Small-cap Singapore stocks lag large-cap counterparts as high interest rates take their toll

SINGAPORE-LISTED companies with small market capitalisation have been having their worst run against large caps in the last one year, with the gap between both widening since the second half of 2023.

High interest rates have exacerbated the flailing performance of the Catalist board, the home of small-cap stocks, while boosting the performance of banks on the Straits Times Index (STI), which represents the largest listcos, said analysts.

Since July last year, the FTSE ST Catalist Index has fallen by about 19 per cent.