SGX FALLS ON NEGATIVE BROKER CALLS

Shares of Singapore Exchange (SGX) tumbled as much as 7 percent to S$9.30, its lowest level in four and a half months, with 1.4 million traded after brokers downgraded the stock citing a potential slowdown in the market's turnover value.

Morgan Stanley has cut the target price for shares of SGX to S$10.50 from S$15, keeping its "equal weight" rating on the stock.

Goldman Sachs lowered its target share price to S$15.30 from S$18.40 and Macquarie Research cut the stock's target price to S$10.20 from S$11.10, but raised investor rating to "neutral" from "underperform".

"We believe a murkier U.S. outlook will likely dampen sentiment/turnover in the near term and lower the supportable valuation of SGX," Goldman Sachs analyst Darwin Lam wrote in a research note.

Singapore Exchange said its quarterly net profit almost doubled to beat expectations on a surge in stock and derivative trading, and said it will continue focusing on foreign listings in the city-state.