Asia: Markets rebound but Singapore’s dips 0.7%
Monday’s regional laggards rebounded but to different levels
KEY gauges in Asia Pacific were trading higher on Tuesday (Aug 6), after a rout a day ago that saw Tokyo’s logging a record one-day dive of 12.4 per cent.
However, Singapore’s Straits Times Index (STI) was an outlier, extending its decline by 0.7 per cent as the banking trio with their 45 per cent weighting dragged the index down.
UOB slid S$0.44 or 1.5 per cent to S$29.64, DBS was down 0.8 per cent or S$0.27 at S$33 and OCBC slipped 0.1 per cent or S$0.01 to S$14.01. Seatrium was the worst performing STI stock, having declined S$0.04 or 2.7 per cent to S$1.43.
Monday’s regional laggards rebounded but not at the same rate.
Nikkei 225 surged 9.7 per cent, making it one of the best performing benchmarks in the region as at 11.30 am.
Kospi Index was 4.2 per cent higher, compared with its 8.8 per cent dip a day ago.
S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.4 per cent while FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI and Jakarta Composite Index increased 1.6 per cent and 1 per cent respectively.
Hang Seng Index was only up 0.1 per cent but was still better than the flattish Shanghai Composite Index, which inched up 0.04 per cent.
Stephen Innes, managing partner of SPI Asset Management, said: “We’ve caught a brief respite as some falling knives finally hit the floor. A dash of soothing words from Fed officials... has begun to calm the market’s frayed nerves. However, all eyes remain glued to Tokyo, the epicentre of the carry trade unwind drama, where the effects have been particularly pronounced, stirring up significant turbulence for traders and investors.”
