STI up 0.5% over the week; Singtel at 9-month high on possible strategic changes

THE Straits Times Index (STI) rose 16.99 points or 0.53 per cent to 3,201.76, culminating in a 0.5 per cent incline over the week. Some 1.57 billion securities worth S$1.27 billion changed hands, and advancers outnumbered decliners 282 to 183.

The best index performer was Singtel, whose shares rose S$0.12 or 4.9 per cent to a nine-month high of S$2.55. Some 91.4 million shares changed hands, after Citi on Thursday started a "positive catalyst watch" on the stock, saying that some strategic changes could be announced when new CEO Yuen Kuan Moon provides guidance as early as next month, when the telco announces its results.

Bloomberg said Mr Yuen could consider various options to boost earnings such as selling loss-making businesses, spinning off some infrastructure assets and creating value in underappreciated assets such as information technology firm NCS.

The worst index performer was Sembcorp Industries, after having risen 3.7 per cent on Thursday. Its shares fell S$0.04 or 2.02 per cent to S$1.94 on Friday.

The most active counter on the bourse was mm2 Asia, following its rights issue which raised nearly S$54.7 million last Thursday. Some 139.5 million shares in the company changed hands. mm2 shares added S$0.003 or 5.26 per cent to S$0.06.

Asian markets finished higher, as the Nikkei 225 added 0.14 per cent, the Hang Seng Index added 0.61 per cent, the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.81 per cent, and Malaysia's KLCI rose a marginal 0.01 per cent.

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This was following robust economic data which came out of the US overnight, and which helped propel US benchmark indexes to records. Yields on benchmark 10-year Treasuries declined.

On Friday, China also reported that its economy expanded at its fastest pace in record in the first quarter, recovering sharply from its Covid-hit year-ago period.