STI up 1.5% despite Wall St blues, led by banks, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding

SINGAPORE – Local shares piled on robust gains on Jan 8, despite mixed results around the region and a downbeat session on Wall Street overnight, amid concerns that inflation is sticking around.

The Straits Times Index (STI) added 1.54 per cent or 58.81 points to 3,886.98. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 283 to 237 on trade of 960 million shares worth $1.38 billion.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, which climbed 4.4 per cent to $3.08, was the STI’s most active by volume, with 47 million shares done.

The firm said on Jan 7 that asset manager BlackRock had become its latest substantial shareholder.

The local banks also closed ahead. OCBC gained 4.2 per cent to $17.55, UOB was up 2 per cent to $37.80 and DBS breached $45, adding 2.1 per cent to $45.44.

Maybank Securities analysts highlighted OCBC and UOB as key beneficiaries of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (SEZ) as they have well-entrenched Malaysian and Asean footprints. The SEZ agreement signed on Jan 7 plans to expand 100 projects in 10 years.

“An... integration of Johor and Singapore to improve ease of doing business, labour and capital flows could provide opportunities for the banks,” said Mr Thilan Wickramasinghe, Maybank Securities Singapore head of research and regional head of financials.

The STI’s biggest loser was CapitaLand Investment, down 2.7 per cent to $2.51.

It was surprising Wall Street did not dampen the mood here after the three key indexes all slipped following their best three-day start to a year since 2009.

The Nasdaq declined 1.9 per cent, the S&P 500 dipped 1.1 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.4 per cent.

Regional bourses were mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.9 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei 225 declined 0.3 per cent, Malaysian stocks slid 0.9 per cent while South Korea’s Kospi added 1.2 per cent.

Rate cut hopes helped Australian shares advance 0.8 per cent, their fifth straight rise.

THE BUSINESS TIMES