STI falls 0.73% amid Evergrande fears, China power crunch

SINGAPORE shares fell on Tuesday as markets continue to grapple with fears over the fate of debt-hit Evergrande and China's energy shortages and production curbs.

Asian economies are jostling for ever more expensive energy supplies, and factory shutdowns in China are "sure to add to logistical disruptions for the region", said Jeffrey Halley, Oanda's Asia-Pacific senior market analyst.

The Straits Times Index (STI) *STI ended Tuesday 0.73 per cent or 22.61 points lower at 3,077.69.

Elsewhere, trading was lacklustre for several benchmark indices in the region. Seoul's Kospi dipped 1.14 per cent; Tokyo's Nikkei 225 declined 0.19 per cent while the Jakarta Composite Index slipped 0.15 per cent.

"Sentiments largely tracked the mixed performance in Wall Street overnight, but with certain risk events on watch such as the ongoing Evergrande issue and recent power crunch in China," said IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong.

On the other hand, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index led gains in the region, ending the day 1.2 per cent higher while the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was up 0.9 per cent.

Across the Singapore market, losers outpaced gainers 247 to 229, with 1.84 billion securities worth S$1.29 billion changing hands.

Only two of the 30 STI constituents ended the day in the black.

Wilmar International F34 was up 1.7 per cent or S$0.07 to S$4.18 while Hongkong Land H78 gained 0.2 per cent or US$0.01 to US$4.78.

At the bottom of the table was Genting Singapore G13 which declined 3.4 per cent or S$0.025 to S$0.72.

Singtel Z74 was the most heavily traded counter on the blue-chip index with over 38 million shares changing hands. Its shares fell 1.2 per cent or S$0.03 to S$2.48.