S’pore stocks rise; Nikkei 225 rallies to decades-long high

SINGAPORE – Local shares were in a modestly upbeat mood alongside regional peers on Feb 22 after Japan’s bourse broke a bubble-era record.

It has certainly been a long haul for Japan’s Nikkei 225 – 34 interminable years for investors – but the champagne was flowing when the index jumped 2.2 per cent to finally beat the record set on Dec 29, 1989, and at the height of the nation’s asset-buying frenzy.

The Straits Times Index (STI) was far from bubbly but did inch up 0.2 per cent or 5.83 points to 3,222.94, with gainers trouncing losers 326 to 219 on trade of 1.4 billion securities worth $1.5 billion.

Key regional indexes finished mostly higher after a mixed session on Wall Street overnight.

South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.4 per cent, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 1.5 per cent and Australian shares eked out a 0.4 per cent gain after spending much of the day in the red. Malaysian stocks, however, slid 0.5 per cent.

The STI was led by agribusiness giant Wilmar International, which climbed 4.6 per cent to $3.41. The group reported a half-year net profit of US$973.9 million (S$1.3 billion) after markets closed on Feb 21, down 21.3 per cent year on year.

Sembcorp Industries extended losses by 2.7 per cent to $5.33 and ended at the bottom of the STI.

UOB Bank was the second-biggest loser on the index, declining 2.5 per cent to $28.50 after posting its fourth-quarter results.

The local lender’s net profit surged 21.8 per cent to $1.4 billion on higher net fee and other non-interest income, but the gain was offset by a drop in net interest income.

Jefferies said UOB’s net interest income and net interest margin both missed consensus, but the overall result was “largely in line” with its preview.

Its banking peers fared better: OCBC rose 0.5 per cent to $13.45, while DBS was unchanged at $33.95.

THE BUSINESS TIMES