Singapore equities took their cue from last Friday's encouraging performance on Wall Street to get the week off to a positive start.
But a sense of worry over the global growth outlook and US-China trade tensions still prevails in the run-up to this week's talks.
Yesterday, the Straits Times Index (STI) opened 0.2 per cent higher and extended those gains to close at 3,099.48, adding 21.12 points, or 0.7 per cent.
Among the key Asia-Pacific markets that were open, Australia, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea all posted gains. Markets in China and Hong Kong resume trading today.
Last Friday's jobs report may have eased recession fears after unemployment in the US fell to a 50-year low of 3.5 per cent, but US growth is showing signs of slowing.
AxiTrader Asia-Pacific Market Strategist Stephen Innes noted that investor attention is now focused on expected easing by the Federal Reserve. "After the run of weak US data reported over the past week, it will allow Fed chairman (Jerome) Powell to cut rates again this year."
With China, Hong Kong and a number of Australian states on holiday, it was a session of low liquidity in Singapore.
Trading volume stood at at 582.11 million securities, just under half of the daily average in the first eight months of this year. Meanwhile, total turnover clocked in at $705.51 million, two-third of the January-to-August daily average.
Across the market, advancers trumped decliners 202 to 133. Just three of the blue-chip index's 30 counters ended in the red.
Golden Agri-Resources was the STI's most active counter, with 31.6 million shares traded. The counter dipped 4.6 per cent to close at 21 cents.
DBS Group Holdings added 0.5 per cent to $24.68, OCBC Bank gained 0.6 per cent to $10.68, while United Overseas Bank finished at $25.32, up 0.6 per cent.
One of the day's big gainers was conglomerate Keppel Corp, which added 10 cents, or 1.7 per cent, to close at $5.91 after its offshore and marine unit reached a settlement agreement with Sete Brasil over six uncompleted oil drilling rigs.
Among real estate investment trusts (Reits), Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT) edged up 0.4 per cent to close at $2.44.
Citi Investment Research analyst Brandon Lee noted that with HP - which contributes to 5 per cent of MIT's income - announcing global job cuts, the near-term impact of the tech firm's decision "could be mitigated by its long lease without break clause, 10 months of security deposits and Singapore being its Asia-Pacific/Japan headquarters".
