SINGAPORE shares retreated from previous day’s rally to close lower on Tuesday (Feb 11), as investors stayed cautious ahead of market-moving messages from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s testimony and US inflation data.
The Straits Times Index (STI) was down 0.4 per cent or 14.37 points at 3,860.76. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 267 to 238 after 1.4 billion securities worth S$1.3 billion changed hands.
On STI, Sats was the top gainer, up 1.9 per cent, or S$0.06, at S$3.29. Mapletree Industrial Trust lost the most, down 3.3 per cent, or S$0.07, at S$2.06.
Powell is expected to make his first Congressional appearance since US President Donald Trump’s inauguration after the Singapore market closed on Tuesday. Markets expect the semi-annual testimony to cover Trump’s tariff policies, as well as the outlook for interest rates and inflation.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote Bank expects Powell to adopt a cautious approach despite mounting pressure to lower rates from the Trump government.
“After all, US growth remains solid, the jobs market healthy and inflation sticky. And Trump’s growth-boosting policies and tariff threats threaten to make it stickier… A hawkish stance from Powell could further boost the dollar appetite and temper gains in US equities,” Ozkardeskaya added.
In between Powell’s two-day testimony, the January reading of the US consumer price index will be released on Wednesday night (in Asia).
Elsewhere in the region, investor sentiments were mixed on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed up 0.04 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 1.1 per cent, and South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.7 per cent.
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