Singapore shares rise on Monday amid softer inflation data; STI up 0.3%

SINGAPORE shares ended higher on Monday (Sep 25) as the Republic continued to post softer inflation data in August.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) gained 0.3 per cent, or 10.58 points, to close at 3,215.4. Losers outnumbered gainers 277 to 252, after 1.1 billion shares worth S$682.9 million changed hands.

Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at IG, noted that investors were anticipating Singapore’s August inflation data, released on Monday.

Headline inflation for the month slipped to 4 per cent, from July’s 4.1 per cent. Core inflation, which excludes accommodation and private transport, dipped to 3.4 per cent in August, from 3.8 per cent in the preceding month.

Yeap said the Monetary Authority of Singapore may extend its pause on monetary-policy tightening in October, while keeping watch over ongoing economic risks amid softer core-pricing pressures and the recent US Federal Reserve decision to keep rates on hold.

Elsewhere in the region, key indices were mixed. The Hang Seng Index fell 1.8 per cent, and the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI and the Kospi Composite Index each lost 0.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the Nikkei 225 was up 0.9 per cent.

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In the Singapore market, Thai Beverage was the biggest gainer on the STI, rising 5.4 per cent or S$0.03 to close at S$0.59.

The top decliner was Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust , falling 1.4 per cent or S$0.02 to S$1.43.

The trio of local banks ended higher on Monday. DBS gained 0.6 per cent or S$0.20 to finish at S$33.45, OCBC rose 0.9 per cent or S$0.11 to S$12.72, and UOB ended 0.8 per cent or S$0.23 up at S$28.45.