Singapore shares ended lower yesterday, with the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) down 44.51 points to close at 3,154.21 - shedding all the gains made this year.
The STI dropped below the 3,174.65 level at the start of the year on Jan 2, taking the year-to-date performance to -0.34 per cent.
Trading activity surged with 1.36 billion shares worth a total of $1.34 billion changing hands. Losers outnumbered gainers 420 to 75.
Shares opened in negative territory and the selling momentum gained traction throughout the day before ending at the intra-day low.
A disappointing set of US data fuelled fears about the world's top economy, sparking a sell-off overnight on Wall Street, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down by 1.06 per cent. The sell-off continued in early trading yesterday.
The S&P 500 sank 1.20 per cent to 1,840.05 points, while the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 1.37 per cent to 4,157.75 points, reported AFP.
Wednesday's scare set the tone for a nightmarish session in Asia yesterday, where stock markets were badly stung.
Traders took their lead from New York and Europe, where equities and the dollar sank, while oil prices were rooted at multi-year lows.
Tokyo plunged 2.22 per cent to 14,738.38 as exporters were stunned by the stronger yen.
Seoul fell 0.37 per cent to 1,918.83, while Shanghai sank 0.72 per cent to 2,356.50. Hong Kong lost 1.03 per cent to close at 22,900.94. The picture was no different in the rest of South-east Asia: Bangkok lost 1.37 per cent to close at 1,526.15.
Jakarta ended down 0.23 per cent at 4,951.61, while Kuala Lumpur dropped 1.07 per cent to end at 1,767.77.
However, in Sydney, dip-buying helped reverse initial losses. The index ended 0.18 per cent higher at 5,254.9.
Europe's main stock markets closed mixed yesterday, with London's benchmark FTSE 100 index closing down 0.25 per cent to 6,195.91 points. The CAC 40 lost 0.54 per cent to 3,918.62 points, while Frankfurt's DAX index added 0.13 per cent to 8,582.90 points.
This article was first published on Oct 17, 2014.
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