STI up 0.8%, outperforms regional indices

THE Singapore market saw some gains on Tuesday (Apr 5) as US equities surged overnight following Elon Musk's Twitter stake announcement that sent the counter's shares 27.1 per cent higher while Tesla rallied by over 5 per cent.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) climbed 0.8 per cent or 28.04 points to 3,445.01. Gainers outnumbered losers 259 to 123 in the broader market, with 1.03 billion shares worth S$1.05 billion changing hands.

Regional markets saw more moderate gains, with Japan's Nikkei 225, Korea's benchmark Kospi and Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index edging up 0.2 per cent, 0.05 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively.

The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index closed down 0.1 per cent. Markets in mainland China and Hong Kong took the day off to observe the Qingming Festival.

Oanda senior market analyst Jeffrey Halley said activity in Asia was muted as any bullish overspill from Wall Street is being offset by increasing nerves around China's Covid-19 situation as Shanghai reported more than 13,000 daily cases for the first time.

"Fears are increasing that China's Covid-zero policy could lead to wider and more extended shutdowns in the face of Omicron, something that will not only impact China and Asia's growth but have knock-on effects around the world," he added.

In Singapore, Sembcorp Marine was the most actively traded counter, closing flat at S$0.10 after 103 million shares worth S$10.3 million changed hands.

Among STI constituents, property developer City Developments Limited was the biggest gainer, closing 3.8 per cent or S$0.30 higher at S$8.29. At the bottom of the table was Dairy Farm International, which shed 1 per cent or US$0.03 to close at US$2.99.

All 3 local banks closed higher. DBS rose 1 per cent or S$0.38 to close at S$35.91, UOB ended 0.7 per cent or S$0.21 higher at S$31.97, while OCBC closed at S$12.37, edging up 0.2 per cent or S$0.03.