STI sheds 0.05% amid GDP plunge

THE Straits Times Index (STI) ended the first trading day of the week in negative territory, shedding 1.36 points or 0.05 per cent to close at 2,544.15 as investor optimism waned after the state reported its worst economic performance for the second quarter. 

Forecasters from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) were prompted to tighten their projection for the state after its quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) declined by 13.2 per cent in April through June. They are now bracing for a contraction of between 5 per cent and 7 per cent, compared with 4 per cent to 7 per cent before.

HSBC economist Yun Liu noted that Singapore activity fell at a "record pace" with broad-based weakness in all sectors, reflecting the significant impact of the two-month lockdown. Yet, she believes the worst is over. 

She said: "While Singapore has been hard hit, we think the economy has likely hit the trough and will gradually bottom out in 3Q."

Keppel Corp lost 11.11 per cent to close at S$4.80 amid a sell-off, after Temasek Holdings announced that it was pulling the plug on its S$4 billion partial offer shortly because Keppel had posted a S$679.6 million net loss for its second financial quarter ended June. 

Sembcorp Industries lost 1.38 per cent to close at S$1.85, despite shareholders having voted overwhelmingly in favour of the proposed S$2.1 billion recapitalisation of Sembcorp Marine, and a demerger from each other that will result in Temasek Holdings having a direct stake in the marine arm. Both counters experienced volatile swings in terms of price over the second half of the trading day amid mixed sentiments from investors. 

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Venture Corporation was the top gainer for the day, gaining 6.16 per cent or S$1.16 to close at S$20.00. The company had raised its interim dividend to S$0.25 per share from S$0.20 per share, despite a 28.2 per cent fall in H1 net profit. Following the results, OCBC research analysts increased their net profit forecasts for the company by 2.5 per cent and 8.6 per cent for FY2020 and FY2021 respectively, citing Q2 to have been a "turning point" for the group. 

Aviation and aviation services-related stocks such Singapore Airlines and Sats gained 3.15 per cent and 1.85 respectively. 

Banks, too, were among the gainers for the day, a reversal from their losses towards the end of last week after posting falls in earnings for the latest quarter amid cost-saving measures and provisions. DBS gained 1.21 per cent to close at S$20.85, while OCBC shares inched up 0.46 per cent to S$8.76. UOB shares climbed 0.36 per cent to S$19.65. 

Regional markets appeared mixed on Tuesday. The KLSE fell 0.44 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite Index, too, fell 1.15 per cent. Meanwhile, the Hang Seng Composite Index and the Nikkei rose by 1.25 per cent and 1.88 per cent respectively.