Singapore Bourse May Crack Resistance At 3,900 Points

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has tracked higher in back-to-back sessions, gathering more than 30 points or 0.8 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 3,880-point plateau and it may see additional support on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is mixed to higher on better-than-expected inflation data. The European and U.S. markets were mostly higher and the Asian bourses figure to follow that lead.

The STI finished slightly higher on Tuesday following gains from the financial shares and trusts, while the property sector was mixed.

For the day, the index perked 4.89 points or 0.13 percent to finish at the daily low of 3,881.05 after peaking at 3,956.26.

Among the actives, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust slumped 1.90 percent, while CapitaLand Investment rose 0.40 percent, City Developments dropped 0.82 percent, Comfort DelGro added 0.66 percent, DBS Group climbed 1.19 percent, DFI Retail Group strengthened 1.48 percent, Frasers Centrepoint Trust stumbled 2.64 percent, Hongkong Land improved 0.80 percent, Keppel Ltd dipped 0.15 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust advanced 0.83 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust gained 0.51 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust soared 3.70 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation collected 0.74 percent, SATS rallied 2.06 percent, Seatrium Limited accelerated 2.96 percent, SembCorp Industries sank 0.30 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering plummeted 7.08 percent, SingTel plunged 4.87 percent, Thai Beverage tanked 3.88 percent, Venture Corporation jumped 1.54 percent, Yangzijiang Financial spiked 3.57 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding surged 4.25 percent and Emperador, Genting Singapore, Keppel DC REIT and Wilmar International were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is mixed as the Dow opened in the red and remained there throughout, while the NASDAQ and S&P 500 were in positive territory from start to finish.

The Dow slumped 269.67 points or 0.64 percent to finish at 42,140.43, while the NASDAQ surged 301.74 points or 1.61 percent to close at 19,010.08 and the S&P 500 gained 42.36 points or 0.72 percent to end at 5,886.55.

The continued strength in the broader markets followed the release of a Labor Department report showing consumer prices in the U.S. rose less than expected in April.

The slightly tamer-than-expected inflation data eased concerns about President Donald Trump's new tariffs on U.S. trade partners leading to higher prices.

Meanwhile, a steep drop by shares of UnitedHealth (UNH) weighed on the Dow, with the healthcare giant plunging by 17.8 percent after the company suspended its full-year guidance.

Crude oil prices showed another significant move to the upside on Tuesday, reaching its highest closing level in almost a month on optimism about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery surged $1.72 or 2.8 percent to $63.67 a barrel.