The Singapore stock market saw another downturn on Tuesday, relinquishing gains from the previous day that had ended a four-day losing streak where the market had shed over 65 points or 1.8 percent. The Straits Times Index (STI) now hovers just above the 3,580-point mark, with expectations of increased losses on Wednesday.
Globally, Asian markets are projected to remain weak amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. European markets displayed mixed performance, while U.S. markets were down, likely influencing Asian markets to follow suit.
On Tuesday, the STI edged slightly lower, with financial sector losses being offset by gains in trusts and mixed results from the property and industrial sectors. Specifically, the index dipped 4.33 points or 0.12 percent, closing at 3,580.96, after oscillating between 3,575.08 and 3,602.97 during the trading session.
Notable performance movements among active stocks included CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, which added 0.47 percent, whereas CapitaLand Investment fell by 1.28 percent. City Developments rose by 0.74 percent, while ComfortDelGro declined by 1.32 percent. DBS Group saw a 0.42 percent loss, and Emperador dropped by 1.15 percent. Meanwhile, Hongkong Land surged 2.72 percent, Keppel DC REIT and DFI Retail each gained 0.46 percent, and Keppel Ltd increased slightly by 0.15 percent. Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust soared 2.70 percent, with Mapletree Industrial Trust and Mapletree Logistics Trust strengthening by 1.65 percent and 1.37 percent, respectively. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation decreased by 0.93 percent, SATS spiked 1.66 percent, and Seatrium Limited advanced 0.56 percent. SembCorp Industries dipped by 0.54 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering shed 0.43 percent, and SingTel fell by 0.31 percent. Thai Beverage plunged by 1.87 percent, Wilmar International plummeted 2.99 percent, Yangzijiang Financial dropped by 1.25 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding rallied by 1.63 percent, and Genting Singapore remained unchanged.
The negative trend from Wall Street continues to weigh on markets, with major U.S. averages opening lower on Tuesday and remaining in the red throughout the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 173.18 points or 0.41 percent to finish at 42,156.97. The NASDAQ saw a steeper decline, falling 278.81 points or 1.53 percent to end at 17,910.36, and the S&P 500 sank 53.73 points or 0.93 percent to close at 5,708.75.
Wall Street's weakness was driven by rising tensions in the Middle East after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel. This attack was reportedly in retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and others in recent Israeli airstrikes. Earlier in the day, a senior White House official indicated that the U.S. had intelligence suggesting Iran was preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel, which contributed to an early stock sell-off.
Furthermore, news from the Middle East overshadowed U.S. economic reports indicating continued contraction in manufacturing activity in September and an unexpected rise in job openings in August.
Amid these developments, oil prices moved higher on Tuesday on concerns over potential supply constraints due to the escalating tensions in the Middle East. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for November closed up $1.66, or nearly 2.5 percent, at $69.83 a barrel.