Singapore shares closed 0.67 percent higher on Wednesday, as investors closely monitor congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the day.
Investors wanted to see if Yellen will give out any further hints regarding the timing of a U.S. interest rate hike, particularly after a surprise fall in U.S. retail sales on Tuesday.
Core retail sales slipped 0.1 percent, much worse than markets' average forecasts for a 0.4 percent rise. The unexpected drop fueled speculation that the Federal Reserve might hold off on hiking rates, which gave Wall Street a lift. All three major indexes ended higher.
Meanwhile, market also waited for the outcome of the Greek parliament vote on a sweeping austerity package to secure the funding it needs to stem its fiscal crisis and remain in the eurozone. The benchmark Straits Times Index rose 22.36 points to close at 3,338.86 points. Trading volume was 1.24 billion shares worth 860 million Singapore dollars. Advancers outnumbered decliners 231 to 209, while 523 stocks closed unchanged.
Singapore Post Limited rose 0.3 percent to 1.90 Singapore dollars. Its subsidiary Famous Holdings has acquired an 80 percent equity stake in Rotterdam Harbour Holding B.V. for 8.4 million euros, which will be satisfied wholly in cash from the group's internal resources.
Rotterdam Harbour Holding, a Netherlands-based firm, provides personnel, facilities, and information and communications technology services for companies in the Rotterdam Harbor. SembCorp Marine advanced 0.4 percent to 2.82 Singapore dollars. It has entered into an engineering and construction contract worth approximately 1 billion U.S. dollars with Heerema Offshore Services B.V. (HOS) to build a new semi-submersible crane vessel ( NSCV). This follows an earlier exclusive letter-of-intent signed between SembCorp Marine's wholly owned subsidiary Jurong Shipyard and HOS in March this year for the NSCV. The vessel is scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2018. Among the top gainers, Jardine Matheson rose 4.4 percent to 56. 48 U.S. dollars, while China Fibretech plunged 21.6 percent to 80 Singapore cents. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 0.907 euros and 1.35 Singapore dollars)
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