Singapore Shares End At Lowest Level In 5 Yrs; Outlook Grim
Singapore shares tumbled Friday to their lowest level in more than five years, tracking a sharp decline in regional exchanges, as investors sold across the board on fears of a prolonged global recession.
“Ours is a dead market. Whatever you go into, you’ll lose money,” said a dealer at a foreign bank. “There’s not much dealing going on, just lots of watching from the sidelines and licking wounds.”
The Straits Times Index finished down 8.3%, or 145.39 points, at 1600.28, with losers eclipsing gainers 486 to 116. The index has fallen 17% this week and has lost as much as 32% this month.
Market volume was higher with 1.4 billion shares changing hands, compared to 1.2 billion shares exchanged Thursday. All 30 STI components ended in the red.
Among the losers, commodities led the fall with Noble Group sliding 18.3% to S$0.47, while Olam International finished 12.8% lower at S$0.95. Wilmar International ended lower 8.0% at S$1.95. Falling crude oil prices led investors to dump these shares as they feared demand for alternative fuels will also shrink.
Bank and property shares, which make up a third of the index by market capitalization, declined on investors worry that the financial crisis would slow demand for bank lending and property.
UOB finished 12.5% lower at S$12.08, while OCBC fell 11.1% to S$4.88. DBS also finished 8.6% lower at S$10.04.
A government report published Friday showed property prices in the third quarter falling for the first time in more than four years, signalling that the island’s property boom is over.
CapitaMall finished 5.7% lower at S$1.64, followed by City Developments, which fell 7.0% to S$6.10. Keppel Land ended lower 5.4% at S$1.59.
Shares of rig and ship builders also plunged. Keppel Corp., the biggest rig builder by output, fell 6.3% to S$3.75.
Keppel Thursday warned that orders for rigs would be lower due to the financial uncertainty. The bearish mood was reflected in shares of Sembcorp Marine that finished 9.6% lower at S$1.23.
Telecommunications shares also fell, tracking the broad market decline. SingTel fell 9.6% to S$2.06, while Starhub ended 1.4% lower at S$2.10.
Bellwether Singapore Exchange finished 7.7% lower at S$4.68, tracking the broader market selloff.
“With investors now gripped by fears of a severe global recession, our earlier hopes that Asian markets may go through a period of consolidation, following the significant declines of the past two weeks, have been dashed,” said an analyst at Daiwa.
1 comment:
Singapore Shares End At Lowest Level In 5 Yrs; Outlook Grim
Singapore shares tumbled Friday to their lowest level in more than five years, tracking a sharp decline in regional exchanges, as investors sold across the board on fears of a prolonged global recession.
“Ours is a dead market. Whatever you go into, you’ll lose money,” said a dealer at a foreign bank. “There’s not much dealing going on, just lots of watching from the sidelines and licking wounds.”
The Straits Times Index finished down 8.3%, or 145.39 points, at 1600.28, with losers eclipsing gainers 486 to 116. The index has fallen 17% this week and has lost as much as 32% this month.
Market volume was higher with 1.4 billion shares changing hands, compared to 1.2 billion shares exchanged Thursday. All 30 STI components ended in the red.
Among the losers, commodities led the fall with Noble Group sliding 18.3% to S$0.47, while Olam International finished 12.8% lower at S$0.95. Wilmar International ended lower 8.0% at S$1.95. Falling crude oil prices led investors to dump these shares as they feared demand for alternative fuels will also shrink.
Bank and property shares, which make up a third of the index by market capitalization, declined on investors worry that the financial crisis would slow demand for bank lending and property.
UOB finished 12.5% lower at S$12.08, while OCBC fell 11.1% to S$4.88. DBS also finished 8.6% lower at S$10.04.
A government report published Friday showed property prices in the third quarter falling for the first time in more than four years, signalling that the island’s property boom is over.
CapitaMall finished 5.7% lower at S$1.64, followed by City Developments, which fell 7.0% to S$6.10. Keppel Land ended lower 5.4% at S$1.59.
Shares of rig and ship builders also plunged. Keppel Corp., the biggest rig builder by output, fell 6.3% to S$3.75.
Keppel Thursday warned that orders for rigs would be lower due to the financial uncertainty. The bearish mood was reflected in shares of Sembcorp Marine that finished 9.6% lower at S$1.23.
Telecommunications shares also fell, tracking the broad market decline. SingTel fell 9.6% to S$2.06, while Starhub ended 1.4% lower at S$2.10.
Bellwether Singapore Exchange finished 7.7% lower at S$4.68, tracking the broader market selloff.
“With investors now gripped by fears of a severe global recession, our earlier hopes that Asian markets may go through a period of consolidation, following the significant declines of the past two weeks, have been dashed,” said an analyst at Daiwa.
Post a Comment