A quiet but firm week for the STI

THE Straits Times Index managed to rise on the first four trading days this week, though volume remained low throughout. The five-day gain was 25 points or 0.8 per cent to 3,038.71, with the index slipping 1.19 points yesterday during which 1.8 billion units worth $872 million were traded.

On Tuesday, volume done of $792 million - of which $450 million or 57 per cent was done in the 30 STI components - was the lowest daily total for the year so far.

The rebound after several days of selling in January came after Wall Street, which itself came under tremendous pressure last month on worries over the health of the Chinese and US economies, managed to stabilise and recover almost all its losses.