Singapore Bourse May Challenge Resistance At 3,300 Points

The Singapore stock market has climbed higher in two straight sessions, advancing almost 60 points or 1.9 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 3,290-point plateau and it’s expected to extend its gains on Thursday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly positive on slightly easing geopolitical concerns and more bargain hunting, especially among technology stocks. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are tipped to follow suit.

The STI finished sharply higher on Wednesday with support in all sectors, especially the financials, industrials, properties and plantations.

For the day, the index jumped 54.86 points or 1.70 percent to finish at 3,290.90 after trading between 3,262.15 and 3,298.14. Volume was 1.61 billion shares worth 1.67 billion Singapore dollars. There were 348 gainers and 167 decliners.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT was up 0.36 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust added 0.47 percent, City Developments strengthened 2.11 percent, Comfort DelGro accelerated 2.94 percent, Dairy Farm International rose 0.85 percent, DBS Group climbed 2.01 percent, Genting Singapore advanced 2.00 percent, Hongkong Land perked 0.18 percent, Keppel Corp improved 0.82 percent, Mapletree Commercial Trust gained 1.10 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust added 1.13 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation collected 1.97 percent, SATS rallied 2.34 percent, SembCorp Industries lost 0.39 percent, Singapore Airlines spiked 2.60 percent, Singapore Exchange jumped 2.12 percent, Singapore Press Holdings rose 0.43 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering perked 0.75 percent, SingTel increased 0.79 percent, Thai Beverage gathered 1.50 percent, United Overseas Bank soared 3.50 percent, Wilmar International and Jardine Cycle both surged 2.86 percent and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding skyrocketed 3.82 percent.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened sharply higher on Wednesday and remained firmly in the green throughout the trading day.

The Dow surged 518.76 points or 1.55 percent to finish at 34,063.10, while the NASDAQ soared 487.93 points or 3.77 percent to end at 13,437.55 and the S&P 500 jumped 95.41 points or 2.24 percent to close at 4,357.86.

The rally came after the Fed announced its widely expected decision to raise interest rates for the first time since December of 2018 in an effort to combat inflation at 40-year highs. The Fed raised the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 0.25 to 0.5 percent.

The central bank also predicted ongoing rate hikes will be appropriate, with the Fed’s latest projections pointing to an interest rate of 1.9 percent by the end of the year. It also expects to begin reducing its holdings of Treasury securities and agency debt and agency mortgage-backed securities at a coming meeting.

Optimism about a potential diplomatic solution to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine also generated buying interest. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during an address to the nation that the positions in the negotiations were beginning to “sound more realistic.”

Crude oil prices dropped Wednesday, extending losses to a third straight session after data showed a surprise surge in U.S. crude inventories, and amid hopes of some progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended lower by $1.40 or 1.5 percent at $95.04 a barrel.

Closer to home, Singapore will release February data for non-oil domestic exports later today, with expectations for a decline of 0.3 percent on month and an increase of 15.7 percent on year. That follows the 5.0 percent monthly increase and the 17.6 percent annual gain in January.