FX.co ★ STI Hits Record High, Tracks Wall Street Rally

Singapore shares climbed 36 points, or 0.6%, to a fresh record of 5,780 around midday on Thursday, extending the previous session’s advance and mirroring overnight gains on Wall Street led by heavyweight technology stocks. Sentiment was further bolstered by the latest data, with a private survey indicating that Singapore’s private sector maintained solid growth in August.

The broader index was chiefly supported by non-energy minerals, transportation, producer manufacturing, and financials. Investors, however, remained cautious ahead of Friday’s release of July retail sales figures, following an acceleration in June. Upside was also limited by rising oil prices, which heightened inflation worries and strengthened expectations of an interest rate hike amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Among the top performers were DFI Retail Group (+3.4%), Hongkong Land (+2.8%), Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (+1.7%), DBS Group (+1.3%), and OCBC (+1.2%).