Singapore Shares May Reverse Thursday's Losses

(RTTNews) - The Singapore stock market on Thursday snapped the three-day winning streak in which it had added more than 80 points or 1.7 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just beneath the 5,000-point plateau although it's expected to move back to the upside again on Friday.

The global forecast for the Asian markets is positive, with technology stocks expected to pull the markets higher. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian markets figure to follow that lead.

The STI finished slightly lower on Thursday as losses from the property and industrial sectors were mitigated by support from the financial and plantation stocks.

For the day, the index dipped 8.02 points or 0.16 percent to finish at 4,995.94 after trading between 4,980.53 and 5,015.09.

Among the actives, CapitaLand Ascendas REIT lost 0.40 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust shed 0.44 percent, City Developments plunged 3.08 percent, DBS Group collected 0.38 percent, DFI Retail Group declined 1.44 percent, Genting Singapore plummeted 3.23 percent, Hongkong Land skidded 1.08 percent, Keppel DC REIT gained 0.88 percent, Keppel Ltd tumbled 1.74 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation rose 0.26 percent, SATS retreated 1.52 percent, Seatrium Limited slumped 1.29 percent, SembCorp Industries sank 0.96 percent, Singapore Airlines dipped 0.16 percent, Singapore Exchange and Venture Corporation both contracted 1.30 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering tanked 2.41 percent, SingTel climbed 1.04 percent, United Overseas Bank perked 0.05 percent, UOL Group stumbled 1.64 percent, Wilmar International added 0.53 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding dropped 1.00 percent and Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust, Mapletree Industrial Trust, Mapletree Logistics Trust, Frasers Centrepoint Trust, Thai Beverage and CapitaLand Investment were unchanged.

The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened higher on Thursday and remained in the green throughout the trading day, ending near session highs.

The Dow jumped 370.26 points or 0.75 percent to finish at 50,063.46, while the NASDAQ rallied 232.88 points or 0.88 percent to end at a record 26,635.22 and the S&P 500 gained 56.99 points or 0.77 percent to close at 7,501.24, also a record.

Cisco Systems (CSCO) helped lead the markets higher after the company reported better than expected fiscal third quarter results and provided upbeat guidance.

Market leader and AI darling Nvidia (NVDA) also surged on reports that the U.S. has cleared around 10 Chinese firms to buy the company's second-most powerful AI chip, the H200.

In economic news, the Commerce Department said retail sales in the U.S. increased in line with estimates in April. Also, the Labor Department said first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week.

Crude oil prices inched higher on Thursday as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively shut amid a lack of progress in U.S.-Iran peace efforts. West Texas Intermediate crude for June was up $0.29 or 0.29 percent at $101.31 per barrel.