STI up 0.7% in line with regional gains despite US tariff kick-off

SINGAPORE – Gains across regional markets gave investors all the excuse they needed to push local shares up for the fourth straight day despite continuing unease over tariffs.

The heady sentiment left the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) up 0.7 per cent or 30.45 points at 4,258.15 on Aug 7 with gainers outstripping losers 320 to 201 on robust trade of two billion securities worth $2.1 billion.

The results were largely reflected around the region. Malaysian shares added 0.4 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng both put on 0.7 per cent and the Kospi in South Korea advanced 0.9 per cent. Australia was the outlier, dipping 0.2 per cent but still at historic levels.

The regional advances followed a positive session on Wall Street overnight, where an Apple rally helped push the Nasdaq up 1.2 per cent to a near-record. The S&P 500 added 0.7 per cent while the Dow industrials gained 0.2 per cent.

The gains came despite the higher tariff rates imposed by US President Donald Trump taking effect on dozens of trading partners.

Mr Vishnu Varathan from Mizuho Securities noted: “The cognitive dissonance involved in the Apple-led tech rally firing up Nasdaq bulls on one hand and Trump’s 100 per cent tariffs on semiconductors is remarkable.”

Meanwhile, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding was the STI’s top gainer for a second straight day, climbing 8 per cent to $2.84. The rally came after the Chinese firm reported that first-half net profit surged 36.7 per cent to a record high.

The stock rocketed up around 11 per cent in early trade to hit $2.92, its highest level since February.

UOB led the STI decliners, falling 1.8 per cent to $35.81, after reporting a 6 per cent year-on-year drop in second-quarter earnings that fell below analyst estimates.

The other local banks closed higher. OCBC Bank edged up 0.3 per cent to $17.09 and DBS soared 1.8 per cent to $49.75 on a bumper second-quarter result. THE BUSINESS TIMES