Singapore Shares Edge Lower Amid Cautious Global Sentiment Ahead of U.S.-Russia Talks

The Singapore stock market extended its decline on Thursday, reversing the previous session’s brief pause in a three-day slide that had erased nearly 40 points, or 0.9 percent. The Straits Times Index (STI) settled just above the 4,255 threshold and appears poised to trade in a narrow range on Friday.

Regional markets are treading water as investors await the outcome of a high-stakes meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents in Alaska to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. European equities advanced while U.S. benchmarks closed mixed and flat, setting a neutral tone for Asian trading.

The STI closed modestly lower, dragged by mixed performances across financials, property counters, and industrial names. The index shed 16.24 points, or 0.38 percent, to finish at 4,256.52 after an intraday range of 4,247.32 to 4,282.80.

Among active issues, CapitaLand Ascendas REIT slipped 0.73 percent, while CapitaLand Investment tumbled 3.55 percent. City Developments and Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust each rose 0.74 percent. ComfortDelGro plunged 3.16 percent, and DBS Group declined 1.87 percent. DFI Retail Group gained 1.42 percent, Genting Singapore added 0.67 percent, and Hongkong Land surged 1.95 percent. Keppel DC REIT fell 0.86 percent, while Keppel Ltd inched up 0.12 percent. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation climbed 0.65 percent, Seatrium dropped 1.69 percent, and Sembcorp Industries retreated 1.72 percent. Singapore Technologies Engineering plummeted 6.25 percent, SingTel edged up 0.25 percent, Thai Beverage advanced 1.06 percent, and United Overseas Bank gained 0.47 percent. UOL Group jumped 1.96 percent, Wilmar International slumped 1.02 percent, Yangzijiang Financial stumbled 1.92 percent, and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding slipped 0.35 percent. Mapletree Industrial Trust, Mapletree Logistics Trust, SATS, and CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust closed unchanged.

Wall Street offered little directional cues. Major averages opened lower and spent most of the session in negative territory before ending mixed and little changed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 11.01 points, or 0.02 percent, to 44,911.26. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 2.47 points, or 0.01 percent, to 21,710.67, while the S&P 500 edged up 1.96 points, or 0.03 percent, to a record close of 6,468.54.

Early selling pressure followed a Labor Department report showing U.S. producer prices rose far more than expected in July. The hotter-than-anticipated wholesale inflation data tempered optimism from earlier consumer price figures that had bolstered bets on a September rate cut. Nevertheless, the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool still indicates a 92.6 percent probability of a quarter-point reduction next month, which kept a floor under equities.

Crude oil rallied ahead of the Alaska summit. West Texas Intermediate for September delivery climbed $1.32, or 2.11 percent, to $63.97 a barrel.

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