Singapore shares fell 27 points, or 0.5%, to 5,386 around midday on Friday, extending losses for a third straight session and hitting their lowest level since July 8. The market followed an overnight decline on Wall Street, driven by a sell-off in technology stocks.
Investor sentiment was cautious ahead of next week’s release of Singapore’s Q3 GDP data, after growth slowed in Q2. Caution also intensified before the publication of US inflation figures, which will shape the Fed’s monetary policy decision at its upcoming meeting, as well as China’s consumer and producer price data, amid persistently weak domestic demand and rising oil prices.
Communication, distribution services, and industrial services stocks were the main drags on the index, while financials posted modest gains. Major decliners included UOB (-1.8%), Space Exploration Technologies (-1.4%), DBS Group (-1.2%), and Jardine Matheson (-0.7%).
For the week, the index was on track for a 4.4% drop, setting up its second consecutive weekly decline.
