Bulls And Bears
STI bucks regional trend to end trading day higher
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Claudia Tan
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Shenzhen lockdown concerns weigh on other markets in region
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Gains by DBS and UOB lead the charge on local blue-chip index
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Hongkong Land is biggest decliner, down 4.2% to US$4.84
Singapore shares were pushed into positive territory yesterday, bucking the broad-market trend as concerns over the lockdown of tech hub Shenzhen and Russia-Ukraine tensions continue to weigh on investor sentiments.
The Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.12 per cent to 3,236.04, led by gains from local banks.
Most benchmark indexes in the region ended the day lower, given the possibility of further lockdowns in China.
"Cases are still rising in China, and Shanghai is also subject to tactical lockdowns within the city. Fears continue to dog stock markets that lockdowns could spread, which would severely impact China's growth," said Oanda Asia-Pacific senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley.
Hong Kong tech firms led another sharp equity sell-off with the Hang Seng Index ending the day 5.72 per cent lower. Elsewhere, South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.91 per cent, the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index was down 0.64 per cent while the Jakarta Composite Index dipped 0.49 per cent.
Japan's Nikkei 225, on the other hand, was up 0.15 per cent as inflation fears receded following a retreat in oil prices.
Across the Singapore market, decliners outpaced advancers 326 to 179. Some 1.67 billion securities worth $1.54 billion changed hands.
Among the STI constituents, DBS and UOB were the top-performing stocks. DBS was up 2.2 per cent to $33.89 and UOB rose 1.4 per cent to $30.53. OCBC ended the day flat at $11.70. At the bottom of the table was Hongkong Land which fell 4.2 per cent to US$4.84.
The most heavily traded counter on the blue-chip index was Thai Beverage with over 64 million shares changing hands. ThaiBev ended the day flat at 66.5 cents.
Outside of the index, Sembcorp Marine saw the highest trading volumes, with some 144 million shares moved. A handful of other stocks, including palm oil producer Golden Agri-Resources and oil and gas service providers RH Petrogas and Rex International, were also heavily traded.
