Singapore shares fuelled by rate-cut optimism; STI climbs 0.4%
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Investors here needed no more encouragement and pushed the Straits Times Index up 15.13 points or 0.4 per cent to 3,475.06.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Tay Peck Gek
Follow topic:
SINGAPORE – Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony to the United States Congress
Mr Powell told lawmakers that the central bank would not wait until inflation had hit the bank’s 2 per cent target before lowering interest rates – remarks that unleashed optimism among investors for rate cuts soon.
Wall Street took heed with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq cruising to new records overnight, driven by investors appearing increasingly more confident that rate cuts are on their way, likely later in 2024.
The S&P 500 logged its sixth straight record close – its longest such streak since 2021 – with all 11 of its sectors advancing, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq notched its seventh record in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also turned higher, snapping a two-day losing streak.
Investors here needed no more encouragement and pushed the Straits Times Index (STI) up 15.13 points or 0.4 per cent to 3,475.06. Gainers easily beat decliners 382 to 220 across the broader market, with 1.3 billion securities transacting at $1.3 billion in total.
All seven real estate investment trust (Reit) constituents closed higher.
Lower interest rates benefit companies and investment structures that are highly leveraged, such as Reits.
Mapletree Logistics Trust led the climb among the STI-component Reits, with a 4.8 per cent surge to $1.32.
Dasin Retail Trust, Daiwa House Logistics Trust and Elite UK Reit were the only counters among the several dozens of listed Reits to finish in the red, with their unit prices falling by between 0.9 per cent and 4.2 per cent.
Two of the three local banks took a modest hit as the sector would see margins compressed in a lower-interest-rate environment. OCBC Bank shares dipped by 0.2 per cent to $15.20, UOB slid 0.4 per cent to $32.96, but DBS Bank bucked the downward trend, rising 0.6 per cent to an all-time high of $38.38. THE BUSINESS TIMES
