The Singapore stock market on Friday ended the two-day losing streak in which it had fallen almost 25 points or 0.8 percent. The Straits Times Index now rests just above the 3,110-point plateau and it may add to its winnings on Monday.
The global forecast for the oversold Asian markets is broadly positive, with the oil, technology and financial sectors expected to lead the way higher. The European and U.S. markets were up and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.
The STI finished modestly higher on Friday following gains from the trusts and plantations, while the financials were soft and the industrials were mixed.
For the day, the index climbed 18.85 points or 0.61 percent to finish at 3,111.65 after trading between 3,100.21 and 3,115.73. Volume was 1.1 billion shares worth 882.2 million Singapore dollars. There were 314 gainers and 204 decliners.
Among the actives, Ascendas REIT climbed 1.44 percent, while CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust rallied 1.86 percent, CapitaLand Investment jumped 1.85 percent, City Developments eased 0.12 percent, Comfort DelGro gained 0.73 percent, DBS Group fell 0.13 percent, Genting Singapore collected 0.69 percent, Hongkong Land shed 0.20 percent, Keppel Corp rose 0.61 percent, Mapletree Commercial Trust spiked 2.78 percent, Mapletree Industrial Trust strengthened 1.54 percent, Mapletree Logistics Trust surged 3.66 percent, SATS was up 0.25 percent, SembCorp Industries sank 0.35 percent, Singapore Exchange added 0.74 percent, Singapore Technologies Engineering soared 2.82 percent, SingTel accelerated 1.98 percent, Thai Beverage advanced 0.78 percent, United Overseas Bank lost 0.19 percent, Wilmar International improved 0.75 percent, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding slumped 0.52 percent and Yangzijiang Financial, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation and Frasers Logistics were unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is upbeat as the major averages opened sharply higher on Friday and remained that way throughout the trading day.
The Dow surged 823.28 points or 2.68 percent to finish at 31,500.68, while the NASDAQ rallied 375.42 points or 3.34 percent to end at 11,607.62 and the S&P 500 jumped 116.01 points or 3.06 percent to close at 3,911.74.
For the holiday-shortened week, the NASDAQ soared by 7.5 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Dow spiked by 6.4 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively.
Traders continue to express concerns about inflation, interest rates and a potential recession but may feel to sell-off earlier this month was overdone.
On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department unexpectedly reported a significant rebound in new home sales in May. Also, the University of Michigan said consumer sentiment in the U.S. tumbled more than expected in June.
Crude oil prices rose sharply on Friday on optimism for continued high demand for energy and tight supply. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for August ended higher by $3.35 or 3.2 percent at $107.62 a barrel. WTI futures shed 1.8 percent in the week.