Singapore share prices closed 2.4 percent lower on Friday, falling sharply in line with other regional bourses after one of Wall Street's worst sell-off overnight, dealers said. The Straits Times Index was down 87.03 points at 3,492.70, its lowest finish since June 8.
Volume was 4.11 billion shares worth 4.11 billion dollars (2.71 billion US) as losers led gainers 933 to 139 and 491 stocks were unchanged. US shares plunged Thursday by more than 300 points, with investors gripped by anxiety over the housing market.
Those losses coupled with lacklustre local corporate results from DBS Group Holdings and Chartered Semiconductor, prompted investors to dump shares, dealers said. CIMB-GK Research said a technical analysis of global equity markets shows signs of an impending major correction.
"Stock markets in Europe and the US have started to correct and weekly indicators have turned negative," CIMB-GK said in a research note. "Asia (excluding Japan) still looks strong but may not be able to buck the trend if US and Europe continue consolidating in the coming weeks." DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia's biggest bank, fell 0.30 dollars to 22.40 dollars, after saying its second-quarter net profit dipped 7.0 percent year-on-year to 560 million dollars.