SINGAPORE stocks were pulled into negative territory on Thursday (Apr 11), tracking a Wall Street retreat after US inflation data topped estimates, dashing hopes for near-term rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve.

On the Singapore bourse, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.9 per cent or 28.11 points to 3,209.41 as at 9.01 am. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 112 to 44, after 92.8 million securities worth S$123.7 million changed hands.

The most active counter by volume was Seatrium : S51 0%, which lost 1.2 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.085 with 9.3 million shares traded.

Other heavily traded securities included CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust : C38U 0%, which shed 1.5 per cent or S$0.03 to S$1.94, with 7.1 million units traded, and Golden Agri-Resources : E5H 0%, which gained 1.9 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.275, with 6.8 million shares traded.

Banking stocks declined in early morning trade. DBS : D05 0% fell 0.6 per cent or S$0.23 to S$35.56, UOB : U11 0% slid 1.1 per cent or S$0.33 to S$29.29, and OCBC : O39 0% slipped 0.9 per cent or S$0.13 to S$13.68.

Wall Street stocks closed lower on Wednesday following much-anticipated data which showed US consumer prices rising 0.4 per cent in March from February, and 3.5 per cent from the year prior, both slightly above the expected level.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.1 per cent to 38,461.51, and the broad-based S&P 500 declined 1 per cent to 5,160.64. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slid 0.8 per cent to 16,170.36.

European shares, meanwhile, rebounded on Wednesday as investors looked towards the European Central Bank’s monetary policy decision on Thursday. The pan-continent Stoxx 600 finished 0.1 per cent higher, supported by banks and the energy sector.