Win Streak May Continue For Singapore Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has moved higher in two straight sessions, gathering almost 25 points or 0.8 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,280-point plateau and it's tipped to open in the green again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is a study in contrasts, with gains among oil stocks likely offset by weakness among the technology shares. The European and U.S. markets were mixed and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.

The STI finished modestly higher on Monday following gains from the properties and REITs, while the financials and industrials were mixed.

For the day, the index gained 22.18 points or 0.68 percent to finish at 3,281.08 after trading between 3,263.36 and 3,287.44.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT added 0.70 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust advanced 1.01 percent, CapitaLand Investment accelerated 1.90 percent, City Developments gained 0.54 percent, Comfort DelGro and Mapletree Industrial Trust both jumped 1.69 percent, DBS Group dipped 0.09 percent, Genting Singapore skyrocketed 4.46 percent, Hongkong Land rose 0.23 percent, Keppel Corp spiked 1.95 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust rallied 1.67 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust soared 2.34 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation collected 0.73 percent, SATS lost 0.36 percent, SembCorp Industries fell 023 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering strengthened 1.37 percent, SingTel climbed 1.22 percent, Thai Beverage surged 2.38 percent, United Overseas Bank sank 0.40 percent, Wilmar International and Venture Corporation both improved 1.19 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding increased 0.83 percent and Yangzijiang Financial, Emperador, Frasers Logistics and Keppel DC REIT were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is incongruous as the Dow and S&P opened higher and finished the same way, while the NASDAQ opened in the red and remained there throughout the session.

The Dow surged 327.00 points or 0.98 percent to finish at 33,601.15, while the NASDAQ dropped 32.45 points or 0.27 percent to end at 12,189.45 and the S&P 500 added 15.20 points or 0.37 percent to close at 4,124.51.

The strength on Wall Street rose the back of the energy sector as crude oil prices surged, while technology stocks ebbed on fears over the outlook for interest rates.

Oil prices rose sharply on Monday, buoyed by the decision of OPEC+ oil producers to cut output by around 1.16 million barrels per day. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended higher by $4.75 or 6.3 percent at $80.42 a barrel.

In economic news, the Institute for Supply Management said manufacturing activity in the U.S. contracted at a slightly faster rate in March. Also, the Commerce Department unexpectedly showed a slight decrease in U.S. construction spending in February.