The spread of the Wuhan coronavirus was front and centre in the minds of investors this week, and concerns are unlikely to fade for some time.
Yesterday, the Straits Times Index (STI) managed to register gains shortly after the opening bell, thanks to a positive Thursday session on Wall Street. However, the early advance was quickly erased as investors preferred to focus on the rising death toll and number of infections from the virus.
The STI ended at 3,153.73, down 16.95 points or 0.5 per cent. On the week, the blue-chip index fell 86.29 points or 2.7 per cent from Jan 24’s close of 3,240.02. The STI lost 2.1 per cent last month.
Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, the picture was mixed. Australia, Japan and Taiwan notched gains. On the other hand, Hong Kong, Malaysia and South Korea ended lower.
Though Asian economies continue to show recovery, concerns over the spread of the Wuhan virus could derail recent progress.
“The Wuhan virus has obviously thrown a massive spanner in the works of that recovery picture. How long the virus hangs around will dictate how big that spanner in the economic cycle will be,” Oanda’s Asia-Pacific senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley said.
Trading volume in Singapore was 1.99 billion securities, 68 per cent more than the 2019 daily average. Total turnover was $1.59 billion. Decliners outpaced advancers 265 to 164, with 14 of the benchmark’s 30 counters ending in the red.
For much of the week, medical groups and rubber-glove makers were the favourites of traders looking to make contra gains. The bull run lasted until Wednesday before sharp declines resulted in wild share-price swings.
Yesterday, medical consumables manufacturer Medtecs International shed 6.1 cents or 35.3 per cent to 11.2 cents with 217.6 million shares traded. Medtecs was the Singapore Exchange’s most active counter for three out of four trading days this week, with its shares closing as high as 19.6 cents, well above its 2019 closing price of 3.9 cents.
The local market’s tourism and leisure-related plays took a beating this week, including Singapore Airlines (SIA), which managed to turn a slight gain to close at $8.55, up one cent or 0.1 per cent, after closing at a 10-year low on Thursday.
SIA, along with SilkAir and Scoot, yesterday said capacity into China will be cut after demand was hit by viral concerns. The national carrier also signed a partnership with Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) to boost the Singapore and Japan air hubs and improve flight connectivity for passengers.