Daily Markets Briefing: STI down 1.15%

Expect muted gains today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 40.91 points or 1.15% higher to 3598.73, taking the year-to-date performance to +5.75%. 

The top active stocks yesterday were DBS, which gained 1.87%, OCBC Bank, which gained 1.63%, UOB, which gained 1.88%, Singtel, which gained 0.59% and Keppel Corp, with a 2.15% advance.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index gained 0.81%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index rose 0.28%.

According to OCBC Investment Research, U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday, with consumer staples, real estate and technology shares leading the losses.

Nine out of eleven S&P 500 industries ended lower, led by Consumer Staples (-3.14%) and Real Estate (-1.67%) whilst Financials (1.52%) and Energy (0.14%) gained.

“The weakness on Wall Street overnight could weigh on local sentiment today,” OCBC added.