Singapore shares climb on Friday; STI gains 0.2%
Singtel is one of the most traded counters after announcing it had sold part of its stake in Bharti Airtel
[SINGAPORE] Local stocks rose on Friday (May 16), a day after the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Singapore Exchange Regulation announced they were seeking feedback on proposed changes to the Singapore bourse.
The stock exchange’s blue-chip barometer, the Straits Times Index (STI), rose 0.2 per cent or 5.93 points to 3,897.87.
Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 307 to 203, as one billion securities worth S$1.1 billion changed hands.
The biggest winner on the STI was CapitaLand Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust, which was up 1.5 per cent or S$0.04 at S$2.63.
On the other end of the index was conglomerate Jardine Matheson, which fell 1.5 per cent or US$0.70 to US$46.74.
Another STI constituent, Singtel, gained 1.3 per cent or S$0.05 to S$3.80, after the group announced it has sold a 1.2 per cent stake in India’s Bharti Airtel for S$2 billion. Over 26.9 million Singtel shares worth S$102.1 million were traded.
The local bank counters finished mixed. DBS, which traded ex-dividend, fell 1.1 per cent or S$0.50 to S$44.60. UOB edged up slightly by S$0.01 to S$35.50. Meanwhile, OCBC gained 0.5 per cent or S$0.08 to S$16.32.
Outside Singapore, regional indices ended mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.5 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.2 per cent. The Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index slid 0.1 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed flat.
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