Soft Start Seen For Singapore Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has finished lower in two straight sessions, sinking more than 45 points or 0.8 percent in that span. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 5,160-point plateau and it's likely to open in the red again on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is weak on concerns over the outlook for interest rates due to rising inflation. The European and U.S. markets were down and the Asian bourses are likely to follow that lead.

The STI finished slightly lower again on Wednesday following mixed performances from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues.

For the day, the index eased 9.15 points or 0.18 percent to finish at 5,161.50 after trading between 5,158.63 and 5,196.54.

The lead from Wall Street is soft as the major U.S. averages were higher for much of Wednesday's trade but a late slump saw them finish under water.

The Dow dipped 13.96 points or 0.03 percent to finish at 52,305.24, coming off a record closing high. The NASDAQ sank 173.69 points or 0.66 percent to close at 26.040.03 and the S&) 500 fell 16.13 points or 0.22 percent to end at 7,483.23.

The weakness that emerged on Wall Street was the result of ongoing concerns that the AI companies and chipmakers may be overbought - which had the biggest effect on the tech-heavy NASDAQ.

Traders also kept an eye out for developments in the Middle East, with concrete details regarding the end of the war remaining elusive.

In U.S. economic news, a report released by the Institute for Supply Management on Wednesday showed a modest decrease by its reading on U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of June.

Crude oil prices tumbled again on Wednesday amid gradual recovery in tanker traffic across the Strait of Hormuz. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery was down $1.12 or 1.61 percent at $68.38 per barrel.