Singapore shares slip on Monday, amid mixed trading in region; STI down 0.1 %

SINGAPORE stocks slipped lower to begin the week on Monday (Oct 25), amid mixed trading across regional markets.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.1 per cent or 3.28 points to close at 3,201.86.

Elsewhere in the region, major indices in Japan, Malaysia and Indonesia slipped lower, while others in Australia, South Korea and Hong Kong ended the day higher.

UOB Global Economics and Markets Research said in a note on Monday that Asian equities are likely to start this week on a defensive note, given the retreat in technology stocks in the US last Friday, with news of renewed Covid-19 outbreak across China also likely to dampen sentiment.

On the local bourse shares of HongkongLand fell 1.3 per cent to close at US$5.16, the worst performer on the STI for the day.

CapitaLand Investment ended the day as the top STI gainer, after its shares rose 0.9 per cent or S$0.03 to close at S$3.42

Across the broader market, advancers outnumbered decliners 222 to 218 after 1.42 billion securities worth S$918.5 million changed hands.

iFast Corporation, which reported earnings over the weekend, was among the top 5 actively-traded counters in terms of value. The shares fell 4.1 per cent to close at S$9.21 after 3.7 million shares worth S$35.7 million changed hands.

In terms of volume, shares of Raffles Education Corporation were the second most heavily traded. The counter fell 11.3 per cent to close at S$0.063 after 88.5 million shares worth S$5.6 million changed hands. Shares of the private education provider have been actively traded in recent trading sessions, amid a disagreement between chief executive Chew Hua Seng, and substantial shareholder Oei Hong Leong, and an investigation by the authorities on disclosure matters.