Singapore stocks rise for third straight day amid mixed regional showing; STI up 0.5%

[SINGAPORE] Local stocks closed higher on Wednesday (Aug 6), marking a third consecutive day of gains despite a mixed regional market performance and Wall Street’s decline the previous day. The US market dip followed weak services data that compounded concerns over last week’s soft jobs report.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.5 per cent or 19.12 points to end at 4,227.70. Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 309 to 217, with 1.5 billion securities worth S$1.4 billion having changed hands.

On the index, was the top gainer. It rose 2.3 per cent or S$0.06 to S$2.63.

Sembcorp came in at the bottom of the table, shedding 1.3 per cent or S$0.1 to S$7.70.

The trio of local banks ended the day in the black. DBS rose 1.3 per cent or S$0.61 to S$48.85; OCBC was up 0.4 per cent or S$0.06 at S$17.04, and UOB edged up 0.2 per cent or S$0.08 to S$36.45.

Regional markets ended mixed on Wednesday, with South Korea’s Kospi Index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index both flat. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.6 per cent, while Malaysia’s Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index advanced 0.2 per cent.

This showing reflected underlying caution across the broader market amid ongoing tariff-related uncertainties.

José Torres, senior economist at Interactive Brokers, noted that tension resulting from the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on semiconductors, pharmaceutical equipment and on Moscow and New Delhi specifically, is “generating some hesitation in markets during this weak seasonal period”.

He also pointed to softer US economic data, with the non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) slipping to 50.1 in July, from 50.8 in June.

While a reading above 50 still indicates expansion in the services sector – which makes up over two-thirds of the US economy – it signalled a lighter demand environment amid firm price pressures, said Torres.

He added that US Treasuries are seeing losses in “bear-flattening fashion”, led by the short-end as heavier inflation expectations quell Federal Reserve rate-cut expectations and drive the yield curve north.

Torres expects equities across most sectors to face selling pressure, fixed-income instruments along the maturity structure to deal with higher borrowing costs, and cyclical commodities, except for natural gas, to trade lower. 

On the other hand, volatility protection instruments and the greenback are catching bids, while gold and silver are attracting buying interest because of their defensive characteristics.