Singapore stocks snap 2-day losing streak; STI rises 0.3%

Tay Peck Gek

Published Wed, Jan 18, 2023 · 06:24 PM

SINGAPORE shares snapped a two-day losing streak on Wednesday (Jan 18), in tandem with most Asian bourses. The Straits Times Index (STI) closed 0.3 per cent or 9.04 points higher at 3,289.55 points.

Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said: “We could be entering a turning point for global equity fund flows. Inflows into United States equities are decelerating, while they are picking up in China, the rest of Asia, and Japan.”

Singapore Airlines’s (SIA) : C6L 0%robust passenger numbers for last December has perked up its share price to S$5.88, or 0.9 per cent higher. This was in spite of a downgrade call on the counter by CGS-CIMB from “add” to “hold”, as the research house no longer viewed the stock’s upside as compelling, despite SIA’s strong dividends.

Another STI constituent, property player City Developments : C09 0%, rose 0.8 per cent to S$8. The counter was listed as the top choice of brokerage RHB in a report published on Tuesday. Its analyst said that the local residential market is set to stay resilient in 2023 despite rising interest-rate pressures, due to downsides being limited by the sector’s low inventory and supply, relatively healthy household balance sheets, and rising rental yields.

Sembcorp Marine : S51 0% topped the active-counters chart with a trading volume of 58.9 million. The counter closed 0.7 per cent lower at S$0.135.

Across the broader market, gainers beat decliners 316 to 191, on a turnover of 826.3 million securities worth about S$1.1 billion.