Singapore shares rebound on April 10, mirroring regional indexes; STI up 5.4%

SINGAPORE – Another day, another wild swing in the markets as stocks rebounded spectacularly here and elsewhere on April 10 after a dramatic tariff backflip from the Trump administration.

News that the on-again, off-again tariffs are now in a 90-day holding pattern fired up relieved investors, who sent the Straits Times Index (STI) rocketing 5.4 per cent or 184.14 points to 3,577.83. Across the broader market, gainers unsurprisingly thumped losers 474 to 153 on a bumper trade of 2.1 billion shares worth $3 billion.

IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong noted that the unexpected 90-day pause on US tariffs for certain countries swung market sentiment from fear and uncertainty to relief. He added that this was a temporary reprieve and not a full rollback of tariffs, but the immediate risk of recession has likely been lowered for now.

The euphoria among local investors was starkly evident in bank shares, with DBS surging 6.8 per cent to $39.67 while OCBC shot up 7 per cent to $15.43 and UOB rallied 7.2 per cent to $33.21.

As impressive as those gains were, the STI’s biggest winner was Jardine Matheson, up 8.7 per cent to US$39.87.

Mapletree PanAsia Commercial Trust was the only STI constituent that did not register gains, closing flat at $1.13.

Wall Street provided the fuel for the regional rebound, with the three key indexes recording stellar performances overnight.

The Nasdaq surged a striking 12 per cent, its best day in 24 years, while the S&P 500 advanced 9.5 per cent, its best since 2008, and the Dow Industrials added 7.9 per cent, its biggest day since 2020.

Regional markets took note. The Kospi increased 6.6 per cent, the Nikkei 225 added a bumper 9.1 per cent and the ASX 200 in Sydney put on 4.5 per cent, or a market value of around $120 billion.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was far more sober, rising just 2.1 per cent, while Malaysian shares gained 4.5 per cent. THE BUSINESS TIMES