SINGAPORE – A record-setting session on Wall Street overnight failed to inspire local investors, who seemed more concerned about banking profits from the bourse’s stellar run of late.
The mood change did not inflict much damage, however, with the Straits Times Index (STI) down just 0.2 per cent, or 8.42 points, to 3,624.76 on Sept 20 with gainers edging out losers 294 to 274 on strong trade of 1.7 billion securities worth $2.3 billion.
DBS was the STI’s top gainer, rising 1.3 per cent to $39. Its banking peers were also in the black: OCBC gained 0.1 per cent to $15.47 and UOB rose 0.6 per cent to $32.94.
Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust was at the bottom of the STI table, falling 4 per cent to $1.45.
The STI bucked the regional trend, with most Asian markets ending higher after Wall Street belatedly celebrated the Sept 18 big interest rate cut.
The S&P 500 jumped 1.7 per cent to a record high, as did the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which added 1.3 per cent. The Nasdaq outdid them both, surging 2.5 per cent.
Regional shares took the hint, with South Korea’s Kospi up 0.5 per cent, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 1.4 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.5 per cent. Australian stocks added 0.2 per cent to a record close.
IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong said investors appear to have digested the US Federal Reserve’s reassurances for a soft landing, as well as its “decisive pivot” to support the labour market.
“It seems that bears may have a hard time standing in the way, apart from tapping on the sell-the-news narrative and weak seasonality, which are less significant amid the broader macro picture,” he said.
Mr Yeap added that