STI rises 0.5%, tracking regional indices

Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 330 to 176 after 1.4 billion securities worth S$1.3 billion change hands

Shares in the Republic rose on Friday (Aug 22), tracking regional indices.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) closed 0.5 per cent or 22.12 points higher at 4,253.02.

Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 330 to 176 after 1.4 billion securities worth S$1.3 billion changed hands.

The top gainer on the STI was Singtel, which advanced 2.2 per cent or S$0.09 to S$4.20.

The trio of local banks ended the day higher. DBS was up 0.4 per cent or S$0.21 at S$50.81, UOB rose 0.9 per cent or S$0.31 to S$35.40 and OCBC gained 0.2 per cent or S$0.04 to end at S$16.91.

The biggest loser on the index was DFI Retail Group, which fell 1.3 per cent or US$0.04 to US$3.12. This is the second consecutive day that the counter was the biggest loser, after falling 11 per cent on Thursday.

Across Asia, major indices were in the green. South Korea’s Kospi and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index both rose 0.9 per cent.

The Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index rose 0.3 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 inched up 0.1 per cent.

Kai Wang, Asia equity market strategist at Morningstar, said the market is less optimistic that the US Federal Reserve will cut rates in September.

“Both tech and financial services saw the biggest drawdowns given that concerns over semiconductor sector’s high valuations resurfaced” ahead of Fed chair Jerome Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole, he said.

There are worries there will be no September rate cut, which sent investors to de-risk and take profits, Wang noted.

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