Singapore shares tumble on Wednesday, mirroring US sell-off; STI falls 1.4%

SINGAPORE stocks extended losses on Wednesday (Oct 4), tracking a slide in US indices. Regional markets also stumbled.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) declined 1.4 per cent or 44.96 points to 3,147.39. 

Across the broader market, there were more than twice as many losers as there were gainers – 421 to 208, as 1.5 billion shares worth S$1.3 billion changed hands.

Global stock exchanges were rocked by a Wall Street sell-off overnight, as US Treasury yields continued to climb.

IG market analyst Yeap Jun Rong said such a sell-off was prompted by a “significant upside surprise” in the country’s job opening numbers for August, which came in at 9.6 million against an expected 8.8 million.

A resilient labour market is deemed to provide more room for the US Federal Reserve to keep rates high for longer, he added.

The weak market sentiment bled into regional indices, which were largely down on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 2.3 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slid 0.8 per cent. The FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI closed down 0.3 per cent.

South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index returned from a holiday in the red, falling 2.4 per cent. China’s market continues to be closed for Golden Week.

Back home on the STI, Singtel was the top loser as it retreated 3.3 per cent or S$0.08 to S$2.35. The top gainer was Venture Corporation , which rose 0.8 per cent or S$0.10 to S$12.15.

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The only other gainer on the blue-chip barometer was Hongkong Land , which climbed 0.6 per cent or US$0.02 to US$3.47.

Local banking stocks were mired in red. DBS shed 0.9 per cent or S$0.31 to S$33.22; OCBC dipped 1.2 per cent or S$0.15 to S$12.65; and UOB fell 0.7 per cent or S$0.20 to S$28.07.