Singapore stocks continue to slide; SIA takes a beating

SINGAPORE shares continued south on Thursday after the US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell warned that the economic outlook was uncertain and downside risks remained significant.

The Straits Times Index (STI), which opened at 2,546.64, settled at 2,522.31, down 49.70 points or 1.93 per cent from Wednesday. There were 137 gainers to 322 losers. A total of 1.75 billion securities, worth S$1.45 billion, changed hands.

"Risk aversion remains strong for the local market, seeing the STI fall in tandem with Asia markets and US futures on Thursday. This comes as Powell and the World Health Organisation issued bleak warnings amid the global health crisis,'' Jingyi Pan, market strategist at IG, told The Business Times.