The Singapore stock market on Friday halted the four-day winning streak in which it had gathered almost 95 points or 3.3 percent. The Straits Times Index now sits just beneath the 2,950-point plateau and the losses could accelerate on Monday.
The global forecast for the Asian is mixed to lower on concerns over bond yields and sliding crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were mixed with a soft bias and the Asian markets are tipped to follow that lead.
The STI finished modestly lower on Friday following losses from the financial shares and property stocks and a mixed picture from the industrials.
For the day, the index sank 24.50 points or 0.82 percent to finish at 2,949.04 after trading between 2,921.10 and 2,951.29. Volume was 2.82 billion shares worth 2.35 billion Singapore dollars. There were 334 decliners and 196 gainers.
Among the actives, Ascendas REIT and City Developments both tanked 2.00 percent, while CapitaLand declined 1.55 percent, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust lost 0.94 percent, Comfort DelGro was down 0.62 percent, Dairy Farm International plummeted 3.13 percent, DBS Group shed 0.97 percent, Keppel Corp slid 0.78 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust retreated 1.60 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation dipped 0.72 percent, SATS tumbled 1.79 percent, SembCorp Industries skidded 1.70 percent, Singapore Airlines dropped 0.99 percent, Singapore Exchange fell 0.79 percent, Singapore Press Holdings skyrocketed 9.38 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering surrendered 1.31 percent, SingTel sank 1.26 percent, United Overseas Bank rose 0.12 percent, Wilmar international plunged 2.22 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding climbed 0.94 percent and Genting Singapore, Thai Beverage and Mapletree Commercial Trust were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is volatile after the major averages saw wild swings on Friday, finally finishing on opposite sides of the unchanged line.
The Dow tumbled 469.64 points or 1.50 percent to finish at 30,932.37, while the NASDAQ gained 72.92 points or 0.56 percent to close at 13,192.35 and the S&P 500 fell 18.19 points or 0.48 percent to close at 3,811.15. For the week, the NASDAQ plummeted 4.9 percent, the S&P sank 2.4 percent and the Dow lost 1.8 percent.
The volatility came as traders watched the bond markets following the recent spike in yields. Yields also fluctuated as the day progressed, rebounding near the unchanged line after seeing early weakness before moving to the downside.
The fluctuations in the bond markets followed another batch of upbeat U.S. economic data. The Commerce Department said U.S. personal income skyrocketed in January, reflecting the issuance of $600 stimulus checks.
But the report also showed inflation remained relatively tame. Concerns about inflation have weighed on treasuries despite Fed Chair Jerome Powell's repeated assurances the central bank plans to maintain interest rates at near-zero levels for the foreseeable future.
Crude oil prices drifted lower Friday as the dollar gained strength amid rising bond yields and solid economic data. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended down $2.03 or 3.2 percent at $61.50 a barrel.
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