The Singapore stock market moved higher again on Wednesday, one session after it had snapped the two-day winning streak in which it had collected more than 85 points or 2.4 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,515-point plateau, although it may turn lower again on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is soft thanks to weak economic data and a decline in crude oil prices. The European markets were mixed and the U.S. bourses ended in the red - and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The STI finished sharply higher on Wednesday following gains from the financial shares, property stocks and industrial issues.
For the day, the index jumped 39.70 points or 1.14 percent to finish at 3,516.23 after trading between 3,472.94 and 3,520.68. Volume was 1.9 billion shares worth 1.6 billion Singapore dollars. There were 278 gainers and 157 decliners.
Among the actives, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding surged 3.45 percent, while SembCorp Industries soared 3.35 percent, DBS Group spiked 2.76 percent, City Developments jumped 2.24 percent, Golden Agri-Resources climbed 1.41 percent, United Overseas Bank advanced 1.40 percent, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation collected 1.33 percent, CapitaLand gathered 1.12 percent, Wilmar International perked 0.98 percent, Comfort DelGro skidded 0.98 percent, Genting Singapore added 0.78 percent, Keppel Corp gained 0.74 percent, SingTel fell 0.30 percent and Thai Beverage and Hutchison Port Holdings were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is negative as stocks were higher for much of Wednesday's trade before heading south in the late afternoon and ending in the red.
The Dow shed 166.97 points or 0.67 percent to 24,797.78, while the NASDAQ lost 16.08 points or 0.22 percent to 7,218.23 and the S&P 500 fell 14.93 points or 0.55 percent to 2,701.33.
The early support came as markets reacted positively to news from the Federal Reserve, which is on track to raise interest rates only gradually over the course of the year, according to the minutes of the central bank's most recent meeting.
In economic news, the National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly showed a steep drop in January.
Crude oil futures inched lower Wednesday as traders locked in profits from oil's recent rally. WTI light sweet oil was down 11 cents to $61.68 barrel.
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