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Roundup: Singapore stocks end down 2.98 pct

Xinhua, January 20, 2016 Adjust font size:

Singapore shares closed 2.98 percent lower on Wednesday, as the upcoming onset of new shares into Chinese market weighed on investors' sentiment.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission said late Tuesday after the market closed that it had approved seven new initial public offerings (IPO), ending a four-month IPO freeze that began during last summer.

All seven listings will be completed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges before China's Lunar New Year holiday at a pace of one per day.

Concern about new shares could depress valuations on existing shares and thus Chinese market benchmarks kept investors across the region on edge.

Meanwhile, the People's Bank of China announced Tuesday after markets closed that it would inject 600 billion Chinese yuan of funds into the market to meet medium-term liquidity demand.

The move came before the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday starting February 7, ahead of which locals draw down from their deposits.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index sank 78.7 points to 2,559.77 points. Trading volume was 1.09 billion shares worth 1.22 billion Singapore dollars. Decliners outnumbered advancers 355 to 79, while 490 stocks did not move.

CapitaLand Commercial Trust dropped 2.6 percent to 1.33 Singapore dollars. The commercial buildings real estate investment trust reported distribution per unit in the October-to-December quarter was 2.17 Singapore cents, compared with 2.15 Singapore cents in the same period a year earlier.

Its net property income grew 3.2 percent year-on-year to 52.3 million Singapore dollars, while gross revenue was 1.9 percent higher at 67.6 million Singapore dollars. The trust said only 15 percent of its office space is due for renewal this year, and it has already renewed leases on about a third of that.

Among the top gainers, Venture Corporation rose 1.6 percent to 8.06 Singapore dollars, whereas Jardine Matheson became one of the top losers by falling 1.4 percent to 51 U.S. dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 6.578 Chinese yuan and 1.44 Singapore dollars) Enditem