Singapore Market Concludes with 1.43% Decline

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On Monday, February 5, 2024, the Singapore stock market experienced a significant decline, following a soft performance on Wall Street last Friday. The downturn was particularly led by losses in shares of banks and financial companies.

At the close of the trading session, the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) dropped 45.48 points, or 1.43%, to reach 3,134.29. Throughout the trading day, the STI fluctuated between 3,123.10 and 3,154.72. Trading volume amounted to 1.85 billion shares valued at S$1.25 billion. Across the broader market, decliners outnumbered advancers, with 351 stocks declining compared to 241 advancing.

Among the individual stocks, Jardine Matheson emerged as the top gainer, climbing 2.25% to S$41.68. Conversely, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust recorded the largest decline, falling 5.5% to S$1.38.

Banking stocks experienced losses, with DBS Group Holdings slipping 1.15% to S$31.85, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp dropping 1.46% to S$12.81, and United Overseas Bank declining 0.8% to S$28.39.

In economic news, the growth of business activity in Singapore’s private sector persisted in January, although at a slower pace compared to December 2023. The demand for Singaporean goods and services remained robust, according to a report by S&P Global. However, Singapore’s retail sales saw a slight decline of 0.4% year-on-year in December 2023, reversing the 2.4% growth observed in the previous month, as disclosed by the Singapore Department of Statistics.