STI continues rally on Wednesday’s close

[SINGAPORE] Singapore stocks ended higher on Wednesday (Nov 12), tracking most of its regional peers.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) gained 0.6 per cent or 26.71 points to finish at 4,568.91. Meanwhile, the iEdge Singapore Next 50 Index gained 0.1 per cent or 1.25 points to 1,457.29.

Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 324 to 257, after 1.8 billion securities worth S$1.8 billion changed hands.

Key regional indices mostly gained. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index went up 0.9 per cent; Japan’s Nikkei 225 index increased 0.4 per cent; South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.1 per cent; but the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI lost 0.2 per cent.

Jardine Matheson led the gainers on Singapore’s blue-chip index, rising 4.1 per cent or US$2.58 to end at US$66.03.

The worst performer among STI constituents was Mapletree PanAsia Commercial Trust, which fell 1.4 per cent or S$0.02 to close at S$1.46.

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The three local banks ended mixed on Wednesday. OCBC rose 0.9 per cent or S$0.16 to S$18.71; while UOB was up 0.3 per cent or S$0.10 at S$34.13; and DBS finished 0.1 per cent or S$0.03 lower at S$55.05.

With the prospect of the US government shutdown lifting, data and renewed liquidity flow are coming back into the picture, said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

“The mood on desks is shifting from caution to quiet determination; everyone wants their year-end rally, and it’ll take something seismic to knock that instinct out of them,” he noted.