SINGAPORE shares closed slightly lower on Monday (Jan 20) ahead of Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration in the US, even as most markets in the region ended higher.
The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) lost 0.1 per cent or 2.81 points to finish at 3,807.97.
Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 303 to 192, after one billion securities worth S$908.2 million changed hands.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin rose as much as 5.5 per cent on Monday to hit an all-time high of US$109,241, ahead of pro-crypto Trump’s return to the US presidency. This was also after Trump and his wife Melania launched their own set of meme coins over the weekend.
Elsewhere in the region, most key indices ended higher. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.8 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.2 per cent, and the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI was up 0.4 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index fell 0.1 per cent.
“Lower bond yields, a softer US dollar and some potential thawing of US-China relations brought some reprieve for Asian stocks in the past week,” said Chetan Seth, Asia-Pacific equity strategist at Nomura, in a note.
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“But Trump’s inauguration and, with that, the threat of imminent tariffs, will provide investors a reason to stay cautious and brace for some volatility ahead,” he added.
On the STI, Hongkong Land was the biggest gainer, rising 2.6 per cent or US$0.11 to US$4.29.
Seatrium declined by the most. It was down 1.8 per cent or S$0.04 at S$2.23.
The local banking trio ended mixed on Monday. DBS fell 0.5 per cent or S$0.23 to S$43.62, while OCBC rose 0.2 per cent or S$0.04 to S$17.16, and UOB was up 0.3 per cent or S$0.12 at S$37.15.
