(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has finished lower in back-to-back sessions, sinking almost 10 points or 0.3 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now sits just beneath the 3,115-point plateau although it may find traction on Tuesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is cautiously optimistic on hopes for an interest rate cut. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were modestly higher and the Asian markets are expected to split the difference.
The STI finished slightly lower on Monday as losses from the properties and industrials were dented by support from the financial sector.
For the day, the index dipped 3.28 points or 0.11 percent to finish at 3,113.23 after trading between 3,086.44 and 3,118.07.
Among the actives, Ascendas REIT skidded 1.35 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust slumped 1.49 percent, CapitaLand Investment retreated 1.65 percent, City Developments plummeted 4.14 percent, Comfort DelGro surrendered 2.13 percent, DBS Group jumped 1.42 percent, Emperador lost 0.95 percent, Genting Singapore declined 1.52 percent, Hongkong Land fell 0.89 percent, Keppel Corp and Jardine Matheson both shed 1.02 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust and Singapore Technologies Engineering both dropped 1.32 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust sank 1.22 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust tanked 2.35 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation climbed 1.05 percent, SATS slid 0.37 percent, Seatrium Limited gained 0.93 percent, SembCorp Industries tumbled 1.94 percent, Thai Beverage advanced 1.00 percent, Wilmar International added 0.87 percent and Yangzijiang Financial, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and SingTel were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is mostly positive as the major averages opened higher on Monday and largely stayed that way, although the Dow struggled to stay in the green.
The Dow rose 0.86 points or 0.00 percent to finish at 37,306.02, while the NASDAQ advanced 90.89 points or 0.61 percent to close at 14,904.81 and the S&P 500 gained 21.37 points or 0.45 percent to end at 4,740.56.
The major averages have moved higher for seven consecutive weeks due in part to optimism about the outlook for interest rates, with last week's rally coming as the Federal Reserve's latest projections hinted at three rate cuts next year.
However, several Fed officials have subsequently pushed back on investor hopes that rate cuts by the central bank are imminent. Nonetheless, CME Group's FedWatch Tool still suggests there is a good chance the Fed will lower interest rates by a quarter point in March.
In economic news, the National Association of Home Builders released a report showing homebuilder sentiment in the U.S. rebounded in December after falling for four consecutive months.
Oil prices rose sharply on Monday on rising tensions in the Middle Ease due to recent attacks on ships crossing the Red Sea, which have raised supply concerns. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for January ended higher by $1.04 or 1.44 percent at $72.47 a barrel.
