Across the broader market, advancers outnumber decliners 326 to 168, as 926.3 million securities worth S$1 billion change hands
SINGAPORE equities finished Thursday (Jan 16) in positive territory, tracking gains of regional peers.
Blue-chip barometer the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.8 per cent or 28.55 points to 3,801.13.
The gains on the index were led by offshore and marine company Seatrium, which added 3.2 per cent or S$0.07 to close at S$2.26.
It was dragged by integrated resort operator Genting Singapore, which declined 1.3 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.74.
The three local banks ended higher. DBS was up 0.6 per cent or S$0.28 at S$43.78, while OCBC gained 0.9 per cent or S$0.15 to S$17.02. UOB increased 1.3 per cent or S$0.48 to S$37.06.
Across the broader market, advancers outnumbered decliners 326 to 168, as 926.3 million securities worth S$1 billion changed hands.
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Most key indices in the region were in the black on Thursday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index both closed up 1.2 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended 0.3 per cent higher.
However, the Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index fell 0.4 per cent.
IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong said that market expectations “are increasingly focused” on a 25-basis-point rate hike by the Bank of Japan at its meeting on Jan 23 to 24, which could raise the policy rate to 0.5 per cent after a four-meeting pause.
“A surprise decision to hold rates steady at the upcoming meeting could trigger an initial sell-off in the Japanese yen, but that could be counterbalanced by a slightly hawkish tone from policymakers to mitigate the yen’s decline,” he added.
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