Singapore shares buck regional trend, STI down 0.32%

SINGAPORE shares ended in negative territory on Wednesday as Wall Street, with the exception of the Nasdaq, took a pause from the rally earlier this week.

The Straits Times Index (STI) closed at 2,925.84 points, down 0.32 per cent or 9.43 points.

Said Margaret Yang, DailyFX strategist: "Markets appeared to have largely priced in the US$1.9 trillion Covid-relief package, which is crucial to revitalise consumer spending, assist vaccine rollouts and foster a faster economic recovery for the US."

Elsewhere in Asia, however, sentiment remained upbeat, with key benchmark indices ending the day higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index led gains in the region, climbing 1.9 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225 was up 0.2 per cent; Seoul's Kospi rose 0.5 per cent while the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gained 0.7 per cent.

Oanda's senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley said: "Activity in Asia suggests that regional investors are not taking positioning off the boards ahead of the Chinese New Year holidays. If anything, it is precisely the opposite, with Asian markets performing well today."

In Singapore, some 2.28 billion securities worth S$1.14 billion changed hands. Across the market, advancers outpaced decliners 236 to 230.

Among the STI constituents, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding retained its position as the best-performing stock; its shares climbed 1 per cent or S$0.01 to S$1.05.

At the bottom of the table was Genting Singapore, which fell 2.8 per cent or 2.5 Singapore cents to 86.5 cents. It was also the most heavily traded counter by volume on the blue-chip index, with over 73.5 million shares changing hands. The firm had on Tuesday evening posted a 90 per cent plunge in full-year net profit to S$69.2 million.

Also in focus for the local market on Wednesday was DBS' quarterly results. The bank reported a 33 per cent dip in net profit to S$1.01 billion for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2020. It shares rose 0.3 per cent or S$0.07 to S$26.

The other two local lenders posted gains for the day as well. OCBC put on 0.9 per cent or S$0.09 to S$10.54; UOB gained 0.2 per cent or S$0.05 to S$23.89.

Meanwhile, Thomson Medical continued to record strong gains and on heavy trading volume, with shares surging 20.3 per cent or 1.2 Singapore cents to 7.1 cents wit; more than 267.8 million shares changed hands.