The STI ended flat for the week after earlier rising to new highs, tech stocks under pressure

Date: June 29, 2026

• Driven by the banks, the STI closed at a new high of 5,218.96 on Thursday
• The index finished flat for the week at 5,191.73, banks ended mixed
• Renewed hostilities at Strait of Hormuz cast doubt on US-Iran ceasefire
• Wall Street’s tech stocks plunged, US$3 trillion shaved off Mag 7’s market cap, Nasdaq down 4.6%
• Singapore tech leaders AEM, UMS & Frencken fell 5-8% over the week
• Singtel sold S$1 billion stake in Thailand’s Gulf Development; placement leaves it with 4.95% interest
• Frasers Property proposes S$2.1 billion restructuring of hospitality portfolio
• Temasek-backed Foundation Healthcare lodged prelim IPO prospectus

 

A one-point loss over the week after all-time highs on Wed and Thursday

The Straits Times Index set two consecutive all-time highs on Wednesday and Thursday last week, the last being at 5,218.96. However, a steep fall on Friday saw the index finish the week at 5,191.73, a net loss of just one point over the five days.

Average daily volume was S$1.94b versus S$2.27b the previous week. The banks closed mixed – DBS fell S$0.53 or 0.8% to S$65.43, whilst UOB rose S$0.55 or 1.4% to S$39.80 and OCBC gained S$0.23 or 0.9% at S$24.86.

 

Renewed hostilities at Strait of Hormuz cast doubt on US-Iran ceasefire

U.S. forces struck Iranian military targets on Friday after what Washington described as an Iranian drone attack on a commercial ship near the Strait of Hormuz, raising new questions about the durability of a ceasefire in one of the world’s most important shipping corridors.

US Central Command said American aircraft hit Iranian missile and drone storage locations, as well as coastal radar sites, on Friday. The strikes came after a Singapore-flagged cargo ship was hit near Hormuz on Thursday

 

US tech selloff has hit Magnificent Seven hard, Nasdaq down 4.6%

As of Thursday last week, collectively Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Nvidia, Amazon and Alphabet had lost US$2.99 trillion in market cap so far in June, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

That would be the largest monthly decline on record for the group. Their collective market cap was about US$20.8 trillion.

The recent sell-off of the Magnificent Seven stocks is primarily driven by investor profit-taking after an extended rally, growing scepticism over massive artificial intelligence (AI) capital expenditures, and broader macroeconomic uncertainties.

Among the top decliners last week were ON Semiconductor, down almost 30%; Western Digital down 23.1%; Arm Holdings, down almost 20%; and Seagate Technology, down 19.1%. Meanwhile, the recently-listed SpaceX plunged 11.3% over the five days.

For the week, the S&P 500 lost 2.0%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 4.6%, and the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%.

 

Singapore’s tech leaders also took a hit

The pressure on US tech stocks on Nasdaq spilled over here, leading to huge volatility in sector leaders like AEM, UMS and Frencken.

For example, on Tuesday AEM plunged 9.2%, UMS lost 10.14% and Frencken slid 12.7%.

Despite rebounding on Thursday, renewed selling emerged on Friday. Over the week, AEM lost S$0.88 or 8.2% at S$9.82, UMS fell S$0.22 or 8% to S$2.51 and Frencken’s loss was S$0.16 or 5.1% at S$2.97.

 

Singtel sold S$1 billion stake in Thailand’s Gulf Development; placement leaves it with 4.95% interest

Singtel said it has sold a 2.8% stake in Thai energy company Gulf Development for about S$1 billion, in a transaction that was executed through a private placement to institutional investors, and will result in cumulative gains of some S$140 million in equity.

After the deal, Singtel will still hold a 4.95% stake in Gulf Development, valued at an estimated S$1.8 billion.

Arthur Lang, group chief financial officer of Singtel, said: “Gulf Development’s share price has performed strongly since listing, providing an attractive opportunity for Singtel to crystallise value and reallocate capital towards growth and drive shareholder return.”

The remaining Gulf Development portfolio held by Singtel is “modestly sized but non-trivial”, said Sachin Mittal, DBS Group Research analyst in a Business Times report.

He noted that a 90-day lockup applies to the seller on the remaining stake, suggesting that Singtel intends to retain a residual position in the near term rather than fully exit.

The transaction is the latest under Singtel’s capital recycling programme Singtel28, which has now unlocked S$6.8 billion.

Mittal likened this deal to Singtel’s recent divestment of a 0.8 per cent stake in Bharti Airtel, which generated S$1.5 billion and yielded an estimated gain of S$1.1 billion.

“While Singtel has not disclosed the specific use of proceeds, this is consistent with management’s strategy of unlocking value to fund growth capex for (its) data centre business,” he said.

Over the week, Singtel’s shares rose S$0.08 or 1.8% to S$4.43.

 

Frasers Property proposes S$2.1 billion restructuring of hospitality portfolio

Real estate giant Frasers Property is proposing a S$2.1 billion optimisation of its Frasers Hospitality Trust (FHT) portfolio, marking the next stage of its hospitality strategy following the trust’s privatisation last year.

“The proposed transaction is expected to reshape the group’s hospitality portfolio, enhance capital efficiency and deliver long-term shareholder value,” said the mainboard-listed group.

The restructuring will reverse certain legacy arrangements previously put in place for FHT’s listing. These include the removal of minimum fixed rental and corporate guarantee obligations by Frasers Property.

The restructure will also bring FHT’s carved-out lease and reversionary interests under a single title ownership, simplifying its ownership structure.

Doing so will give Frasers Property the flexibility to maximise the value of FHT’s assets and scale its hospitality platform.

Additionally, the restructuring will allow FHT to stay invested in selected assets that offer opportunities for future value creation alongside TCC Group Investments (TCCGI), the parent company of Frasers Property and the existing co-owner of the FHT portfolio assets. TCCGI is controlled by Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi and his family.

 

Temasek-backed Foundation Healthcare lodged prelim IPO prospectus

Foundation Healthcare Holdings lodged a preliminary prospectus for a listing on the mainboard.

The private healthcare company, which operates 74 specialist clinics in Singapore, is backed by Temasek’s investment firm SeaTown Holdings.

According to the prospectus, the offer will comprise an international placement to institutional and other investors, alongside a public offer in Singapore. The offer size, price ​and listing date were not disclosed in the document.

The transaction will consist of new shares issued by the company and vendor shares offered by existing stakeholders.

The vendors include SeaTown Private Capital Master Fund, its co-investors Kuik and KCM Investments, as well as Foundation Healthcare’s executive management team comprising chief executive Liaw Yit Ming, chief operating officer Lee Hong Huei and chief commercial officer Choy Shook Yee.

Ahead of the launch, the group had locked in S$118,245,000 in total commitments from 10 cornerstone investors.