Banks lower as market drift continues

THE Straits Times Index (STI) on Thursday drifted to a 6.89 point loss at 2,884.69 in low volume of 977 million units worth S$1 billion. Excluding warrants, there were 163 rises versus 222 falls. The 30 STI components contributed S$738 million or 74 per cent of total dollar turnover.

In short, it was a session devoid of redeeming features, pretty much in line with the dozens that preceded it this year. Part of the reason for the listlessness was that Wall Street on Thursday is closed for Thanksgiving while adding to the quietness was weakness in Hong Kong and China.

All three banks closed weaker, though OCBC stood out with an S$0.08 loss to S$8.72 that came with a high volume of 14.8 million. Trading in OCBC alone was worth S$129.4 million or almost 13 per cent of the whole market's business.