30 constituents, up US$0.35 or 1.62 per cent to US$21.90. 

United Overseas Bank was at the bottom of the STI performance table, with a closing price of S$19.81, after shedding S$0.53 or 2.61 per cent.

The most heavily-traded STI stock was telco Singtel, with almost 40 million shares having changed hands. The counter ended at S$0.11 or 3.89 per cent lower at S$2.72.

Decliners outnumbered advancers 345 to 114 for the day on the Singapore Exchange, with 1.33 billion shares worth S$1.47 billion traded. The market value of shares traded was almost S$1 billion less than last Thursday's S$2.44 billion.