Singapore shares break three-day losing streak; STI up 0.4%

SINGAPORE shares rose on Wednesday, breaking a three-day losing streak amid mixed trading in the Asia-Pacific region.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.4 per cent or 13.11 points to close at 2,958.63 points on Wednesday. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 282 to 206, with 3.39 billion securities worth S$1.27 billion having changed hands.

The top gainer on the index on Wednesday was Venture Corporation, which rose 2.3 per cent to S$20.37. At the bottom of the table was Jardine Strategic Holdings, which declined 3.2 per cent to US$26.81.

Shares of Sheng Siong were trading higher on Wednesday, rising 1.3 per cent to S$1.61. It was reported on Tuesday that the supermarket operator would increase bonuses for eligible staff, after having performed well in 2020.

DBS Group Research said in a note on Wednesday that in the short term, Covid-19 beneficiaries such as Sheng Siong, personal protective equipment manufacturers and semiconductor stocks should outperform Covid-19 casualties ahead of results season.

Catalist-listed China Star Food Group was the most active counter, with over 355 million shares traded. It fell 12 per cent to close at 4.4 Singapore cents, giving up earlier gains. The company announced a proposed placement of 290 million new shares at 2.1 cents apiece last week, and said on Tuesday that it has received the listing and quotation notice from the Singapore Exchange for the shares.

Meanwhile, Asian markets were mixed as investors awaited the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting later in the day. The Nikkei 225 in Japan rose 0.3 per cent to 28,635.21, while the Shanghai Composite Index finished 0.1 per cent higher at 3,573.34. However, the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell 0.3 per cent to 29,297.53, and South Korea's Kospi also finished lower at 3,122.56, down 0.6 per cent.

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