Singapore stocks fall 1%, financials hit

Most other Southeast Asian stock markets were subdued, in line with broader Asian shares after a tech-stock driven slide on Wall Street.

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SGX Logo. Reuters

Singapore stocks fell as much as 1 percent on Friday, dragged by financials such as OCBC Bank and DBS Group Holdings.

Most other Southeast Asian stock markets were subdued, in line with broader Asian shares after a tech-stock driven slide on Wall Street.

At 0545 GMT, the Straits Times Index declined 1 percent Thursday, taking the year-to-date gains to 16.5 percent.

Singapore's smallest listed lender United Overseas Bank fell 2.5 percent despite posting a 5.5 percent increase in its second-quarter net profit.

The results came a day after larger lender Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp beat market expectations with a 22 percent jump in its net profit to the highest level in almost three years.

Other lenders also declined: Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. fell 1.2 percent while DBS Group Holdings lost 2.6 percent.

DBS, Southeast Asia's largest bank, will report earnings on August 4.

Shares of Wilmar International rose 0.3 percent after saying it would invest USD120 million in Mumbai-based Shree Renuka Sugars.

Singapore Exchange shares rose 0.2 percent after its full-year net profit fell 2 percent, weighed down by lower revenue and weak performance in its derivatives business.

Malaysian property developer Aspen Group Holdings fell as much as 2 percent upon listing on Friday. Catalist-listed firm's shares opened at S$0.225 compared to their offer price of S$0.23, data from the Singapore Stock Exchange showed.

About 1.8 billion shares worth S$718 million changed hands, with losers outnumbering gainers 270 to 121.

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