The Singapore stock market has experienced an uptick over the past two sessions, making gains of nearly 40 points, which translates to an increase of 1%. The Straits Times Index now hovers just above the 3,810-point threshold and looks set to continue its positive momentum as it opens on Monday.
The global perspective for Asian markets appears optimistic, buoyed by an improved outlook on interest rate trends. Both European and U.S. markets closed significantly higher, suggesting a similarly positive opening for Asian exchanges.
On Friday, the Singapore market saw moderate gains, helped by advances in financial shares, while property stocks, trusts, and industrial shares exhibited mixed performances. Over the day, the index climbed 9.65 points or 0.25% to conclude at 3,810.78, after trading within a range of 3,791.69 and 3,819.18.
Notably, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust rose 0.51%, while CapitaLand Investment fell by 0.80%. City Developments surged 0.99%, Comfort DelGro dipped 0.71%, and DBS Group increased 0.16%. Genting Singapore moved up 0.68%, Keppel DC REIT leapt 0.91%, and Keppel Ltd advanced 0.15%. On the flip side, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust dropped 0.83%, whereas Mapletree Industrial Trust rose 0.45%. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation advanced by 0.59%, SATS decreased 0.28%, Seatrium Limited went up 0.44%, and SembCorp Industries surged 1.26%. Singapore Technologies Engineering slightly dipped 0.21%, while SingTel improved by 0.64%. Meanwhile, Wilmar International gained 0.33%, and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding took a significant hit, falling 2.66%. Yangzijiang Financial, alongside Thai Beverage, Emperador, Mapletree Logistics Trust, Hongkong Land, and Jardine Cycle & Carriage, remained unchanged.
Wall Street's performance adds to this optimism, with major U.S. indices opening strongly on Friday and closing near their peak values for the session. The Dow rose 334.73 points or 0.78% to close at 43,487.83. Meanwhile, the NASDAQ climbed 291.90 points or 1.51%, closing at 19,630.20, and the S&P 500 increased 59.30 points or 1.00% to end at 5,996.66. For the week, the Dow saw an increase of 3.7%, the S&P of 2.9%, and the NASDAQ of 2.5%.
The performance of stocks has been bolstered by a recent decline in treasury yields, despite the benchmark ten-year note's yields recovering from an early setback to finish the day relatively unchanged. This pullback in yields occurs against the backdrop of newly released U.S. inflation data, which has rekindled optimism around interest rates.
Further fueling this optimism, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller mentioned in an interview with CNBC that the central bank might lower interest rates multiple times within the year should inflation decline as projected.
In commodity markets, crude oil prices demonstrated a significant downturn on Friday, continuing the sharp decline seen in prior sessions. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery dropped $0.80 or 1% to $77.88 per barrel on Friday, although it rose by about 1% for the week overall.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company -
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