Singapore shares fall on Friday amid Middle East tensions; STI down 0.3%
Dip in STI mirrors loss in global equity markets on fears Israel's strikes on Iran could stoke wider regional conflict. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO
SINGAPORE – Local shares dipped on June 13 after escalating conflict in the Middle East prompted investors to sell up and reduce their risk exposure ahead of the weekend.
There was hardly a rush to the exits, but the sell-off did leave the Straits Times Index (STI) down 0.3 per cent or 10.78 points at 3,911.42 with losers easily outstripping gainers 359 to 160 on trade of one billion securities worth $1.3 billion.
Jardine Matheson was the top blue-chip gainer, rising 1.8 per cent to US$45.44, while Seatrium was the biggest decliner, down 2.8 per cent to $2.06.
The local banks fell. DBS dropped 0.5 per cent to $44.45, OCBC closed 0.5 per cent down at $16.06 and UOB shed 0.4 per cent to $34.95.
The Israeli strikes on Iran also sent Asian and European stocks tumbling while US index futures slipped in pre-market trade. Investors also rushed to safer assets and helped send gold and the greenback higher.
'Oil and defence stocks will likely benefit from rising tensions, but the rest of the market should remain under pressure,' said Swissquote Bank analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya.
Most regional markets declined and many took a bigger hit than the STI. China's Shenzhen Component led the losers, shedding 1.1 per cent, while South Korea's Kospi and the Nikkei 225 in Japan each shed 0.9 per cent.
Australian shares got off relatively lightly, with the ASX 200 index closing down 0.2 per cent
Wall Street traders, who were mostly off duty when the air strikes occurred, were focused on the bond market in a positive trading session overnight, with investors growing more confident that another cut in interest rates is imminent.
Stocks, meanwhile, dipped in early trading before reversing course in the afternoon, with investors giving little heed to new threats of tariffs from President Trump.
The S&P 500 led gains, rising 0.4 per cent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq each climbed 0.24 per cent. THE BUSINESS TIMES
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
2 hours ago
- Business Times
Japan scraps US meeting after Washington demands more defence spending: report
[WASHINGTON] Japan has cancelled a regular high-level meeting with its key ally, the United States, after the Trump administration demanded it spend more on defence, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Friday (Jun 20). US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had been expected to meet their Japanese counterparts in Washington on Jul 1 for annual 2+2 security talks. But Tokyo scrapped the meeting after the US side asked Japan to boost defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP, higher than an earlier request of 3 per cent, the paper cited unnamed sources familiar with the matter, including two officials in Tokyo, as saying. A US official who did not want to be identified confirmed Japan had 'postponed' the talks but said the decision was made several weeks ago. The source did not cite a reason. A non-government source familiar with the issue said he had also heard Japan had pulled out of the meeting, but not the reason for it doing so. US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said she had no comment on the FT report when asked about it at the regular briefing, and the Pentagon also had no immediate comment. Japan's embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up The Financial Times said the new higher spending demand was made in recent weeks by Elbridge Colby, the third-most senior Pentagon official, who has also recently upset another key US ally in the Indo-Pacific by launching a review of a project to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. In March, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said that other nations do not decide Japan's defence budget after Colby called in his nomination hearing to be under secretary of defence for policy, for Tokyo to spend more to counter China. Japan and other US allies have been engaged in difficult trade talks with the United States over US President Donald Trump's worldwide tariff offensive. The FT said the decision to cancel the Jul 1 meeting was also related to Japan's Jul 20 Upper House elections, at which the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is expected to suffer a loss of seats. It comes ahead of a meeting of the US-led Nato alliance in Europe next week, at which Trump is expected to press his demand that European allies boost their defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP. REUTERS
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Japan scraps US meeting after Washington demands more defence spending
