Singapore shares closed 2.87 percent lower on Tuesday as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the US presidential election, analysts said. A profit warning by index heavyweight Singapore Telecom (SingTel) also weighed down investor sentiment, they said.
The main Straits Times Index fell 54.06 points to 1,829.69 on volume of 2.03 billion shares worth 1.22 billion Singapore dollars (826.50 million US). Risers outnumbered losers 316 to 194, with 819 stocks unchanged. Westcomb Securities said the market is awaiting the results of the US vote.
"If tonight's US election ends with a clear winner, the Singapore market may rise tomorrow," Westcomb was quoted as saying by Dow Jones Newswires. SingTel fell 21 cents to 2.30 after warning that its earnings in the second quarter ended September will be hurt by costs related to the launch of Apple's third-generation iPhones and a strong Singapore dollar.
SingTel, Southeast Asia's biggest telecom firm by revenue, will announce its earnings results on November 12. "Higher subsidy costs are associated with iPhone 3G. Consequently, the successful iPhone 3G initiative will have a dilutive impact on earnings and margins in the near term," the company said. Banking stocks were down, with DBS falling 32 cents to 11.36, United Overseas Bank off 36 cents to 11.34 and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp ending 12 cents lower at 5.07.
For property, CapitaLand tumbled nine cents to 2.92 and City Developments dropped 11 cents to 6.35 but Keppel Land added one cent to 2.08. Blue chip Singapore Airlines advanced 20 cents to 12.12 and Singapore Press Holdings gained three cents to 3.33, while oil rig-maker Keppel Corp declined 20 cents to 4.80.