Singapore shares rise on optimism over reopening of economies

SINGAPORE shares ended the day higher on Tuesday, with the Straits Times Index (STI) advancing 2.4 per cent or 60.77 points to 2,611.63.

This comes as the city-state's circuit-breaker period ended the day before, and more businesses and activities are progressively allowed. The gains also tracked overnight rallies on Wall Street and Europe.

Gainers outnumbered losers 321 to 136 after two billion shares worth S$2.03 billion changed hands.

Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at AxiCorp, said: "Risk assets continue to shrug off political angst while reacting positively to coronavirus lockdowns being eased across the globe." 

Among the STI constituents, the best performer was SATS, which rose 6.0 per cent or S$0.16 to S$2.85. DBS Group Research had on Monday upgraded the counter to "hold" from "fully valued" while maintaining its target price at S$2.64, saying that the stock is "on track for long recovery".

At the bottom of the STI's table was the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), which were also the only two STI counters that ended in the red. SGX fell 1.7 per cent to S$8.28 while SPH saw a 0.8 per cent decline to S$1.31. 

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ComfortDelGro was the most traded stock among the blue-chips, gaining 4.2 per cent or S$0.06 to S$1.49. The transport giant announced on Tuesday that it has tied up with ALPS Pte Ltd, the supply chain arm of Singapore's public healthcare system, to involve its cabbies in the delivery of essential medicines.

Singapore's banking trio also ended the day higher. DBS rose 2.8 per cent or S$0.55 to S$20.21, OCBC advanced 2.8 per cent or S$0.24 to $8.89, while UOB gained 2.5 per cent or S$0.49 to S$20.27.

The STI's performance was in line with other regional benchmarks, including China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia.