Singapore stocks climb in tandem with regional indexes; STI up 0.7%

SINGAPORE – Regional gains were mirrored on the local market on July 4 with the bourse adding to the previous day’s solid advance.

Investors pushed the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) up 0.7 per cent or 24.37 points to 3,439.88, with gainers outpacing losers 360 to 214 on solid trade of 1.4 billion securities worth $1.3 billion on the broader market.

The buoyant sentiment here was evident elsewhere in the region. The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo was up 0.8 per cent, the Kospi in Seoul added 1.1 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng put on 0.3 per cent and Malaysian stocks inched up 0.1 per cent.

Australia’s market shot up 1.2 per cent to a one-week high.

The gains came after a shortened session of light trade on Wall Street overnight as investors wound down for the Independence Day break in the United States.

More gains by Tesla drove the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to new highs but the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 0.1 per cent.

The S&P 500 is now up 21 per cent for the year while the Nasdaq has added 16 per cent.

Mr Vishnu Varathan, chief economist at Mizuho Bank, cited the drop in activity on a key US manufacturing index and noted that markets there had hit new highs instead of falling in tandem.

The index fell five points to 48.8, indicating a contraction.

The US equities markets are enamoured of a controlled landing narrative, said Mr Varathan, which is consistent with the Federal Reserve relenting on more than one rate hike in 2024. There is still sufficient liquidity in the market, aided by eased quantitative tightening.

ThaiBev led the STI’s gains, adding 2.3 per cent to 44.5 cents, while Yangzijiang Shipbuilding was the biggest loser, down 0.4 per cent to $2.44.

The three local banks ended higher: DBS Bank rose 0.1 per cent to $37.98; OCBC added 1.1 per cent to $15.15; and UOB Bank advanced 0.9 per cent to $32.57. THE BUSINESS TIMES