SINGAPORE - Stocks in Singapore ended in the red on Jan 23, continuing their losing streak for the second day in a row. Their performance bucked the trend of regional bourses which mostly ended in the black.
The Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.4 per cent or 13.87 points to close at 3,135.25. Across the broader market, decliners outnumbered advancers 293 to 264 after 1.5 billion securities worth $1.1 billion changed hands. Most STI constituents were in the red at Jan 23’s close. At the bottom of the index was consumer group conglomerate Jardine C&C, which fell by 4 per cent or $1.16 to close at $27.69.
Another counter in the red was airport services company Sats, which fell by 3.2 per cent, or 9 cents, to close at $2.74.
The biggest gainer on the STI was food and beverage company Emperador, which gained 1 per cent, or half cent, to end at 51 cents.
Shares of Seatrium were the most actively traded by volume, with 343.8 million shares worth $36.6 million changing hands.
Regional bourses ended mostly in the black. South Korea’s Kospi was up by 0.6 per cent while the Shanghai Composite Index was up by 0.5 per cent. Australia’s ASX 200’s edged up 0.5 per cent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was up by 2.6 per cent.
However, Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended in the red, dropping by 0.1 per cent to 36,517.57. This came after its share average rose to a 34-year peak of 36,984.51 on Jan 23, buoyed by Wall Street’s climb overnight to a fresh record high and the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) decision to keep ultra-easy policy settings intact.
Mr Yeap Jun Rong, a market analyst at financial company IG, said in a note that the BOJ’s decision came off the back of subdued wage growth in November, further easing in inflation and a recent earthquake, which drove some near-term economic uncertainty.
He noted that the currency exchange rate between the US dollar and the yen had “a great run” since the start of the year.
Mr Yeap added that this was driven by widening yield differentials between the United States and Japan on expectations that the policy divergence between the two central banks could drag for longer.
He added that the pair is expected to face “a key resistance” at the level of 150 yen against US$1. The BOJ had previously intervened with aggressive yen-buying back in October 2022, when the yen slipped past the level. THE BUSINESS TIMES
