Singapore Shares May Run Out Of Steam On Friday

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market has finished higher in three straight sessions, gathering almost 90 points or 2 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now sits just above the 4,575-point plateau although it may spin its wheels on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly negative on continued uncertainty regarding the end of the U.S. government shutdown. The European and U.S. markets were sharply lower and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.

The STI finished slightly higher on Thursday as gains from the industrials and properties were capped by weakness from the financial sector.

For the day, the index rose 7.00 points or 0.15 percent to finish at the daily high of 4,575.91 after trading as low as 4,551.16.

Among the actives, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust slumped 0.85 percent, while CapitaLand Investment climbed 1.12 percent, City Developments collected 0.27 percent, Comfort DelGro sank 0.68 percent, DBS Group stumbled 1.53 percent, DFI Retail Group spiked 2.64 percent, Genting Singapore shed 0.63 percent, Hongkong Land soared 3.56 percent, Keppel DC REIT lost 0.42 percent, Keppel Ltd perked 0.10 percent, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust added 0.68 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust dropped 0.76 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation fell 0.27 percent, SATS improved 0.85 percent, Seatrium Limited advanced 0.93 percent, SembCorp Industries gained 0.46 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering surged 4.70 percent, SingTel jumped 2.33 percent, Thai Beverage retreated 1.05 percent, United Overseas Bank eased 0.09 percent, UOL Group expanded 1.04 percent, Wilmar International rose 0.30 percent, Yangzijiang Financial strengthened 1.96 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding rallied 2.35 percent and CapitaLand Ascendas REIT, Mapletree Industrial Trust, Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust, Frasers Centrepoint Trust and Venture Corporation were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is rough as the major averages opened slightly lower on Thursday but accelerated deeper into the red as the day progressed, ending near session lows.

The Dow plunged 779.86 points or 1.62 percent to finish at 47,474.96, while the NASDAQ tanked 536.10 points or 2.29 percent to end at 22,870.36 and the S&P 500 sank 114.20 points or 1.67 percent to close at 6,736.72.

The Dow pulled back well off the record closing high set on Wednesday amid a steep drop by shares of Disney (DIS), which came under pressure after the company reported fiscal fourth quarter earnings that exceeded analyst estimates but weaker than expected revenues.

Valuation concerns also continued to weigh on tech stocks, with AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA) moving sharply lower along with tech heavyweights like Broadcom (AVGO) and Alphabet (GOOGL).

The weakness on Wall Street may also have reflected uncertainty whether key U.S. economic will be released following the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.

Crude oil edged higher on Thursday as the end of the U.S. government shutdown has renewed confidence in consumption and energy demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery was up $0.22 or 0.38 percent at $58.71 per barrel.