Singapore Stock Market May Find Additional Support On Tuesday

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market rebounded on Monday, one session after ending the three-day winning streak in which it had risen more than 15 points or 0.5 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,300-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Tuesday. The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on renewed optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were firmly higher and the Asian markets are predicted to open in similar fashion. The STI finished modestly higher on Monday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues. For the day, the index gained 10.26 points or 0.31 percent to finish at 3,303.19 after trading between 3,292.03 and 3,307.92. Among the actives, CapitaLand Investment spiked 1.92 percent, while City Developments advanced 0.67 percent, Comfort DelGro fell 0.17 percent, DBS Group collected 0.48 percent, Genting Singapore dropped 0.56 percent, Hongkong Land jumped 1.54 percent, Keppel DC REIT surged 2.98 percent, Keppel Ltd rose 0.15 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust accelerated 1.64 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust climbed 0.92 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust soared 2.96 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation eased 0.07 percent, SATS slumped 0.78 percent, Seatrium Limited retreated 1.09 percent, SembCorp Industries added 0.38 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering shed 0.25 percent, Venture Corporation tumbled 1.45 percent, Wilmar International sank 0.31 percent, Yangzijiang Financial rallied 1.56 percent and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, Thai Beverage, SingTel and Emperador were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher on Monday and remained firmly in the green throughout the trading day.

The Dow advanced 176.59 points or 0.46 percent to finish at 38,852.27, while the NASDAQ rallied 192.92 points or 1.19 percent to close at 16,349.25 and the S&P 500 improved 52.95 points or 1.03 percent to end at 5,180.74.

Stocks continued to benefit from the upward momentum seen over the two previous sessions, which partly reflected renewed optimism about the outlook for interest rates.

Relatively dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell combined with weaker-than-expected job growth in April have largely eliminated short-lived concerns the Fed might actually consider raising rates.

Investors have instead grown increasingly confident about a rate cut in the coming months, with the chances rates will be lower by September now at 83.5 percent, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

Crude oil futures settled modestly higher on Monday following Saudi Arabia's decision to hike its selling price for the European and Asian markets. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for June ended higher by $0.37 or 0.47 percent at $78.48 a barrel.