Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 0.9%

The market is expected to remain muted today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 29.45 points or 0.9% higher to 3291.29, taking the year-to-date performance to +14.25%.

The top active stocks today were Singtel, which closed unchanged, CityDev, which gained 1.67%, DBS, which gained 0.80%, OCBC Bank, which gained 1.07% and UOB, with a 1.46% advance.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index gained 0.36%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index rose 0.30%.

According to OCBC Investment Research, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average logged minor losses Friday, though the Nasdaq eked out a closing record and major indexes added to their string of weekly gains as investors mostly shrugged off a September jobs report that showed the first monthly drop in payrolls in seven years.

Eight out of 11 S&P 500 industries finished lower, with Telecommunication Services, which dropped -2.02%, and Consumer Staples, which dipped -0.95%, leading the declines whilst Information Technology, which gained 0.29%, led the gains. The index was up 1.19% for the week.

"The muted performances on Wall Street Friday are unlikely to provide much of a boost to the local course today," OCBC said.