The Singapore stock market on Wednesday ended the six-day slide in which it had plummeted more than 130 points or 4.2 percent. The Straight Times Index now rests just beneath the 3,100-point plateau and it may extend its gains on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is firm on renewed optimism regarding a trade deal between the United States and China. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets are tipped to follow suit.
The STI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues.
For the day, the index advanced 40.71 points or 1.33 percent to finish at 3,099.99 after trading between 3,073.02 and 3,101.10. Volume was 1.1 billion shares worth 968.4 million Singapore dollars. There were 239 gainers and 143 decliners.
Among the actives, Genting Singapore surged 3.65 percent, while Yangzijiang Shipbuilding soared 2.48 percent, Golden Agri-Resources tumbled 1.92 percent, Hutchison Port Holdings spiked 1.85 percent, SembCorp Industries jumped 1.56 percent, United Overseas Bank climbed 1.52 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation advanced 1.36 percent, Keppel Corporation gathered 1.32 percent, Ascendas REIT perked 1.16 percent, SingTel added 0.98 percent, Comfort DelGro gained 0.94 percent, DBS Group collected 0.89 percent, Thai Beverage was up 0.85 percent, CapitaLand rose 0.64 percent and Wilmar International was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is positive as stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with traders expressing renewed optimism about U.S.-China trade talks.
The Dow added 157.03 points or 0.64 percent to 24,527.27, while the NASDAQ gained 66.48 points or 0.95 percent to 7,098.31 and the S&P was up 14.29 points or 0.54 percent to 2,651.07.
The strength on Wall Street came after President Donald Trump expressed optimism for a trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping, noting that talks between U.S. and Chinese officials were underway by telephone with more expected.
In economic news, the Labor Department said consumer prices came in flat in November, with a sharp pullback in gasoline prices offsetting gains elsewhere. Core CPI ticked slightly higher.
Crude oil futures failed to hold early gains and settled lower Wednesday, despite data showing a less than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. Crude oil futures for January delivery ended down $0.50 or 1 percent at 51.15 a barrel.
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