"Singapore Stock Index (STI) Falls 1.1% in Midweek Trading"

19 Oct, 2023

"Singapore Stock Index (STI) Falls 1.1% in Midweek Trading"

Local shares experienced a reversal of fortunes, shedding Tuesday's gains and closing significantly lower, despite encouraging data from China and hopes for diplomatic efforts to mitigate the Middle East crisis.

On Wednesday, the Straits Times Index (STI) slipped by 35.21 points, or 1.11 percent, settling at 3,136.62. The trading session saw 354 decliners outnumbering 231 gainers, with a total trade volume of 1.2 billion shares valued at $943 million.

While markets in the region mostly closed higher, Wall Street's performance on the previous night had been relatively flat. This was driven by the news of government bond yields reaching decade-plus highs. In the region, the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo posted a marginal gain of 0.01 percent, the Kospi rose by 0.1 percent, the ASX 200 recorded a 0.3 percent increase, and Malaysia's KLCI closed with a 0.1 percent gain.

In contrast, Hong Kong and Chinese stock exchanges moved in the opposite direction, with the Hang Seng declining by 0.2 percent, and Shanghai stocks falling by 0.8 percent.

The decline in Chinese stocks followed the release of China's third-quarter gross domestic product data, which showed a 4.9 percent improvement year on year. While this was lower than the second quarter's 6.3 percent expansion, it exceeded analyst expectations. Analysts, however, suggest that China's recovery could be tumultuous, given the looming property-sector overhang, which could continue to undermine consumer and investment confidence. They also pointed to expanded US chip restrictions and a dimming global growth outlook as contributing to downside risks. Despite the yuan's recent appreciation, China's economic momentum remains fragile.

Among the top gainers on the Singapore Stock Exchange were United Overseas Insurance (UOI), a subsidiary of UOB specializing in insurance, and Nio, an electric vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Shanghai. UOI saw a 1.3 percent increase, closing at $6.20, while Nio gained 0.6 percent to reach US$8.49.

Conversely, Jardine Matheson continued its downward trend for the third consecutive day, declining by 1.2 percent to reach US$41.86.

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