Singapore shares continue uptrend, adding 0.9% on Tuesday

THE positive start to the second quarter in equity markets continued to gain steam as investors in Asia cheered healthy PMI data from China and the US, growing optimism over US-China trade talks and cheap borrowing costs.

In Singapore, the Straits Times Index (STI) gained 29.27 points or 0.9 per cent to close at 3,279.78, the highest closing level in 2019.

Trading clocked in at 925.28 million securities, about 67 per cent of the daily average over the first two months of 2019. Total turnover came to S$1.16 billion, 12 per cent over the January-to-February daily average. Advancers outnumbered decliners 227 to 176.  

Tritech Group was the bourse's most active counter with 43.6 million shares traded. Shares in the usually thinly-traded counter ended the session 1.1 Singapore cents or 26.2 per cent higher at 5.3 cents. The total value of the trades was S$2.2 million.

Twenty-three of the STI's 30 constituents ended the day in the black. Among them, Genting Singapore was the blue-chip index's most traded. The casino operator ended one Singapore cent or 0.9 per cent up at S$1.06 with 34 million shares changing hands.  

Going by value of trades done, DBS Group Holdings saw S$150.84 million traded - 13 per cent of the bourse's value of securities traded - across 5.82 million shares. The bank's shares added S$0.48 or 1.9 per cent to end at S$26.07.

With markets in a buoyant mood, the other local banks also closed in positive territory. OCBC Bank closed S$0.14 or 1.3 per cent higher at S$11.35 while United Overseas Bank added S$0.32 or 1.3 per cent to close at S$25.74.

Among non-STI counters, Best World International dropped S$0.13 or 5.9 per cent to close at S$2.07. Meanwhile, Clearbridge shares surged 2.1 Singapore cents or 14.2 per cent to 16.9 cents following PhillipCapital initiating coverage on the stock with a "buy" recommendation and a target price of 28 cents. The report was produced by Phillip Securities Research under the SGX StockFacts Research Programme.