SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) - Singapore stocks began the week in the black, with the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) gaining 1.9 per cent to close at 3,071.16 on Monday (March 8).

Of the STI constituents, Jardine Strategic Holdings (JSH) and Jardine Matheson Holdings (JMH) were the top performers of the day. JSH gained 19.49 per cent to close at US$32.80, while JMH gained 15.48 per cent to close at S$62.

Analysts have noted that the offer price for JSH is at a significant discount to its net asset value for a done deal, through which the Jardine empire will untangle its decades-old cross-holding by having JMH buy out the remaining stake in JSH.

Mapletree Industrial Trust ended up at the bottom of the index, sliding 2.29 per cent to close at $2.56.

Keppel DC Reit and Ascendas Reit were also among the worst STI performers for the day. Keppel DC Reit fell 2.25 per cent to close at $2.61, while Ascendas Reit closed down 2.05 per cent at S$2.87.

On the broader market, decliners outnumbered gainers 275 to 237 for the day, with 2.07 billion securities worth $1.91 billion changing hands.

Across the region, Asian markets ended the day in the red. The Hang Seng Index fell 1.92 per cent to close at 28,450.83, while the Nikkei 225 Index ended 0.42 per cent down at 28,743.25.

Crude prices jumped more than 2 per cent on Monday - having climbed around 4 per cent last Friday - after a missile and drone attack on Saudi Arabia's oil industry. Brent crude is now at levels not seen since May 2019.

Axi chief global markets strategist Stephen Innes said: "So far, there have been no reports of significant damage or oil supply chain disruptions, but this is an evolving story that will keep oil traders on their toes."

Additional information from AFP