The Singapore stock market showed a positive trend for two consecutive sessions, gaining over 50 points, which accounts for a 1.4 percent increase. The Straits Times Index (STI) is currently slightly above the 3,250-point mark and this upward trend is expected to continue.
Internationally, predictions indicate a promising outlook for Asian markets, on the back of maintained optimism relating to interest rates. This follows an upswing in both the European and U.S. markets, a trend Asian exchanges are predicted to echo.
On Wednesday, the STI had a moderate increase due to mixed results from financial, property, and industrial sectors. The index rose by 18.38 points or 0.57 percent, closing at 3,251.71.
Among the notable performers, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust rose by 0.51 percent, and CapitaLand Investment increased by 0.36 percent. City Developments advanced 0.85 percent, while DBS Group made a significant leap of 1.52 percent. On the other hand, Emperador dropped significantly by 3.33 percent. Other performers, like SATS and Singapore Technologies Engineering, experienced minor losses, while several, including Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust, Genting Singapore, and UOL Group, remained unchanged.
Wall Street also showed positive leads with major averages opening high on Wednesday and maintaining a steady course throughout the day. Dow Jones grew by 477.75 points, and NASDAQ rallied 83.82 points. The S&P 500 experienced a rise of 44.91 points.
The period of buying undervalued stocks after a tepid performance the previous day drove Wall Street's momentum. An optimism building around the outlook for the interest rates, post the Federal Reserve's policy announcement last week, also added to this strength. Although the Federal Reserve maintained unchanged interest rates as expected, they retained their forecast for three interest rate cuts for this year.
Crude oil prices, however, experienced a drop following data that showed an unexpected rise in U.S. crude and gasoline inventories the previous week. The West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for May ended lower by $0.27, which is a dip of 0.33 percent at $81.35 a barrel.
Note that markets will be closed for trading on Good Friday.