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba gives his opening speech at the beginning of the meeting with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at his office in Tokyo, in March. PHOTO: REUTERS WASHINGTON - Japan has cancelled a regular high-level meeting with its key ally the United States after the Trump administration demanded it spend more on defence, the Financial Times (FT) reported on June 20. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had been expected to meet their Japanese counterparts in Washington on July 1 for annual 2+2 security talks. But Tokyo scrapped the meeting after the US side asked Japan to boost defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP, higher than an earlier request of 3 per cent, the paper cited unnamed sources familiar with the matter, including two officials in Tokyo, as saying. A US official who did not want to be identified confirmed that Japan had 'postponed' the talks but said the decision was made several weeks ago. The source did not cite a reason. A non-government source familiar with the issue said he had also heard Japan had pulled out of the meeting, but not the reason for it doing so. US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said she had no comment on the FT report when asked about it at regular briefing, and the Pentagon also had no immediate comment. Japan's embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. The Financial Times said the new higher spending demand was made in recent weeks by Mr Elbridge Colby, the third-most senior Pentagon official, who has also recently upset another key US ally in the Indo-Pacific by launching a review of a project to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. In March, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said that other nations do not decide Japan's defence budget after Mr Colby called in his nomination hearing to be under secretary of defence for policy for Tokyo to spend more to counter China. Japan and other US allies have been engaged in difficult trade talks with the United States over US President Donald Trump's worldwide tariff offensive. The FT said the decision to cancel the July 1 meeting was also related to Japan's July 20 Upper House elections, at which the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is expected to suffer a loss of seats. It comes ahead of a meeting of the US-led NATO alliance in Europe next week, at which Mr Trump is expected to press his demand that European allies boost their defence spending to 5 percent of GDP. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
4 hours ago
- Business Times
Oil prices settle lower as US sanctions ease fears of escalation in Iran
[HOUSTON] Oil prices settled down on Friday (Jun 20) as the US imposed new Iran-related sanctions, marking a diplomatic approach that fed hopes of a negotiated agreement, a day after US President Donald Trump said he might take two weeks to decide US involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. Brent crude futures settled down US$1.84, or 2.33 per cent, to US$77.01 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude for July, which did not settle on Thursday as it was a US holiday and expires on Friday, was down 21 US cents, or 0.28 per cent, at US$74.93. The more liquid August contract settled at US$73.84. Brent rose 3.6 per cent on the week, while front-month US crude futures increased 2.7 per cent. The Trump administration issued fresh Iran-related sanctions, including on two entities based in Hong Kong, and counter-terrorism-related sanctions, according to a notice posted to the US Treasury Department website. The sanctions target at least 20 entities, five individuals and three vessels, according to the Treasury's Office of Foreign Asset Control. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up 'Those sanctions are cutting both ways. They may be part of a broader negotiation approach towards Iran. The fact that they are undertaking this is a signal that they are trying to resolve this outside of conflict,' said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital in New York. Oil prices jumped almost 3 per cent on Thursday after Israel bombed nuclear targets in Iran, while Iran, Opec's third-largest producer, fired missiles and drones at Israel. Neither side showed any sign of backing down in the week-old war. Brent prices retreated after the White House said Trump would decide whether the United States would get involved in the Israel-Iran conflict in the next two weeks. 'Although a major escalation is yet to occur, risks to supply from the region remain high, still hinging upon the potential for US involvement,' said Russell Shor, senior market analyst at Israel's UN ambassador said Israel seeks genuine efforts on Iran's nuclear capabilities from Friday's meeting between European and Iranian ministers, not just another round of talks. 'However, while Israel and Iran carry on pounding away at each other, there can always be an unintended action that escalates the conflict and touches upon oil infrastructure,' PVM analyst John Evans said. Iran in the past has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for Middle East oil exports. Oil exports so far have not been disrupted and there is no shortage of supply, said Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS. 'The direction of oil prices from here will depend on whether there are supply disruptions,' he said. An escalation of the conflict in such a way that Israel attacks export infrastructure or Iran disrupts shipping through the strait could lead to oil at US$100 a barrel being a reality, said Panmure Liberum analyst Ashley Kelty. Elsewhere, the EU has abandoned its proposal to lower the price cap on Russian oil to US$45, Bloomberg reported. US energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for an eighth week in a row for the first time since September 2023, energy services firm Baker Hughes said in its closely followed report. The oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, fell by one to 554 in the week to Jun 20, the lowest since November 2021. REUTERS
