Singapore shares down by 0.63% on Friday

EARNINGS gloom and continued trade uncertainty took their toll on Singapore equities on Friday, despite the overnight up-trend on Wall Street.

The benchmark Straits Times Index lost 20.59 points, or 0.63 per cent, to 3,265.73, bringing it down by 1.78 per cent on the previous week.

Losers beat gainers 259 to 141 on the bourse, or nearly two down for every one up, as 1.73 billion shares worth S$1.08 billion were traded.

Singapore Post shed S$0.13, or 9.42 per cent, to S$1.25 on a volume of 22.7 million shares, after posting a 40 per cent year-on-year fall in first-quarter net profit before the market opened.

AEM Holdings lost S$0.025, or 3.4 per cent, to S$0.71 with almost 12.8 million shares changing hands. The counter has been in free fall after the company warned on Tuesday of "significant volatility" ahead.