Singapore shares open lower following Wall Street tumble; STI down 0.1%
SU HUI NATASHA LYE
SINGAPORE stocks opened lower on Tuesday (Aug 23) as global markets end the day’s trading session lower. The Straits Times Index (STI) was down 0.1 per cent or 3.6 points to 3258.97 as at 9.02 am. Losers outweighed gainers 87 to 34 after 48.42 million securities worth S$55.28 million shares changed hands. (see amendment note)
Sembcorp Marine was the most actively traded counter in the morning with 6.3 million shares transacted. The counter was down 0.9 per cent or S$0.001 at S$0.11. Among index counters, Genting Sing traded lower at 1.2 per cent or S$0.01 at S$0.795 after 2.3 million shares were traded.
The trio of local banks traded lower at Tuesday’s open. DBS traded lower S$0.1 or 0.3 per cent to S$32.69, UOB was down S$0.07 or 0.3 per cent to S$27.26, OCBC lost S$0.04 or 0.3 per cent to S$12.14.
Over in the US, Wall Street equities tumbled on Monday amid worries over the Fed’s ongoing interest rate hikes. All 3 major indices closed with losses of about two percent or more.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 640 points, or 1.9 per cent, to finish at 33,063.61. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 2.1 per cent to 4,137.99, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index sank 2.6 per cent to close at 12,381.57.
European shares fell to their lowest level in nearly 1 month on Monday as worries about tightening gas supplies from Russia, hawkish signals from the European Central Bank and weak economic outlook weighed on investors’ minds.
The continent-wide Stoxx 600 dropped 1 per cent to touch its lowest level since July 28.
Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened lower on Tuesday after jitters over the speed of rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve drove down Wall Street shares overnight.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 1 per cent, or 288.64 points, to 28,505.86 in early trade, while the broader Topix index lost 0.84 per cent, or 16.73 points, to 1,975.86.
Amendment note: The article earlier had incorrectly stated the number of gainers and losers.
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