STI up 1.33% on Wednesday, posts best H1 total return since 2017

SINGAPORE'S *STI advanced 1.33 per cent or 40.97 points to 3,130.46 on Wednesday and registered its strongest half-year to June performance since 2017.

The blue-chip index generated a total return of 11.8 per cent for the first six months this year compared to a 13.8 per cent total return in the first half of 2017.

Said Singapore Exchange's market strategist Geoff Howie: "From the opening bell, trading activity indicated institutional investors had used the last day of the quarter to add to their Singapore exposures."

Across the broader market, gainers outpaced losers 265 to 223 with 1.89 billion securities worth S$1.46 billion changing hands.

Property developer U14 was the top index performer gaining 2.5 per cent or S$0.18 to S$7.30.

Local banking stocks were also among the top gainers on the STI. D05 rose 2.2 per cent or S$0.63 to S$29.81, U11 gained 1.7 per cent or S$0.44 to S$25.82, while O39 advanced 2.2 per cent or S$0.26 to S$11.95. Bank lending in Singapore rose 0.2 per cent in May as business loans pick up and loans to consumers hold steady, data from the Monetary Authority of Singapore showed on Wednesday. 

Of the 30 STI constituents, only three counters ended the day in the red. AJBU was the worst-performing, shedding 0.8 per cent or S$0.02 to end at S$2.49. ME8U fell 0.7 per cent or S$0.02 to S$2.83 while C07 was down 0.3 per cent or S$0.06 to S$21.36.

G13 was the most heavily traded by volume on the blue-chip index, edging up 0.6 per cent or 0.5 Singapore cent to 83.5 Singapore cents after over 34 million shares changed hands.

Outside the STI, S51 was most active counter. Its shares fell 8.4 per cent or 1.1 Singapore cents to 12 Singapore cents, after over 394 million securities changed hands. The group had said on Tuesday that it is partnering grid operator SP Group to install an additional 4.0 megawatt-peak (MWp) of solar energy across seven rooftops at its Tuas Boulevard Yard.

Key regional markets were a mixed bag. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended 0.57 per cent lower, the Kuala Lumpur Composite dipped 1.01 per cent while Japan's Nikkei 225 ended nearly flat at 0.07 per cent lower. Meanwhile, Seoul's Kospi gained 0.3 per cent and the Jakarta Composite was up 0.61 per cent.

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