SINGAPORE - Shares in Singapore rose rose the most in nearly two weeks on a flurry of corporate news and positive economic data out of the United States.

The Straits Times Index (STI) gained 18.4 points or 0.6 per cent to 3,341.5, the most since Aug 15 when it added 19.9 points.

There were 216 gainers to 182 losers while 396 stocks were unchanged.

Some 1.63 billion shares worth $904.4 million were traded.

Jaya was the top active counter, rising 0.1 cents to 6.3 cents on a turnover of 123.5 million shares.

Most Asian stock exchanges also rose, with Tokyo up 0.1 per cent.

Seoul gained 0.3 per cent, Shanghai increased 0.1 per cent and Sydney added 0.2 per cent.

Hong Kong bucked the trend, dropping 0.6 per cent after reaching a six-year high on Monday.