Singapore stocks slip as Asian markets trade mixed; STI down 0.1%
Raphael Lim
SINGAPORE stocks closed lower on Friday (May 5), tracking bearish sentiment overnight on Wall Street, even as regional markets traded mixed.
The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.1 per cent or 2.55 points to close at 3,266.63. For the week, the index was also down 0.1 per cent from last Friday’s close.
UOL was the biggest STI decliner on Friday, after the counter slipped 0.8 per cent to close at S$7.10.
The local banks were also among the losers, with OCBC and UOB falling 0.2 per cent.
DBS shares slipped 0.7 per cent to close at S$31.90. The bank ended as the worst STI performer for the week, falling 2.8 per cent from last Friday’s close.
Meanwhile, Sembcorp Industries was the top performer for the week.
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The counter fell 0.4 per cent on Friday to S$4.58, but its shares were still up 7 per cent from last Friday’s close.
Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 285 to 265, after 1.3 billion securities worth S$817.3 million were traded.
Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, markets were trading mixed following overnight losses in major US indices, as fears over the stability of regional banks persisted.
“The confidence in the US banking space remains unrestored, with the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF down another 5.5 per cent (on Thursday),” IG market analyst Yeap Jun Rong said.
“As we head into the weekend, focus will be on how authorities could move to address the issue to limit further contagion risks. Any inaction over the weekend could translate to a more downbeat risk environment to start next week.”
Australia’s ASX 200 rose 0.4 per cent, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong gained 0.5 per cent.
Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.5 per cent. Markets in Japan and South Korea were closed on Friday for holidays.
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