Singapore stocks edge up at Wednesday’s open; STI up 0.5%

SINGAPORE stocks advanced on Wednesday (Dec 14) morning, tracking overnight gains in Wall Street as US consumer inflation data came in better than expected on Tuesday.

The Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.5 per cent or 17.3 points to 3,288.58 as at 9.02 am. Gainers outnumbered losers 94 to 25 after 49.5 million shares worth S$88.2 million changed hands.

The most active counter by volume was Asiatic Group with 5.8 million shares changing hands, gaining 25 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.005.

Other heavily traded securities included CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust , with 3.8 million shares traded. It rose 2.5 per cent or S$0.05 to S$2.04. Yoma Strategic was also actively traded, with 2.7 million shares changing hands and an 8.9 per cent or S$0.009 gain to S$0.11.

Banking stocks rose in early morning trade, with DBS increasing 0.6 per cent or S$0.20 to S$34.29. OCBC rose 0.2 per cent or S$0.03 to S$12.44, while UOB gained 0.3 per cent or S$0.08 to S$31.33.

Wall Street stocks jumped on Tuesday, as consumer inflation data came in better than expected and markets shifted focus to the US central bank’s upcoming policy decision.

US Labour Department figures showed the consumer price index – a key measure of inflation – rose 7.1 per cent from a year ago in November, which is the smallest advance since December 2021.

The S&P 500 ended 0.7 per cent higher at 4,019.65, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 per cent at 34,108.64. Meanwhile, the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index bounced 1 per cent as well to 11,256.81.

In Europe, shares climbed on Tuesday after the softer-than-expected US inflation data spurred bets that the Federal Reserve would scale back the size of its interest rate hikes in the world’s largest economy.

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STI advances 1% ahead of crucial US inflation data

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 1.3 per cent, tracking sharp gains in global markets.