STI gets boost from rise in bank stocks

A SHARP rise in the three banks on Tuesday helped push the Straits Times Index 26.32 points, or 0.8 per cent, up to 3,334.02 as traders positioned themselves ahead of an expected rise in Western markets. Banks contributed exactly half this gain and with Monday's seven-point rise, the STI has almost regained all the ground lost last week.

On Thursday, the European Central Bank is expected to announced a vast bond-buying programme aimed at reflating the region's flagging economies, an announcement which traders expect will send European stocks and bonds rallying. This may already have started - Europe opened Tuesday largely in the black.

As for Wall Street, a mild bounce in the futures market for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts suggested that the market there would open on a firm footing after the Monday public holiday.