Singapore shares slip 0.5% on Tuesday

MOST markets in Asia closed lower on Tuesday, taking the lead from a weak US session where investors exercised caution over the possible resolution of US-China trade issues. China cutting its gross domestic product target of between 6 and 6.5 per cent for 2019 did not help either.

In Singapore, the Straits Times Index slipped 17.01 points or 0.5 per cent to close at 3,234.07.

Trading on the Singapore bourse clocked in at about 1.2 billion securities worth S$1.07 billion in total changing hands or an average of S$0.89 per security. Losers outnumbered gainers 256 to 158.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding was the bourse's most traded counter on the day. It ended the session three Singapore cents or 2.1 per cent lower at S$1.40 with 38.6 million shares changing hands.

Among financials, DBS Group Holdings closed seven Singapore cents or 0.3 per cent down at S$25.43, OCBC Bank dropped five Singapore cents or 0.4 per cent to S$11.20, while United Overseas Bank ended S$0.12 or 0.5 per cent lower to close at S$25.15.

Meanwhile, defensive counters like Singtel and ThaiBev closed flat at S$2.99 and S$0.795 respectively.