Singapore stocks finish weaker, banks and Reits hit

THERE were no real surprises on Wednesday as the Straits Times Index dropped 18.79 points to 3,232.47 in response to Wall Street's large overnight fall that came because of concerns over the North Korea situation and the US government's debt ceiling.

What was surprising however, was a large selloff in Reits that saw 17 of the top 20 actives close lower. As a result, the FTSE FT Reit index recorded a 0.83 per cent drop. According to market watchers, the Reit selloff was a reaction to a proposed rights issue by Cache Logistics Trust which comes a few days after Manulife US Reit also announced a rights issue.

"The market may be thinking that this year will see more cash raising by the Reits,'' said a dealer. "In this market, not many people are that keen to put more in. This is collateral damage from Cache and Manulife."