The Singapore stock market has finished lower in four consecutive trading days, tumbling more than 65 points or 1.9 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,400-point plateau and it's expected to open in the red again on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft, with profit taking expected after showing strength earlier in the week. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.
The STI finished modestly lower on Tuesday following losses from the financial shares, plantation stocks and industrials.
For the day, the index sank 10.35 points or 0.30 percent to finish at the daily low of 3,404.47 after peaking at 3,426.23. Volume was 1.62 billion shares worth 978.4 million Singapore dollars. There were 224 decliners and 173 gainers.
Among the actives, Thai Beverage plummeted 2.06 percent, while CapitaLand Commercial Trust jumped 1.58 percent, Golden Agri-Resources tumbled 1.32 percent, SingTel fell 0.82 percent, Genting Singapore added 0.75 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation shed 0.73 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding lost 0.67 percent, SembCorp slid 0.33 percent, CapitaLand dipped 0.28 percent, DBS Group eased 0.08 percent and Hutchison Port Holdings, Global Logistic Properties, United Overseas Bank, CapitaLand Mall Trust and Wilmar International all were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is negative as stocks gave ground on Tuesday after climbing to record highs in the previous session.
The Dow dipped 37.45 points or 0.15 percent to 24,754.75, while the NASDAQ slid 30.91 points or 0.44 percent to 6,963.85 and the S&P 500 fell 8.69 points or 0.32 percent to 2,681.47.
Profit taking contributed to the weakness on Wall Street, as traders cashed in on the strength seen in recent sessions. Selling pressure was subdued, however, as House Republicans voted to approve the first major tax reform legislation in decades.
The approval of the legislation comes even though recent polls show a majority of Americans disapprove of the bill. Republicans claim that the bill will lead to stronger economic growth, while Democrats argue the legislation will give tax cuts to the wealthy at the expense of the middle class.
In economic news, the Commerce Department noted an unexpected increase in housing starts in November. Housing starts jumped 3.3 percent to an annual rate of 1.297 million in November from a revised 1.256 million in October. Economists had expected housing starts to drop by 3.7 percent.
Crude oil futures nudged higher Tuesday amid mixed signals on global production next year. OPEC says it will continue to curb production in an effort to re-balance oil markets, but U.S. shale output may surge. WTI light sweet crude oil was up 31 cents at $57.47 a barrel.
by RTT Staff Writer
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