The STI Index fell 31 points, or 0.6%, to 4,892 in Monday morning trade, extending its losing streak to a fourth consecutive session and holding at its lowest level since March 31. The decline tracked weaker U.S. futures following the breakdown of U.S.-Iran peace talks. Losses were led by utilities, non-energy minerals, health technology, and financial stocks.
Market participants were also cautious ahead of the release of March industrial production data later in the day, following a contraction in the previous month. In addition, investors are awaiting key macroeconomic indicators this week, including China’s PMI readings for insight into the outlook for Singapore’s largest trading partner, as well as U.S. Q1 GDP and March PCE inflation figures for further signals on the Federal Reserve’s policy trajectory.
Early notable decliners included Singapore Technologies Engineering (-1.1%), Jardine Matheson (-0.6%), Hongkong Land Holdings (-0.5%), UOB (-0.3%), and OCBC (-0.3%).
