Singapore shares rise as STI hits record close above 5,500
The blue-chip index is up 1.2%, with Hongkong Land leading the gainers
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[SINGAPORE] Singapore stocks rose on Wednesday (Jul 15) as the Straits Times Index (STI) closed above the 5,500-point mark for the first time.
The blue-chip barometer gained 1.2 per cent or 64.11 points to close at 5,559.72.
Hongkong Land led the gainers on the STI, rising 3.5 per cent or US$0.25 to US$7.40.
The index’s biggest decliner was Singtel , which fell 0.7 per cent or S$0.03 to S$4.41.
The three local banks ended higher. DBS gained 1.3 per cent or S$0.95 to S$72.98, OCBC rose 1.7 per cent or S$0.48 to S$28.36, and UOB was up 1.3 per cent or S$0.57 at S$44.95.
Within the iEdge Singapore Next 50 Index, Yangzijiang Financial was the top gainer, rising 7.3 per cent or S$0.015 to S$0.22, while China Aviation Oil was the biggest loser, falling 1.2 per cent or S$0.02 to S$1.66.
Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 396 to 193, after 1.2 billion securities worth S$2.1 billion changed hands.
Key regional indices were mostly positive.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 1.4 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.5 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi was up 6.2 per cent. Meanwhile, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI fell 0.4 per cent.
Asset manager DWS sees the outlook for equity markets remaining favourable, said Vincenzo Vedda, its chief investment officer. He attributed this primarily to the “still very strong growth prospects for corporate earnings”.
“However, we are seeing a certain degree of nervousness in the market regarding the sustainability of these elevated profit levels, particularly in cyclical technology sectors,” he added.
This article has been written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a reporter
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