Share buybacks for Singapore-listed counters rose to a 30-month high last month, amounting to some 86 million shares worth $222 million.

This was 65 per cent higher compared with the $134 million worth of shares repurchased for February and it is the highest since September 2015, according to market updates published by Singapore Exchange (SGX).

Transactions on shares of six Straits Times Index constituents - CapitaLand, OCBC Bank, United Overseas Bank, Sats, Sembcorp Industries and SGX - accounted for $185 million of the $222 million worth of share buyback trades reported for March.

CapitaLand topped the list with a repurchase of 26.3 million shares for $95 million last month, up from about $44 million in February. It started its share buyback mandate one week after Feb 13, following the announcement of a 30.3 per cent rise in net profit to $1.55 billion.

In share buyback transactions, share issuers repurchase some of their publicly floated outstanding shares and convert them into treasury shares.