Singapore shares continue to climb; STI up 0.4%
Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 336 to 247, as 1.6 billion securities worth S$1.7 billion change hands
[SINGAPORE] Singapore stocks wrapped up the week with a series of gains, without a single trading day ending in the red.
The blue-chip Straits Times Index (STI) extended its rally on Friday (Oct 3) with an increase of 0.4 per cent or 16.74 points to 4,411.95 – another record high, in tandem with Wall Street’s rally overnight. For the week, the STI clocked a 3.4 per cent improvement.
Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said that traders remember that government shutdowns are “noisy sideshows, more circus than substance”, in reference to the latest US standstill that began earlier this week.
This sentiment was reflected in the all-time high posted by the S&P 500. He also noted that the Nasdaq “roared with its AI (artificial intelligence) generals at the front, and the Dow joined the march”.
However, he cautioned that “this is shutdown theatre at its most dangerous – not the drama in Congress, but the illusion in the market that politics don’t matter”. “For now, the orchestra plays on. But a market dancing blindfolded is only one misstep away from tumbling off the stage,” he added.
Across the broader market in Singapore, 336 stocks rose while 247 declined, after 1.6 billion worth S$1.7 billion were transacted.
Thai Beverage was the most actively traded counter, with 100.8 million shares having changed hands at the close. The beverage producer was also the top gainer on the STI, finishing 3.2 per cent or S$0.015 up at S$0.48, without making any market-sensitive announcements.
At the bottom of the blue-chip tally was ST Engineering . Its shares declined 1 per cent or S$0.09 to S$8.70.
The local banks all finished higher, with DBS rising 0.04 per cent to S$52.86, OCBC up 0.4 per cent at S$16.83, and UOB adding 0.5 per cent to end at S$35.25.
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