STI slides 1% amid rout in Asia markets; Nikkei, Hang Seng tumble more than 2%

[SINGAPORE] Singapore stocks fell on Friday (Nov 21), triggered by declining expectations of a rate cut. This follows a wider regional rout after markets tumbled earlier this week on fears of an artificial intelligence bubble.

As at 11.13 am, The Straits Times Index (STI) was down by 1 per cent or 44.4 points at 4,467.47. Losers outnumbered gainers 390 to 128 as 649.1 million stocks worth S$660.6 million changed hands.

All three local banks were down as at 11.16 am. DBS fell 0.4 per cent to S$53.62, OCBC dropped 1.2 per cent to S$18.05 and UOB sank 0.3 per cent to S$33.79.

The STI decline comes as markets across Asia see significant setbacks. Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index were both down more than 2 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi dived nearly 4 per cent. FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI was down 0.2 per cent while the S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.5 per cent.

Earlier this week, US markets dropped on the fears of a potential AI bubble, with sell-offs in bitcoin. The cryptocurrency has lost more than 2 per cent this year and sank below the US$90,000 level on Tuesday.

Wall Street indexes rebounded slightly as Nvidia indicated positive guidance on Wednesday with Q4 sales predicted to come in at around US$65 billion.

This eased anxieties about possible cuts in AI spending. However, the indexes declined again Thursday as stronger than expected jobs data led to increasing expectations of a rate cut in December.