Singapore Bourse May Take Additional Damage On Wednesday

The Singapore stock market on Tuesday snapped the three-day winning streak in which it had risen almost 35 points or 1.1 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,190-point plateau and the losses may accelerate on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is negative on rising coronavirus cases and the possibility of subsequent lockdown measures. The European and U.S. markets finished in the red and the Asian bourses are expected to follow suit.

The STI finished modestly lower on Tuesday following losses from the property stocks and mixed performance from the financial shares and industrial issues.

For the day, the index lost 17.55 points or 0.55 percent to finish at 3,192.17 after trading between 3,187.40 and 3,211.00. Volume was 1.61 billion shares worth 1.37 billion Singapore dollars. There were 28 decliners and 184 gainers.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT slid 0.65 percent, while CapitaLand dipped 0.53 percent, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust dropped 0.91 percent, City Developments eased 0.12 percent, Comfort DelGro skidded 1.66 percent, Dairy Farm International soared 1.18 percent, Genting Singapore sank 1.10 percent, Keppel Corp declined 1.27 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation slipped 0.33 percent, SATS tumbled 2.12 percent, SembCorp Industries surged 3.29 percent, Singapore Airlines plunged 2.87 percent, Singapore Exchange surrendered 1.13 percent, Singapore Press Holdings plummeted 5.32 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering shed 0.75 percent, SingTel tanked 2.69 percent, Thai Beverage fell 0.69 percent, United Overseas Bank collected 0.15 percent, Wilmar International retreated 1.28 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding lost 0.73 percent and Mapletree Commercial Trust, Jardine Strategic Holdings, DBS Group and Mapletree Logistics Trust were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major averages opened in the red and stayed that way, extending losses from the previous session.

The Dow tumbled 256.33 points or 0.75 percent to finish at 33,821.30, while the NASDAQ sank 128.50 points or 0.92 percent to end at 13,786.27 and the S&P 500 fell 28.32 points or 0.68 percent to close at 4,134.94.

The weakness on Wall Street came as traders continued to cash in on the recent strength in the markets after the Dow and the S&P 500 ended last week at new record closing highs.

A new wave of coronavirus infections overseas also weighed on the markets amid concerns about new restrictions and the impact on the global economy.

Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off upbeat earnings news from companies like Procter & Gamble (PG), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Travelers (TRV).

Crude oil prices slipped on Tuesday amid rising concerns about the outlook for energy demand due to surging coronavirus infections in India. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures May ended down $0.94 or 1.5 percent at $62.44 a barrel, on the expiration day. WTI Contracts for June closed lower by $0.76 or 1.2 percent at $62.67 a barrel.

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