Singapore Stock Market Tipped To Find Support On Friday

Ahead of Thursday’s holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr, the Singapore stock market had moved lower in three straight sessions, sinking more than 75 points or 2.5 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now rests just beneath the 3,125-point plateau although it figures to stop the bleeding on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, with bargain hunting expected particularly among the technology stocks. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.

The STI finished modestly lower on Wednesday following losses from the properties and mixed performances from the financials and industrials.

For the day, the index shed 21.01 points or 0.67 percent to finish at 3,123.26 after trading between 3,115.75 and 3,142.60. Volume was 1.54 billion shares worth 1.48 billion Singapore dollars. There were 229 decliners and 223 gainers.

Among the actives, Ascendas REIT dropped 0.68 percent, while CapitaLand slid 0.28 percent, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust tumbled 1.43 percent, City Developments retreated 1.19 percent, Dairy Farm International rose 0.23 percent, DBS Group collected 0.20 percent, Keppel Corp sank 0.94 percent, Mapletree Commercial Trust tanked 1.46 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust plunged 2.03 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation declined 1.03 percent, SATS gained 0.26 percent, SembCorp Industries spiked 2.02 percent, Singapore Airlines shed 0.63 percent, Singapore Exchange was up 0.20 percent, Singapore Press Holdings jumped 1.27 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering added 0.54 percent, SingTel and Hongkong Land Holdings both lost 0.41 percent, Thai Beverage plummeted 2.11 percent, United Overseas Bank fell 0.36 percent, Wilmar International surrendered 1.03 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding skidded 1.35 percent and Comfort DelGro, Genting Singapore and Jardine Strategic Holdings were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is firm as stocks opened higher on Thursday and remained solidly in the green throughout the trading day.

The Dow surged 433.79 points or 1.29 percent to finish at 34,021.45, while the NASDAQ advanced 93.31 points or 0.72 percent to end at 13,124.99 and the S&P 500 climbed 49.46 points or 1.22 percent to close at 4,112.50.

The rally on Wall Street came as investors scooped up bargains following heavy losses in recent sessions, which were driven by inflation concerns.

In economic news, the Labor Department said producer prices increased more than expected in April. The Labor Department also said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week.

Crude oil prices declined sharply on Thursday, weighed down by rising worries about outlook for energy demand and on news that Colonial Pipeline has resumed operations at its facilities. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for June ended down by $2.26 or 3.4 percent at $63.82 a barrel, a two-week low.