Singapore shares close 0.4% higher

SHARE prices in the Singapore bourse closed higher on Tuesday, with the key Straits Times Index gaining 13.5 points or 0.4 per cent to finish at 3,553.73.

This marked the key barometer's fourth straight day of gains although caution was thick in the air ahead of the release of crucial inflation data out of the US. Investors will be scrutinising the numbers for clues about the pace of the Federal Reserve's tightening policy.

Some 1.5 billion shares worth S$1.3 billion were done as gainers outpaced losers with 213 counters up and 199 counters down.