Singapore equities continue climb

AFTER the sprint by Singapore equities on Tuesday, it was almost a sure thing that investors would go for profit-taking the next day - and they did, mirroring Wall Street on Tuesday where the S&P 500 was flat and the tech-heavy Nasdaq retreated from earlier highs.

And so the benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) spent most of Wednesday morning in the red until Chinese data cushioned the fall. China's trade data gave investors some hope even though October exports lagged market expectations to rise by 6.9 per cent from a year earlier. Imports beat forecasts though, rising 17.2 per cent. The country reportedly has a trade surplus of US$38.17 billion for the month.

Supported by this, the STI gained 8.15 points or 0.24 per cent to 3,421.25 but the gains were not broad-based.