SINGAPORE – The four-day winning streak for local shares ended with barely a whimper on March 21 amid renewed fears of a trade war escalating.

Investors opted for a defensive stance and nudged the Straits Times Index (STI) down 0.1 per cent or 4.04 points to 3,926.45, while losers outpaced gainers 284 to 234 on trade of 1.3 billion securities worth $2 billion.

Key regional bourses were a mixed bag after another downbeat session on Wall Street overnight that left all three indexes in the red, as optimism began fading over interest rate cuts. The falls in recent weeks have left the once high-flying Nasdaq down 8.3 per cent so far this year.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 slid 0.2 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 2.2 per cent but the Kospi in Seoul added 0.2 per cent while Australia’s benchmark ASX200 advanced 0.16 per cent to close the week up 1.7 per cent, the first such gain in four weeks.

ST Engineering was the STI’s biggest decliner, sliding 4.2 per cent to $6.62, a slip back after the stock hit successive highs in recent weeks and outstripped other leading blue chips.

Meanwhile, maritime player Yangzijiang Shipbuilding was the top gainer, shooting up 5.6 per cent to $2.47.

The trio of local banks ended the day mixed. UOB was up 0.4 per cent to $37.95, OCBC was down 0.2 per cent at $16.98 while DBS slid 0.2 per cent to $45.31.

IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong noted on March 21 that while US Fed chair Jerome Powell sought to reassure markets about the economy during its meeting this week, the central bank’s economic projections “painted a more concerning picture by highlighting rising stagflation risks”.

He also noted that the Fed’s projections factor in the implementation of tariffs, though the scale and timeline remain uncertain.

“While a recession is not inevitable, much depends on upcoming policy decisions from Trump,” he added. THE BUSINESS TIMES

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