Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 0.15%

Expect muted gains today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 5.32 points or 0.15% higher to 3441.69, taking the year-to-date performance to +1.14%.

The top active stocks were DBS, which gained 0.53%, UOB, which slipped 0.07%, Singtel, which rose 0.31%, Venture, which dipped 2.56% and CityDev, with a 1.27% fall.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index slipped 0.33%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index dipped 0.17%.

OCBC investment research noted that U.S. stock-market indexes closed mostly higher, though the Dow faded to end essentially flat within the final minutes of the session as investors braced for a highly anticipated summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, as well as a litany of potentially market-moving central-bank meetings.

Seven out of eleven S&P 500 industries ended higher, led by Consumer Staples (0.77%) and Telecommunications (0.66%). Utilities (-0.33%) and Financials (-0.28%) led declines.

“The largely followed Trump-Kim Summit happens today, though it will likely not have much impact in the local sentiment as investors would likely wait-and-see what moves globally,” OCBC Investment Research said.