The Singapore stock market gave up less than two points on Tuesday - but that was enough to halt the modest two-day winning streak in which it had gathered more than 20 points or 0.7 percent. The Straits Times Index finished just below the 3,015-point plateau, and now traders are bracing for additional selling pressure when the market kicks off trade on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests modest consolidation following disappointing economic news from Europe and the United States. The deficit situation in Spain is a growing concern as public debt is expected to reach 78.9 percent of GDP in 2012. In addition, the minutes of the U.S. FOMC's March meeting seemed to indicate that the members were less willing to initiate another round of quantitative easing. The European and U.S. markets finished firmly in the red, and the Asian markets are expected to follow suit.
The STI finished barely lower on Tuesday, nudged into the red by a mixed performance from the financial shares.
For the day, the index eased 1.09 points or 0.04 percent to finish at 3,014.98 after trading between 3,007.93 and 3,033.15 on volume of 2.6 billion shares. There were 203 decliners and 173 gainers.
Among the actives, DBS Group shed 2.8 percent, while United Overseas Bank jumped 2.0 percent, Neptune Orient Lines gathered 1.4 percent, Noble Group added 0.4 percent, Hyflux climbed 2.3 percent and Keppel Corp collected 0.4 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is negative as stocks moved lower on Tuesday, with considerable selling pressure emerging in afternoon trading following the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting.
The minutes of the Fed's March meeting seemed to indicate that the members were less willing to initiate another round of quantitative easing amid signs of improvement in the U.S. economy. The latest minutes said only "a couple of members" indicated that additional stimulus could become necessary, compared to the minutes of the January meeting, which said "a few members" believed that conditions could warrant additional securities purchases.
Also, the Commerce Department reported that factory orders rebounded by slightly less than expected in February. New orders for manufactured goods rose 1.3 percent in February following a 1.1 percent drop in January. Economists had expected an increase of 1.5 percent.
Traders also digested the release of monthly sales results from the nation's major auto manufacturers, with sales rising due in part to increased demand for smaller cars amid the recent surge in gas prices. Chrysler reported a 34 percent jump in auto sales in March, while General Motors (GM) said its sales rose by 12 percent and Ford (F) said its sales increased by 5 percent.
Meanwhile, Molson Coors Brewing (TAP) fell by 5.4 percent after the company announced an agreement to acquire European brewer StarBev for approximately $3.5 billion.
The major averages climbed well off their worst levels going into the close but still ended the day in the red. The Dow fell 64.94 points or 0.5 percent to finish at 13,199.55, while the NASDAQ edged down 6.13 points or 0.2 percent to end at 3,113.57 and the S&P 500 slid 5.73 points or 0.4 percent to 1,413.31.
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Market Analysis
June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.