On Friday, Singapore's stock market broke its three-day winning streak where it had climbed over 15 points, or 0.5%. The Straits Times Index (STI) now hovers slightly above the 3,290-point mark, yet it's anticipated to rise again by Monday.
Asian markets are projected to follow the trend set by European and U.S. markets, as they made strong gains due to an updated interest rate outlook. The STI closed slightly lower on Friday due to weak performances from industrial sectors and inconsistent results from the financial and real estate industries.
Within the day, the index dropped 3.96 points, or 0.12%, to close at 3,292.93. Trading fluctuated between 3,289.76 and 3,312.47. Among those actively traded, CapitaLand Ascendas REIT increased 1.93%, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust fell by 1.53%, and CapitaLand Investment improved by 1.56%. Meanwhile, City Developments fell by 0.67%, DBS Group climbed 0.25%, Genting Singapore rose 0.56%, and Hongkong Land advanced by 1.25%.
In other trades, Keppel Ltd went down 0.15%, Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust dropped 3.17%, Mapletree Industrial Trust decreased 1.20%, and Mapletree Logistics Trust fell 0.74%. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation lost 0.42% and SATS gained 0.79%. SembCorp Industries saw a marginal loss of 0.19%, Singapore Technologies Engineering retreated 1.25%, and Thai Beverage improved 1.03%.
The Dow, NASDAQ, and the S&P 500 all made significant gains on Friday, following the release of the Labor Department's employment report for April. The report indicated U.S. employment growth was lower than expected, which sparked optimism about future interest rates.
It was also influenced by a separate report from the Institute for Supply Management that showed a surprise contraction in U.S. service sector activity in April.
On another note, oil prices fell on Friday, leading to the largest weekly decline in roughly three months for active futures contracts. The drop was driven by concerns about the global oil demand outlook. The West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for June ended lower by $0.84 or 1.06% at $78.11 per barrel.
