Reits lead Singapore stocks higher amid mixed regional showing

SINGAPORE - Shares in Singapore ended the first trading day of the week slightly higher, amid a mixed performance in the region.

The Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.1 per cent or 2.44 points to close at 3,064.29, with real estate investment trusts (Reits) leading the gainers.

CapitaLand Ascendas Reit rose 2.8 per cent to end at $2.58, finishing at the top of the index performance table.

CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust and Mapletree Logistics Trust were also among the top performers, climbing 2.3 per cent and 1.4 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, DFI Retail Group fell 1.9 per cent to close at US$2.11, ending the day as the top index decliner.

Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 300 to 275, after 1.2 billion securities worth $927 million changed hands.

Shares of Seatrium were the most actively traded by volume for the day. The counter closed at 11.1 cents, down 0.9 per cent, after 234.1 million shares worth $26.1 million were traded.

Elsewhere in the region, key indexes in Japan and Australia closed lower.

However, markets in South Korea, Hong Kong and Shanghai ended the day in the black.

SPI Asset Management’s managing partner Stephen Innes noted that risk appetite remained fragile, partly due to Israel’s ground assault on Gaza over the weekend.

“There is growing concern about the possibility of financial conditions over-tightening amid heightened risk aversion driven by geopolitical factors,” he said.

“The intersection of these two dynamics could have significant implications for financial markets and global stability.”

THE BUSINESS TIMES