Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 0.01%

Expect muted gains today.

STI ended 0.37 points or 0.01% higher to 2828.94 on Thursday, taking the year-to-date performance to -1.87%.

According to KGI Securities, This came as shares in Asia traded mostly lower Thursday, tracking Wall Street's declines.

"Over in the U.S., stocks closed lower Thursday, after a session of fluctuating between slight gains and losses, as a jump in bond yields prompted a selloff in defensive sectors such as real estate while investors sifted through mixed earnings results and deal news," the brokerage firm said.

The S&P 500 index fell 6.39 points or 0.3%, to close at 2,133.04, with eight of 11 main sectors trading lower. Real-estate stocks fell 2.5%, while the consumer-discretionary and industrials sectors finished down nearly 1%. One defensive sector that thrived, however, was telecom with a 1.6% gain.

This weakness on Wall Street could drag market outlook this Friday.

Here's more from KGI:

The STI in Singapore ended flat after gaining just 0.37 points or 0.01% to finish the session at 2,828.94. 

The top three gainers were Golden Agri (+2.6%), Jardine C&C (+1.7%) and CapitaLand Commercial Trust (+1.6%). Gains were capped by declines in CapitaLand Mall Trust (-1.9%), HongKong Land (-1.2%) and Jardine Matheson (-1.1%).