STI down 0.92% on Friday, 0.71% lower for the week

FOLLOWING its Wall Street peers that wrapped up Thursday trading in the red on profit-taking ahead of the Federal Reserve chair's speech on Friday, Singapore's blue-chip benchmark the Straits Times (STI) also closed lower.

The STI shed 0.92 per cent or 28.65 points to 3,080.77 points on Friday, and was 0.71 per cent down for the week. Five STI stocks posted gains, one was flat and the remaining 24, including the three local banks, ended in the red.

IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong said that the gauge has failed to gain much traction since the start of the month, and August is seasonally a weaker month for the index.

"Out of the past 10 years, only one year managed to deliver a positive return in August - and it was a muted return of 0.11 per cent. The index finds itself retesting the 3,100 support level once again. A break below this level may see prices move to retest the 3,000 psychological key support level next."

ComfortDelGro went from the bottom of the performance tally on Thursday to become the top STI performer, driven by news that it had been awarded a S$1.13 billion contract to operate rail services in Auckland. This is its maiden project in New Zealand. The counter rose 1.88 per cent to S$1.63.

The price of Wilmar International shares has been on a downtrend since the agribusiness released its financial results on Aug 11. This was despite the firm delivering an improved performance and the highest interim dividend of S$0.05 a share since it has gone public.

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But its joint venture's proposed flotation in India has been held in abeyance by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the company said on Aug 22.

The counter ended at S$4.14, 0.72 per cent lower.

Decliners beat gainers 275 to 207 on the broader market, with a turnover of 1.06 billion securities worth a total S$1.05 billion.

Asian markets were a mixed bag.

Japan's Nikkei 225 shed 0.36 per cent to 27,641.14 points while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 0.03 per cent to 25,407.89 points. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.04 per cent to 7,488.29 points.

South Korea's Kospi inched up 0.17 per cent to 3,133.90 points; the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was 0.28 per cent higher at 1,590.16 points. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.59 per cent to 3,522.16 points.