STI slides 1.8% as Middle East strikes spark market retreat

Other Asian markets declined as well.

The Straits Times Index (STI) fell 88.34 points, or 1.77%, to 4,906.73 as at 12:22 pm on March 2.

The index opened at 4,912.72, below its previous close of 4,995.07. It traded between a high of 4,920.20 and a low of 4,875.59 during the session.

At 10:18:10 am, the STI was at 4,885.53, with cumulative traded volume of about 1.65 billion units.

The decline in trade came amidst geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran will affect energy prices and impact countries beyond the region, including Singapore.

Several major stocks were lower. DFI Retail Group slid 4.30% to 4.01, whilst CapitaLand Investment dropped 2.29% to 2.99.

Meanwhile, DBS Group fell 1.94% to 56.01. City Developments declined 1.94% to 9.63.

The benchmark remains below its 52-week high of 5,041.33 and above its 52-week low of 3,393.69.

Meanwhile, key Asian markets were also lower. Mainland China’s CSI 300 Index slipped 0.1% to 4,706.10 as of 11:30 am Beijing time.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.58% at 12:05 pm local time. Japan’s JPX-Nikkei Index 400 went down 1.18% to 35,206.56 as of 1:43 pm Tokyo time.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 decreased 0.12% to 9,187.40 in late afternoon trade.

The people you want to reach are already in this room.

Every quarter, SBR lands on the desks of the founders, CFOs, and directors running Asia's most consequential companies. Every day, they open our newsletter and read our website. It's a room that took twenty years to build — and it's the one most of our partners are trying to get into.

The good news is that the door is open. We work with companies on thought leadership articles, sponsored content, industry summits across Southeast Asia, regional awards programmes, podcasts, and media placements in print and digital. The shape of the right partnership depends on what you're trying to do, which is why we'd rather start with a conversation than send a rate card.

If you have something this room should know about, tell us. We'll tell you honestly whether we can help, and how.

No rate cards until we understand the brief. It's a better use of everyone's time.

Book a meeting

| Or download the media kit (PDF)

240,000 senior readers quarterly in print Top 1,700 Singapore companies reached

7 markets across Southeast Asia