Singapore Stock Market Predicted To Open In The Green

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has alternated between positive and negative finishes through the last four trading days since the end of the five-day losing streak in which it had stumbled more than 115 points or 3.5 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just beneath the 3,140-point plateau although it's likely to move back to the upside again on Tuesday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive as financial institutions around the world continue to takes steps to head off more turmoil. The European and U. S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow that lead.

The STI finished sharply lower on Monday following losses form the financial shares and industrials, and a mixed picture from the properties.

For the day, the index retreated 43,52 points or 1.37 percent to finish at 3,139.76 after trading between 3,123.55 and 3,179.05.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT fell 1.07 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust stumbled 2.06 percent, CapitaLand Investment tanked 2.25 percent, City Developments slumped 1.39 percent, Comfort DelGro was down 0.85 percent, DBS Group slid 1.01 percent, Emperador advanced 0.98 percent, Genting Singapore dipped 0.94 percent, Hongkong Land climbed 1.20 percent, Keppel Corp surrendered 2.04 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust lost 1.15 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust dropped 1.27 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust sank 1.18 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation retreated 1.47 percent, SATS plummeted 5.02 percent, SembCorp Industries declined 1.72 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering slipped 0.87 percent, SingTel eased 0.83 percent, United Overseas Bank shed 1.16 percent, Wilmar International tumbled 2.16 percent, Yangzijiang Financial skidded 1.37 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding plunged 3.28 percent and Thai Beverage and Keppel DC REIT were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened mixed on Monday but all eventually settled firmly in the green.

The Dow surged 382.60 points or 1.20 percent to finish at 32,244.58, while the NASDAQ rose 45.02 points or 0.39 percent to close at 11,675.54 and the S&P 500 added 34.93 points or 0.89 percent to end at 3,951.57.

The strength on Wall Street partly reflected a positive reaction to the latest efforts to address turmoil in the banking sector, including UBS Group's (UBS) state-backed acquisition of Credit Suisse (CS).

The Federal Reserve also announced it has joined with other central banks around to world to take coordinated action to enhance the provision of liquidity via the standing U.S. dollar liquidity swap line arrangements.

Traders were also looking ahead to the Fed's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday, with CME Group's FedWatch Tool currently indicating a 26.9 percent chance interest rates will remain unchanged and a 73.1 percent chance of a 25-basis point rate hike.

Crude oil prices moved higher on Monday to settle on a firm note, shrugging off concerns the banking chaos might lead to financial crisis or a recession. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended higher by $0.90 or 1.4 percent at $67.64 a barrel.