The Singapore stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last five trading days since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had collected almost 95 points or 3 percent. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 3,105-point plateau and it figures to be rangebound again on Wednesday.
The global forecast is flat and mixed to lower ahead of the FOMC meeting later today. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The STI finished barely lower on Tuesday as losses from the financials were offset by support from the properties.
For the day, the index eased 0.49 points or 0.02 percent to finish at 3,105.51 after trading between 3,099.43 and 3,114.80. Volume was 2.44 billion shares worth 1.49 billion Singapore dollars. There were 282 gainers and 211 decliners.
Among the actives, Ascendas REIT rallied 0.68 percent, while CapitaLand soared 2.77 percent, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust accelerated 1.41 percent, City Developments and Singapore Airlines both added 0.53 percent, Comfort DelGro advanced 0.59 percent, Dairy Farm International sank 0.67 percent, DBS Group slid 0.21 percent, Genting Singapore shed 0.54 percent, Keppel Corp and Wilmar international both dipped 0.19 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust spiked 1.62 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation dropped 0.60 percent, SATS gained 0.22 percent, Singapore Exchange plunged 0.79 percent, Singapore Press Holdings tumbled 0.74 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering tanked 0.77 percent, SingTel fell 0.42 percent, Thai Beverage skidded 0.68 percent, United Overseas Bank lost 0.35 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding surged 4.88 percent and Mapletree Commercial Trust and SembCorp Industries were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is inconclusive as stocks finished mixed on Tuesday after ending the previous session firmly positive.
The Dow shed 127.51 points or 0.39 percent to finish at 32,825.95, while the NASDAQ rose 11.86 points or 0.09 percent to end at 13,471.57 and the S&P 500 fell 6.23 points or 0.16 percent to close at 3,962.71.
The mixed close on Wall Street came as traders looked ahead to the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy announcement on Wednesday. Traders will look for changes to the Fed’s statement as well as any revisions to the central bank’s forecasts for the economy, inflation and interest rates.
Traders also hope Fed Chair Jerome Powell will address the recent spike in treasury yields in his post-meeting press conference. Ahead of the Fed announcement, treasury yields saw considerable volatility before closing modestly higher.
In economic news, the Commerce Department said retail sales pulled back more than expected last month. Also, the Federal Reserve noted an unexpected slump in U.S. industrial production in February.
Crude oil prices drifted lower on Tuesday amid concerns of a likely drop in energy demand after several countries in Europe have temporarily suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended lower by $0.59 or 0.9 percent at $64.80 per barrel, falling for a third straight session.
Closer to home, Singapore will release February figures for non-oil exports later today, with forecasts suggesting a decline of 1.0 percent on month and an increase of 6.6 percent on year. That follows the 7.0 percent monthly increase and the 12.8 percent yearly gain in January – when the trade surplus was $5.61 billion.
Market Analysis
Flat Lead Called For Singapore Stock Market
2021-03-17 00:01:48
