Steady Start Eyed For Singapore Stock Market

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market on Tuesday snapped the three-day losing streak in which it had advanced almost 60 points or 1.7 percent. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 3,860-point plateau and it's likely to tick higher again on Wednesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is murky amid concerns about interest rates and the possibility of a trade war. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and flat and the Asian markets may split the difference.

The STI finished modestly lower on Tuesday following losses from the trusts and entertainment stocks, and mixed performances from the financials and industrials.

For the day, the index fell 14.37 points or 0.37 percent to finish at 3,860.76 after trading between 3,854.86 and 3,890.06.

Among the actives, CapitaLand Investment rose 0.41 percent, while City Developments sank 0.40 percent, Comfort DelGro rallied 1.47 percent, DBS Group declined 1.17 percent, Emperador cratered 20.00 percent, Genting Singapore dropped 0.67 percent, Hongkong Land retreated 1.43 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust plummeted 3.29 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust slumped 0.82 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation lost 0.23 percent, SATS jumped 1.86 percent, Seatrium Limited and Wilmar International both advanced 0.93 percent, SembCorp Industries stumbled 1.86 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering gained 0.82 percent, SingTel added 0.91 percent, Thai Beverage skidded 0.98 percent, Venture Corporation climbed 1.17 percent, Yangzijiang Financial surged 2.06 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding shed 0.33 percent and Keppel DC REIT, Keppel Ltd, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust and DFI Retail were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street provides little clarity as the major averages opened slightly lower but then headed in opposite directions to finish the day mixed.

The Dow gained 123.24 points or 0.28 percent to finish at 44,593.65, while the NASDAQ sank 70.41 points or 0.36 percent to close at 19,643.86 and the S&P 500 rose 2.06 points or 0.03 percent to end at 6,068.50.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders digested congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who told the Senate Banking Committee the central bank does "not need to be in a hurry" to adjust its policy stance.

Stocks moved to the downside in early trading amid lingering concerns about a global trade war after President Donald Trump officially announced tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum imports.

Oil prices moved higher Tuesday amid concerns about a possible drop in crude supplies due to U.S. sanctions on Russian oil, while a weaker dollar contributed as well to the rise in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March rose $1.00 or 1.4 percent at $73.32 a barrel.