Singapore shares were lower, with Citigroup saying that third-quarter corporate earnings will likely leave investors with weakened expectations as there have been more negative revisions than positive ones.
The Straits Times Index was down 0.5% at 3,041.37 points, while MSCI index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.1%.
Keppel Corp was one of the biggest losers on the index, falling as much as 2.3%. The stock had fallen nearly 5% since the world’s largest rig builder reported a 15% fall in third-quarter net profit.
“In Singapore, a bottoming of export trends typically leads stock market and GDP cycles − investors will need to see a recovery trend in exports to drive the STI higher,” Citi said.
It said it prefers stocks such as Hongkong Land Holdings, Noble Group, Neptune Orient Lines and Global Logistic Properties.
Recent earnings trends have been weaker than expected at firms with higher yields, such as Singapore Press Holdings and Hutchison Port Holdings Trust, Citi said, adding that it remains underweight on banks.
Shares of drinks and property firm Fraser and Neave, a takeover target of a company linked to a Thai billionaire, fell as much as 1.8%. There was a married deal of 688,000 shares at $9.24 each.
F&N shares continued to trade above TCC Assets Ltd’s offer price of $8.88 a share in anticipation of a rival bid by Overseas Union Enterprise, a company controlled by Indonesia’s Lippo Group.
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