Singapore stocks track regional gains; STI up 0.4%

SINGAPORE - Singapore stocks ended higher on Tuesday, tracking gains across the region as traders returned after the long weekend.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.4 per cent, or 11.48 points, to close at 3,281.99.

Shares of Sats led gainers on the index; the counter rose 3.2 per cent to close at $2.62. Other top gainers included Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and City Developments, which were up 2.4 per cent and 1.9 per cent respectively.

The trio of local banks also ended the day higher, with OCBC Bank leading the pack to rise 0.6 per cent. DBS Group Holdings was up 0.4 per cent and UOB gained 0.1 per cent.

Thai Beverage finished at the bottom of the table, falling 2.3 per cent to 62.5 Singapore cents.

Across the broader Singapore market, gainers outnumbered losers 305 to 263 after 2.1 billion securities worth $1.1 billion changed hands.

Shares of Seatrium were the most actively traded by volume. The counter gained 4.8 per cent to close at 13 Singapore cents with about 731 million shares traded.

Elsewhere, major indices in Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong rose between 0.1 per cent and 0.9 per cent. But Australia’s ASX 200 fell 0.9 per cent, after the Australian central bank surprised markets with a rate hike of 25 basis points.

Saxo market strategist Charu Chanana said traders will be focused on macro events this week, particularly the United States Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision on Wednesday.

“Market pricing suggests over 90 per cent probability of another 25-basis-point rate hike. But the big question is whether this hike will mark the end of the Fed’s tightening cycle,” she said.

“An outright signal of a pause could spur a rally in equities and a slump in the US dollar.”

THE BUSINESS TIMES