Singapore stocks fall at Thursday’s open tracking global retreat; STI down 0.3%

SINGAPORE stocks opened weaker on Thursday (Jan 18) following overnight losses on global markets as investors’ hope for rate cuts dwindles.

Singapore’s Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.3 per cent or 9.2 points to 3,133.02 as at 9.02 am. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 77 to 39, after 35.2 million securities worth S$56 million changed hands.

The most active counter by volume was Seatrium , which gained 0.9 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.114, with 3.4 million shares traded. It was followed by Genting Singapore , which lost 0.5 per cent or S$0.005 at S$0.98, with 2.2 million shares changing hands, and CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust , which held steady at S$1.97 with 2.2 million shares transacted.

Banking stocks traded mixed in early trading. DBS lost 0.4 per cent or S$0.13 to S$31.70, UOB dropped 0.5 per cent or S$0.15 to S$27.73, while OCBC traded flat at S$12.72.

US indices closed on Wednesday lower as investors lost hope on sooner-than-later interest rate cuts amid stronger retail sales data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.3 per cent to 37,266.67, and the broad-based S&P 500 ended 0.6 per cent lower at 4,739.21. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index also shed 0.6 per cent to 14,855.62.

Over in Europe, shares retreated as well, as investment sentiments were weighed by more hawkish remarks from the European Central Bank and weak economic data from China. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index ended 1.2 per cent lower, registering the biggest single-day percentage fall since October.