Singapore shares remained in the red zone on Wednesday, with regional indices logging mixed fortunes, amid escalating hostilities in the Middle East and rising fuel prices.
The Straits Times Index, a key benchmark for the Singapore Exchange, ranged between 5,706.68 and 5,763.39 throughout the day. It ended the session at 5,729.63, down 37.82 points, or 0.7%, from Tuesday's close.
"Asian stocks traded mixed on Wednesday as chipmakers extended gains on sustained optimism around artificial intelligence, while crude prices approached $100 a barrel and renewed geopolitical tensions raised inflation and interest-rate risks. The gains came despite a weak Wall Street session on Tuesday as concerns that AI could disrupt traditional software weighed on technology stocks," analysts at United Securities LLC said in a note.
On the corporate front, shares of MoneyMax Financial Services (SGX:5WJ) were up nearly 5% at the close as it proposed a bonus issue of up to about 318 million bonus shares.
Meanwhile, shares of Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX:M44U) closed down 1% as it priced its inaugural offshore renminbi bond issue of 500 million yuan, with the three-year bond carrying a 2.1% annual coupon.