SINGAPORE, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Singapore shares closed 0.17 percent lower on Wednesday, as lingering political and economic uncertainty in the U.S. and Europe triggered profit-taking.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20, his protectionist measures on international trade and controversial steps to tighten entry to immigrants from selected countries have spread anxiety in financial markets across the globe. Uncertainty on the new administration's fiscal stimulus also began to weigh on investors' sentiment.
Meanwhile, there are growing concerns that the far right could win France's presidential vote and take the country out of the European Union. Some investors decided to adopt more cautious stance on risky assets such as stocks.
Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index fell 5.11 points to 3,066.53 points. Trading volume was 3.54 billion shares worth 1.2 billion Singapore dollars. Advancers outnumbered decliners 258 to 213, while 607 stocks did not move.
Singapore Airlines rose 0.8 percent to 9.80 Singapore dollars. It reported net profit of 177.2 million Singapore dollars in the quarter ended December 2016, down 35.6 percent from 274.9 million Singapore dollars a year ago. This was mainly due to recognition of a write-down of the Tiger Airway brand and trademark during the quarter. The lower earnings were also due to the absence of a one-off gain last year from SilkAir's sale and leaseback of four 737-800s. Its revenue in the quarter also fell 2.5 percent to 3.84 billion Singapore dollars during the period, from 3.94 billion Singapore dollars in the same quarter last year. This was mainly due to lower passenger flown revenue in a weak-yield environment.
Singapore Exchange inched down 0.7 percent to 7.55 Singapore dollars. The bourse operator recorded a market turnover value of 20.9 billion Singapore dollars for January, unchanged month-on-month and down 10 percent year-on-year. Its securities daily average value was 1.047 billion Singapore dollars, up 5 percent month-on-month and down 10 percent year-on-year.
Among the top gainers, Jardine Matheson rose 0.1 percent to 62.45 U.S. dollars, whereas Jardine Strategic became one of the top losers by falling 2.2 percent to 37 U.S. dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.42 Singapore dollars)
