SINGAPORE – Local shares slipped into the red on Nov 1 amid losses on Wall Street and mixed results across the region.
The souring mood left the Straits Times Index (STI) down 0.1 per cent, or 3.45 points, to 3,555.43, with losers edging out winners 279 to 260 on trade of 1.3 billion securities worth $1.6 billion.
Agri-business Olam Group had a strong showing after confirming that it was in talks to sell its remaining stake in Olam Agri to a Saudi investment firm. The counter jumped 14 per cent to $1.22.
Brewer Thai Beverage was the STI’s biggest loser, retreating 5.7 per cent to 50 cents.
Meanwhile, developer Hongkong Land continued its rally, gaining 3.9 per cent to US$4.48 to lead the index.
DBS was the only local bank to rise, up 0.2 per cent to $38.75, while OCBC Bank fell 0.1 per cent to $15.18 and UOB declined 0.2 per cent to $32.10.
Key regional indexes were mixed after Wall Street had its worst day in weeks, fuelled by doubts over the tech sector’s big guns.
The S&P 500 was down 1.9 per cent, the Dow fell 0.9 per cent and the Nasdaq tumbled 2.8 per cent.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was the region’s biggest loser, down 2.6 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi and the ASX200 in Australia both declined 0.5 per cent.
It was not all gloom, as Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.9 per cent and Malaysian shares gained 0.1 per cent.
China’s factory activity data released on Nov 1 showed a return to expansion, with the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index hitting 50.3, compared with 49.3 a month ago.
UOB economist Ho Woei Chen said China’s economy “appears to have bottomed” in the near term, following policy stimulus in late September.