Singapore shares fall amid mixed regional showing; STI down 0.2%

[SINGAPORE] Shares on the Singapore bourse ended lower on Monday (May 26), even as regional markets ended mixed.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.2 per cent or 6.82 points to 3,875.60.

Across the broader market, decliners edged out gainers 268 to 220, after 894.4 million securities worth S$751.7 million were traded.

The top gainer on the index was in-flight caterer Sats, which rose 2.3 per cent or S$0.07 to S$3.05.

The biggest blue-chip decliner was offshore and marine specialist Seatrium. The counter slid 1.4 per cent or S$0.03 to S$2.04.

Genting Singapore was the most actively traded counter by volume, with 30.3 million shares worth S$21.3 million traded. The counter fell 1.4 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.70.

Markets across the region ended mixed.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.4 per cent while Australia’s ASX 200 ended flat. South Korea’s Kospi and Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 2 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively.

In view of the mixed Asian markets, Paul Chew, head of research at Phillip Securities, said the US administration’s “constant flip-flops” in tariffs and policies will keep any business exposed to America hesitant to invest in inventories or capacity.

“The ever-present threat of tariffs only raises the risk premium of any manufacturer exposed to the US markets, especially semiconductor companies,” said Chew.