Bank stocks slip as Reits gain, with STI down 0.5%

SINGAPORE – Stocks in Singapore slipped on Nov 21, with bank stocks among the top decliners, even as regional markets traded mixed.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.5 per cent or 15.24 points to close at 3,096.34.

Shares of Singtel led the index decliners, slipping 2.6 per cent to close at $2.25. The local banks were also among the losers for the day, with UOB slipping 0.6 per cent, while OCBC Bank was down 0.9 per cent.

Shares of DBS Bank fell 1.9 per cent to close at $31.80, amid active trading, with some 8.4 million shares worth $269.8 million traded.

The weakness in the local banks comes amid a decline in US Treasury yields.

IG market analyst Yeap Jun Rong noted that the US 10-year yields now stand at around 4.4 per cent, a near two-month low, although US two-year yields firmed slightly overnight.

While banks slipped, real estate investment trusts (Reits) were among the gainers on Nov 21, with all six STI Reits ending the session higher.

CapitaLand Ascendas Reit was among the most actively traded by value, with 24 million units worth $67.8 million changing hands. The counter rose 1.4 per cent to close at $2.82.

Meanwhile, Jardine Matheson Holdings was the top index performer, with its shares rising 1.6 per cent to close at US$40.54.

Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 312 to 272 after 1.4 billion securities worth $1.2 billion were traded.

Elsewhere in the region, key indexes in Japan, Hong Kong and Shanghai ended the day in the red. However, shares in Australia and South Korea ended higher, with the ASX 200 climbing 0.3 per cent and the Kospi rising 0.8 per cent. THE BUSINESS TIMES