The Singapore stock market has finished higher now in back-to-back sessions, climbing more than a dozen points or 0.4 percent in that span. The Straits Times Index remained just below the 3,090-point plateau, and now investors are bracing for mild selling pressure when the market opens on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests consolidation on renewed concerns over the economy and the debt limit in the United States. Technology stocks are expected to see continued pressure, along with steel companies and airlines. The European and U.S. markets finished firmly in the red, and the Asian markets are expected to follow that lead.
The STI finished flat on Thursday as gains from the plantation stocks were wiped out by losses from the properties and industrials.
For the day, the index added 0.28 points or 0.01 percent to finish at 3,088.70 after trading between 3,078.57 and 3,101.98 on volume of 1.09 billion shares. There were 288 decliners and 169 gainers.
Among the actives, Singapore Airlines added 0.28 percent, Global Logistic Properties gained 0.8 percent, Golden Agri-Resources collected 0.7 percent and Wilmar International jumped 1.1 percent, while Keppel Corp eased 0.28 percent, City Developments shed 0.8 percent, CapitaLand fell 0.7 percent, CapitaMalls Asia retreated 0.3 percent, Noble Group dropped 1.1 percent and Olam International was down 0.8 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is fairly negative as stocks moved mostly lower on Thursday after failing to sustain an early upward move. The downturn came amid uncertainty about raising the debt limit as well as a fresh round of testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
While comments from Bernanke contributed to the markets' strength on Wednesday, the Fed Chief sought to clarify his remarks in testimony before Senate Banking Committee. Bernanke reiterated that the Fed is willing to deploy additional stimulus if conditions warrant, but he suggested that the central bank is not likely to take action in any time in the near future.
"The situation is more complex," Bernanke said. "Inflation is higher...We are uncertain about the near-term developments in the economy...We are not prepared at this point to take further action."
Traders also continued to express uncertainty about whether Democrats and Republicans can reach an agreement on raising the debt limit in order to avoid a default by the U.S. government. Amid the concerns about the debt limit debate, Moody's has placed its "AAA" debt rating on the U.S. under review for a possible downgrade.
The early strength came as traders reacted positively to a slew of economic data released before the start of trading, including reports showing an unexpected uptick in retail sales and a drop in weekly jobless claims to a nearly three-month low.
On the corporate news front, J.P. Morgan (JPM) rose by 1.8 percent after reporting second quarter earnings of $1.27 per share, higher than $1.09 per share in the year-ago quarter. Net revenues rose 7 percent to $26.78 billion. Analysts estimated earnings of $1.21 per share on revenues of $25.13 billion.
The major averages remained stuck firmly in negative territory going into the close of trading. The Dow fell 54.49 points or 0.4 percent to 12,437.12, the NASDAQ dropped 34.25 points or 1.2 percent to 2,762.67 and the S&P 500 slid 8.85 points or 0.7 percent to 1,308.87.
In economic news, Singapore will on Friday provide May figures for retail sales, which are expected to rise 8.8 percent on year but fall 1.7 percent on month. That follows the 8.1 percent annual expansion and the 5.7 percent monthly gain in April.
Also, Singapore's gross domestic product contracted by a seasonally adjusted annualized 7.8 percent in the second quarter of 2011 compared to the previous three months, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said on Thursday in an advance estimate. That was well below analyst expectations for a 1.9 percent quarterly decline following the 27.1 percent surge in the first quarter of this year.
On a yearly basis, GDP added 0.5 percent - again shy of expectations for a 1.5 percent gain following the 9.3 percent increase in the first quarter. The manufacturing sector was a key drag, falling 22.5 percent on quarter and 5.5 percent on year.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.