Singapore Shares May Snap Losing Streak On Wednesday

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has moved lower in consecutive trading days, slipping more than 15 points or 0.4 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 3,135-point plateau although it may find support on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is erratic and seemingly at the mercy of quarterly earnings, which have varied greatly so far this earnings season. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The STI finished modestly lower on Tuesday following losses from the financial shares and industrials, while the properties were mixed.

For the day, the index shed 13.87 points or 0.44 percent to finish at 3,135.25 after trading between 3,132.76 and 3,161.99.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT skidded 0.68 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust gained 0.51 percent, CapitaLand Investment tumbled 1.37 percent, City Developments retreated 1.10 percent, Comfort DelGro slumped 0.71 percent, DBS Group slid 0.28 percent, Emperador advanced 0.99 percent, Genting Singapore shed 0.51 percent, Hongkong Land added 0.65 percent, Keppel DC REIT sank 0.55 percent, Keppel Ltd was down 0.15 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust fell 0.41 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust dropped 0.62 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation eased 0.08 percent, SATS plummeted 3.18 percent, Seatrium Limited plunged 2.80 percent, SembCorp Industries surrendered 0.93 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering dipped 0.26 percent, SingTel lost 0.42 percent, Thai Beverage declined 0.96 percent, Wilmar International tanked 2.70 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding weakened 1.21 percent and Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust and Yangzijiang Financial were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street provides little clarity as the major averages opened mixed on Tuesday and closed the same way.

The Dow sank 96.36 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 37,905.45, while the NASDAQ added 65.66 points or 0.43 percent to close at 15,425.94 and the S&P 500 rose 14.17 points or 0.29 percent to end at a fresh record of 4,864.60.

The choppy trading on Wall Street reflected a mixed reaction to the latest earnings news from several big-name companies.

The Dow pulled back off Monday's record closing high amid a steep drop by shares of 3M (MMM), which offered disappointing guidance. Healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) also slumped despite reporting better than expected results.

Meanwhile, shares of telecom giant Verizon (VZ) and consumer products giant Procter & Gamble (PG) surged after reporting better than expected earnings news.

Crude oil futures eased Tuesday amid uncertainty about the outlook for global oil demand and after Libya restarted production at the Sharara oilfield, which was shut for two weeks due to protests. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March fell $0.39 or 0.5 percent at $74.37 a barrel.