Singapore stocks falter amid US-Iran standoff; STI down 0.3%

[SINGAPORE] Stocks on the local bourse ended lower on Tuesday (Apr 7) as key Asian markets delivered mixed results, after US President Donald Trump announced a deadline to target Iranian power plants.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.3 per cent, or 14.39 points, closing at 4,958.01.

Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered decliners 218 to 206, with 1.1 billion securities worth S$1.5 billion traded.

DFI Retail Group led the gainers on the blue-chip index as it rose 3.4 per cent or US$0.15 to end at US$4.54. Jardine Matheson was the biggest decliner, falling 1.8 per cent or US$1.33 to close at US$72.92.

The three local banks closed lower, with OCBC losing 0.6 per cent or S$0.14 to S$22.30, DBS slipping 0.3 per cent or S$0.16 to S$57.47, and UOB down 0.1 per cent or S$0.03 at S$36.87.

The iEdge Singapore Next 50 Index edged down 0.1 per cent or 0.93 point at 1,466.43.

Yangzijiang Financial was the top gainer on the index, rising 4 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.26, while Pan-United Corporation was the biggest decliner, dropping 1.8 per cent or S$0.03 to S$1.68.

Key regional indices ended mixed. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.03 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.8 per cent. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa KLCI declined 0.2 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.7 per cent.

US stocks, however, advanced on Monday. This comes as investors weighed the prospects of a US-Iran ceasefire against President Trump’s escalating threats, if Iran fails to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“Trump’s deadlines still move markets, but the impact is gradually becoming smaller,” said James Ooi, market strategist at Tiger Brokers.

He noted that investors are drawing parallels to last year’s tariff deadlines which were often extended, and are starting to anticipate a more favourable outcome, referred to as Taco (Trump always chickens out).

Ooi cautioned that a truce could spark a strong rally, while further escalation, particularly if it pushes up oil prices, could trigger a sharper sell-off. For now, he observed, the markets appear to be pricing in limited downside risk.