The initiation of U.S. tariffs affects market sentiment, and the Shanghai Composite Index falls again by 0.48%

Tiong Seng Holdings issued a profit warning, stating that due to the rising costs of materials, labor, and subcontracting for projects pursued before the pandemic, it expects to incur a net loss in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year. In the same period last fiscal year, it achieved a net profit of 5 million yuan. The company's stock price remained flat at 0.10 yuan.

Earnings Season Also Places Short-Term Pressure on the Straits Times Index

Hu You said that although U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that tariff negotiations were progressing well, there have actually been no significant breakthroughs. In addition to the impact of tariffs on market sentiment, the current earnings season is also placing short-term pressure on the Straits Times Index.

According to Reuters, Trump signed an executive order on Thursday (July 31) imposing reciprocal tariffs ranging from 10% to 41% on dozens of countries. According to the original plan, the high tariffs in the U.S. will officially take effect at 12:01 AM U.S. time on Friday (12:01 PM Singapore time on August 1).

Water treatment company Memiontec Holdings issued a profit warning, stating that the group expects to incur a net loss in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year ending June 30, reversing the profit achieved in the same period last fiscal year. The group pointed out that the net loss in the first half was mainly due to extended engineering timelines for some local projects contracted with the Public Utilities Board (PUB), leading to increased labor and financing costs, which reduced gross profit. It has revised its project budget to reflect higher cost forecasts and expects to complete the projects by the end of this year. The company's stock price fell 7.14% to 0.013 yuan.

Looking ahead at the Straits Times Index's trajectory, Hu Yuxuan said, "Investors will focus on the earnings announcements of Straits Times Index constituents such as DBS, UOB, SGX, and Sembcorp Industries next week. As investors digest these corporate earnings information, I expect the Straits Times Index to further consolidate."

Multiple Listed Companies Issue Profit Warnings

Hua Yi Securities' senior investment analyst Hu Yuxuan stated in an interview with Lianhe Zaobao that since the Straits Times Index reached a historical high of 4274 points last Thursday (July 24), the market has continued to experience arbitrage behavior, and the Straits Times Index has fallen for six consecutive trading days. Additionally, OCBC announced its earnings on Friday, reporting a 7% year-on-year decrease in net profit to 1.816 billion yuan, which also dampened market sentiment.

The Federal Reserve's decision to maintain interest rates has put pressure on Singapore real estate investment trusts sensitive to interest rates. Among them, Keppel DC REIT, which led the decline in the Straits Times Index, fell 3.38% to 2.29 yuan. The biggest gainer, JMH, rose 2.66% to 55.98 dollars.

Heeton Holdings expects to incur a net loss in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year, mainly due to higher operating costs. The company's stock price remained flat at 0.275 yuan.

In individual stock news, the consortium 3HA Capital Private Limited, a major shareholder of CosmoSteel, submitted a full acquisition offer to CosmoSteel, which will expire on Friday. Given that the public float is below 10%, trading of CosmoSteel's stock will be halted and delisted The company finally closed at HKD 0.245, with a 2% drop in stock price.

The initiation of U.S. tariffs has caused investor sentiment to become tense. South Korea led the decline in the Asia-Pacific stock market, with a drop of 3.88%. The stock markets in Thailand, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Japan fell by 1.93%, 1.07%, 0.37%, and 0.66%, respectively. The Malaysian stock market rose against the trend by 1.33%.

More performance reports from the component stocks of the Straits Times Index next week

The Malaysian stock market rose against the trend by 1.33%

In light of the appreciation of the Singapore dollar against the Chinese yuan, resulting in foreign exchange losses, Changxin Media (G.H.Y Culture & Media) expects to incur a post-tax loss for the half-year ending June 30. The company's stock price remained flat at HKD 0.155.

The consortium announced a comprehensive acquisition offer for Universe Steel on May 15, but this offer was opposed by three family shareholders, including Ong Dong Hai and his brother Ong Dong Yang (transliteration), and the founder's father Ong Qing Shan, who believed that the acquisition price of HKD 0.20 per share undervalued the company. The acquirer later raised the acquisition price from HKD 0.20 per share in cash to HKD 0.25 in cash.

Further Reading

FSMOne Singapore's research and portfolio management analyst Hu You pointed out that the decline in the Straits Times Index was mainly influenced by macroeconomic factors, including the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to maintain interest rates and President Trump's signing of executive orders. These factors have also triggered risk-averse sentiment in global markets.

U.S. President Trump has implemented new tariffs on exports from dozens of U.S. trading partners, further heightening investor nerves. Except for Malaysia, the rest of the regional stock markets fell on Friday (August 1). The Singapore Straits Times Index has declined for six consecutive trading days, dropping 0.48% or 19.94 points on Friday, closing at 4153.83 points.

The Singapore stock market had a total trading volume of 1.34 billion shares and a total turnover of SGD 1.66 billion on Friday. There were 244 advancing stocks and 340 declining stocks. Among the 30 component stocks of the Straits Times Index, only six rose, three remained flat, and the remaining 21 fell