Daily Markets Briefing: STI down 0.59%

Investors are urged to take caution today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 20.04 points or 0.59% lower to 3399.09, taking the year-to-date performance to +17.99%.

The top active stocks were Global Logistic Properties, which declined 0.30%, Singtel, which declined 1.07%, DBS, which gained 0.04%, OCBC Bank, which declined 0.34% and COSCO SHP SG, with a 7.34% advance.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index declined 0.48%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index declined 0.42%.

According to OCBC Investment Research, US stock benchmarks finished lower, but off their intraday lows, on Tuesday, with Wall Street slumping in the face of uncertainty around efforts to overhaul tax policy and a downturn in crude-oil futures.

Eight out of 11 S&P 500 industries finished lower, led by Energy, which fell 1.53%, and Telecommunication Services, which fell 1.43%, whilst Utilities, which rose 1.20%, and Consumer Staples, which rose 0.31%, led the gains.

"The weakness on Wall Street overnight is likely to weigh on local sentiment this morning," OCBC said.