SINGAPORE – Stocks in Singapore rallied on Sept 23 as regional markets posted mixed results.
The Straits Times Index (STI) was up 0.38 per cent, or 13.78 points, at 3,638.54, which was a 17-year high.
Across the broader market, decliners slightly edged out advancers 289 to 286, after 1.1 billion shares worth $1.2 billion changed hands.
On the STI, Mapletree Industrial Trust was the biggest gainer, closing up 1.6 per cent, or 4 cents, at $2.49 on Sept 23.
The trio of local banks were the next top gainers, hitting new highs. DBS Bank led the way, rising 1.2 per cent, or 46 cents, to $39.46; followed by OCBC Bank, up 1.1 per cent, or 17 cents, at $15.64, while UOB gained 0.9 per cent, or 31 cents, to end at $33.25.
The biggest loser was DFI International, closing down 3.1 per cent, or 6 US cents, at US$1.86.
Across the region, major indexes had mixed results. South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.3 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.5 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.06 per cent.
Mr Vishnu Varathan, head of macro research at Mizuho Securities, noted that markets are facing a “cold-ilocks” conundrum, where a missed soft landing could have a chilling effect. There is a two-pronged risk of either the US Federal Reserve failing to deliver rate cuts or easing as the markets have convinced themselves, or the markets getting cold feet on the soft-landing assumptions due to recession-type risks that supplant relief from rate cuts.
Both risks are not mutually exclusive, with the Fed getting cold feet in delivering rate cuts leading to markets getting cold feet on a soft landing. The rally from the Fed rate cuts is not without tensions, noted Mr Varathan.
“Some bumpiness
