Singapore stocks slump alongside regional markets as Fed prepares for taper
THE Singapore market was a sea of red on Thursday, amid indications by the US Federal Reserve that it could begin "tapering", or gradually winding down its large scale financial support.
The benchmark Straits Times Index fell 1.4 per cent or 44.47 points to close at 3,086.97. Decliners ousted advancers 402 to 150, with1.79 billion securities worth S$1.48 billion having changed hands. All 30 constituent counters ended the day lower.
Oanda senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley noted that although caution was expressed about the potential impact of the coronavirus Delta variant on the recovery of the economy, most of the discussion regarding the tapering appeared to be around the timing.
"Views were split over starting into the end of the year or early next. That seems to be rather splitting hairs to me as to whether tapering commences in late Q4 or early Q1, which makes little difference. The fact is, Fed tapering looks likely to start in a few months," he said.
Markets around the region took a hit on Thursday as well. The Nikkei 225 lost 1.1 per cent, the Hang Seng Index was down 2.1 per cent and the KLCI shed 0.7 per cent. The Kospi was down 1.9 per cent.
On the local bourse, Jardine Matheson J36 was the biggest loser, losing 2.2 per cent or US$1.24 to US$55.41.
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The trio of local lenders were also among the top decliners. DBS D05 fell 1.6 per cent or S$0.50 to S$29.92; UOB U11 slipped 1.5 per cent or S$0.40 to S$25.68, while OCBC O39 lost 1 per cent or S$0.12 to S$11.66.
Watch-listed Shenshan, BKV which was formerly Dukang Distillers, was the top advancer. The counter rose 30.4 per cent or S$0.07 to S$0.30.
SingHaiyi 5H0 was the most actively traded counter on Thursday, with some 234.4 million shares changing hands. The stock ended the day unchanged at 9.3 Singapore cents.
Other heavily traded counters included Semcorp Marine, S51 Jiutian Chemical C8R and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding. BS6
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