Singapore stocks hit record high, tracking Wall Street rally

Singapore stocks rose 36 points, or 0.6%, to a record high of 5,780 around noon on Thursday, extending gains from the previous session and tracking a rally on Wall Street overnight, buoyed by heavyweight tech stocks.

The latest data also lifted sentiment, after a private survey showed Singapore’s private sector continued to grow solidly in August.

Non-energy minerals, transportation, producer manufacturing, and finance mainly supported the broader index.

However, traders anticipated the release of July retail sales data on Friday, after retail sales accelerated in June.

Rising oil prices capped the gains amid heightened inflation concerns and reinforced expectations of an interest rate hike amid escalating Middle East tensions.

Among the top gainers were DFI Retail Group (3.4%), Hong Kong Land (2.8%), Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (1.7%), DBS Group (1.3%), and OCBC (1.2%).