Oil and China exposures hurting S'pore banks

Singapore

IT'S a new year of old problems for Singapore banks, with their shares falling 12-15 per cent since the start of 2016 on concerns over oil-and-gas exposure, and China.

With oil prices slipping below the US$28 mark as the lifting of international sanctions on Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, could mean a deeper supply glut, analysts warned of more bad loans from the sector, but said this should not cause alarm.