The Singapore stock market has finished lower in back-to-back sessions, slumping more than 55 points or 1.7 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,090-point plateau and it's expected to remain in that neighborhood again on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asianmarketsis mixed to lower on continuing concerns over inflation, recession and interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were mostly lower and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.
The STI finished sharply lower on Thursday following losses from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues.
For the day, the index declined 38.06 points or 1.22 percent to finish at 3,090.63 after trading between 3,089.43 and 3,120.78. Volume was 987.7 million shares worth 935.4 million Singapore dollars. There were 297 decliners and 180 gainers.
Among the actives, Ascendas REIT tumbled 2.05 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust cratered 2.35 percent, CapitaLand Investment stumbled 1.31 percent, City Developments dropped 1.05 percent, Comfort DelGro lost 0.70 percent, DBS Group skidded 1.13 percent, Genting Singapore surged 2.74 percent, Hongkong Land declined 1.42 percent, Keppel Corp tanked 2.28 percent, Mapletree Commercial Trust plunged 2.73 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust and SingTel both weakened 1.14 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust crashed 2.29 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation retreated 1.40 percent, SATS slid 0.25 percent, SembCorp Industries fell 0.68 percent, Singapore Exchange gained 0.72 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering shed 0.73 percent, Thai Beverage sank 0.78 percent, United Overseas Bank slumped 1.18 percent, Wilmar International surrendered 1.48 percent, Yangzijiang Financial plummeted 3.61 percent and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and Venture Corporation were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is mixed and flat as the major averages shook off a sharply lower open on Thursday, improving as the day progressed and ending little changed on opposite sides of the line.
The Dow shed 142.62 points or 0.46 percent to finish at 30,630.17, while the NASDAQ rose 3.60 points or 0.03 percent to close at 11,251.19 and the S&P 500 slid 11.40 points or 0.30 percent to end at 3,790.38.
The early weakness on Wall Street reflected disappointing earnings news from financial giants JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Morgan Stanley (MS), which both missed expectations.
Concerns about inflation and higher interest rates also continued to weigh on the markets after the Labor Department reported that U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in June.
Another report from the Labor Department showed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly inched higher last week.
Crude oil prices drifted lower on Thursday as concerns about the outlook for energy demand resurfaced amid fears of a possible recession due to rising interest rates. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August ended lower by $0.52 or 0.5 percent at $95.78 a barrel.
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