STI breaches 3,300 for first time in 2 years

THE Straits Times Index (STI) firmly crossed the 3,300 threshold on Tuesday, after flirting with the line for much of the last two trading sessions.

This marks the first time in two years that it has reached this point. The blue-chip benchmark closed the day at 3,306.08, up 0.24 per cent or 7.84 points from the previous session.

A total of 2.68 billion shares were traded on Tuesday, representing S$1.3 billion in value. Gainers outnumbered losers 244 to 199, or about five up for every four down.

The advances made by the STI were in tandem with gains in Hong Kong and among Chinese stocks, which received a boost from better-than-expected Chinese gross domestic product data.

The Hang Seng Index rose 0.21 per cent, while the Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite gained 0.35 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225, however, slipped 0.59 per cent in its re-opening follow…