Keppel and Sembcorp claw back gains; STI up 0.1% despite US stocks’ slide
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Losers outnumbered gainers 310 to 237, after 1.34 billion securities worth $1.08 billion changed hands.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Megan Cheah
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SINGAPORE – Local stocks ended higher on Wednesday despite sentiment cooling overnight on Wall Street.
The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) gained 0.1 per cent, or 3.43 points, to 3,223.66. In the broader market, losers outgunned gainers 310 to 237 on trade of 1.34 billion shares worth $1.08 billion.
SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said that investors are turning cautious, with all eyes on this week’s congressional testimony by United States Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.
“With little scheduled news to steer sentiment, Tuesday’s price action... suggests that investors are continuing to contemplate the possibility of a soft landing... and the Fed’s less-aggressive path post-July,” added Mr Innes.
Sembcorp Industries was the STI’s top gainer, up 4.5 per cent to $5.38, while Keppel Corp also made strides, ending the day 1.5 per cent ahead at $6.70.
Keppel announced on Tuesday after markets closed that it had obtained a contract to build and operate a large-scale district cooling system plant in the Jurong Lake District for 30 years. It expects the project to generate $950 million in payments.
Wednesday’s gains come after both companies led the STI’s decline on Tuesday, with Sembcorp down 9.2 per cent and Keppel off 5.2 per cent.
The steep drops occurred after the Energy Market Authority said on Monday that it will introduce a temporary cap on wholesale electricity prices.
Sembcorp and Keppel provide power in Singapore through their subsidiaries, Sembcorp Power and Keppel Electric.
Meanwhile, the STI’s biggest decliner was Venture Corp, which tumbled 3.1 per cent to $15.20.
The local banks were mixed: DBS rose 0.6 per cent to $31.35, UOB finished at $27.99, up 0.3 per cent, but OCBC dipped 0.4 per cent to $12.51.
Elsewhere, key Asian indexes ended varied.
The Nikkei 225 was up 0.6 per cent and Malaysian shares rose 0.4 per cent, while the Hang Seng Index dipped 2 per cent, the Kospi in Seoul slid 0.9 per cent and Australian stocks fell 0.6 per cent. THE BUSINESS TIMES
