Singapore banks finish lower; STI down 0.4%

[SINGAPORE] Shares on the Singapore bourse slipped on Tuesday (Feb 24), as the three local banks all finished the trading day lower.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) lost 0.4 per cent or 20.54 points to finish at 5,020.79. Meanwhile, the iEdge Singapore Next 50 Index gained 0.4 per cent or 6.48 points to 1,526.98.

Across the broader market, gainers edged out losers 317 to 296, after 1.6 billion securities worth S$2.5 billion changed hands.

UOB led losses among STI constituents, falling 4.1 per cent or S$1.60 to close at S$37.20.

Shares of UOB hit a one-month low in early trade on Tuesday after the bank posted a 7 per cent decline in fourth-quarter profit. The lender’s net profit for the quarter ended Dec 31 fell to S$1.41 billion amid margin pressures from lower benchmark rates, missing the S$1.44 billion consensus estimate of a Bloomberg poll.

UOB also cut its 2026 fee income growth outlook to high single digits, from an earlier high single to double-digit target, citing more conservative loan growth targets and macroeconomic uncertainty.

The other local banks also slipped. DBS lost 0.5 per cent to finish at S$57.86, while OCBC declined 1.2 per cent to finish at S$21.43. 

Meanwhile, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding led the gainers on Singapore’s blue-chip index, rising 2.6 per cent or S$0.10 to end at S$3.96.

Key regional indices were mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index lost 1.8 per cent and the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI declined 0.2 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose 0.9 per cent while South Korea’s Kospi was up 2.1 per cent. 

SEE ALSO

UOB upbeat on Asean trade despite fresh US tariffs, trims 2026 fee guidance after Q4 profit slips

UOB leads Singapore blue-chip losses on lower Q4 earnings, Wall Street tumble

Globally, since US President Donald Trump’s latest tariff salvo, Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Markets, noted: “The trade situation is now more ambiguous now than it was a week ago. This may affect investment and capital flows, which seems to have hit financials alongside the US dollar.”