Singapore stocks start week stronger, as aviation counters rise; STI up 0.3%

SINGAPORE stocks started the week stronger, led by gains in aviation-related counters, amid mixed trading in the region. The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.3 per cent or 10.78 points to close at 3,106 on Monday.

Soaring to the top of the STI table for the day was flag carrier Singapore Airlines, which rose 6.2 per cent to close at S$5.63, the highest in a year.

The gains follow reports that Singapore and Australia are in talks for a potential air travel bubble to allow for quarantine-free travel.

Other aviation-related stocks also closed higher on Monday. SATS rose 3.4 per cent to S$4.52; SIA Engineering climbed 5.1 per cent to close at S$2.26.

Dairy Farm was the worst performer among the index constituents, falling 1.3 per cent to US$4.45.

Across the broader market, advancers outnumbered decliners 268 to 223, with 2.15 billion securities worth S$1.33 billion changing hands on Monday.

Among the actively traded stocks was GL, which rose 10.3 per cent to S$0.80, as 60.9 million shares changed hands. The Guoco Group unit looking to take GL private raised its offer price to S$0.80 from S$0.70 on Monday.

Elsewhere in the region, markets were mixed on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.2 per cent to 29,766.97, and the ASX 200 in Australia climbed 0.1 per cent to 6,773.

In Korea, the Kospi slipped 0.3 per cent to 3,045.71, while the Shanghai Composite Index fell 1 per cent to 3,419.95.

Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at Oanda, said: "Some degree of cyclical rotation is evident in Asia today, much like Wall Street on Friday night.

"Overall, it appears that the rotation from tech to cyclical recovery stocks is the preferred option to any rise in bond yields for the early part of the week."