Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 0.15%

Expect some gains today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 5.37 points or 0.15% higher to 3548.54, taking the year-to-date performance to +4.28%.

The top active stocks were DBS, which declined 0.79%, UOB, which declined 0.20%, OCBC Bank, which gained 0.46%, Venture, which gained 0.47% and Singtel, with a 0.57% advance.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index gained 0.42%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index rose 0.65%.

OCBC Investment Research noted that the Dow on Wednesday booked a fifth gain in a row and the broader stock market rallied as sharp gains in energy, financials, and technology stocks propelled the main benchmarks firmly higher.

Nine out of 11 S&P 500 industries ended higher, led by Energy (2.03%) and Financials (1.50%) while Telecommunication Services (-1.12%) and Utilities (-0.75%) lost ground.

OIR said, "The gains on Wall Street overnight could lift local sentiment."