The winning streak has hit five sessions now for the Singapore stock market, which has advanced almost 120 points or 3.6 percent along the way. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,325-point plateau and the market is looking at another green light on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is firm thanks to solid economic and earnings news, plus a bump in crude oil prices. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses figure to follow suit.
The STI finished modestly higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues.
For the day, the index collected 18.99 points or 0.57 percent to finish at 3,325.07 after trading between 3,299.13 and 3,327.80. Volume was 3.6 billion shares worth 1.6 billion Singapore dollars. There were 311 gainers and 170 decliners.
Among the actives, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding surged 3.00 percent, while CapitaLand Commercial Trust spiked 2.07 percent, Singapore Airlines advanced 1.88 percent, City Development perked 1.47 percent, Ascendas REIT climbed 1.14 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation jumped 1.08 percent, Genting Singapore gained 0.91 percent, Thai Beverage gathered 0.55 percent, United Overseas Bank collected 0.71 percent, SingTel picked up 0.51 percent and Global Logistic Properties, Golden Agri-Resources and SembCorp were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as stocks moved mostly higher on Wednesday, allowing all three major averages to reach new record closing highs.
The Dow rose 66.02 points or 0.3 percent to 21,640.75, while the NASDAQ added 40.74 points or 0.6 percent to 6,385.04 and the S&P gained 13.22 points or 0.5 percent to 2,473.83.
In economic news, the Commerce Department noted a bigger than expected rebound in housing starts in June. It also said that building permits also jumped more than expected.
Upbeat earnings news also contributed, with financial giant Morgan Stanley (MS) posting a strong gain after reporting better than expected second quarter results.
Crude oil futures continued to rise Wednesday, surging above $47 after a surprisingly large drop in U.S. oil inventories. August crude oil rose 66 cents or 1.4 percent to $47.06 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, its highest in six weeks.
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Market Analysis
April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.