Singapore shares gain as investors take stock of earnings reports; STI increases 0.5%

[SINGAPORE] Local stocks climbed on Thursday (May 15), as investors assessed financial results from listed companies here.

The benchmark Straits Times Index added 0.5 per cent or 20.89 points to 3,891.94.

Across the broader market, losers beat gainers 283 to 238, as 1.4 billion securities worth S$1.5 billion changed hands.

The STI’s largest gainer was ST Engineering, which increased 1.9 per cent or S$0.14 to S$7.33. The defence and technology group continued to recoup losses from Tuesday, when it finished at the bottom of the table.

The biggest loser was Genting Singapore, which fell 2.7 per cent or S$0.02 to S$0.715.

This comes after the integrated resort operator announced that its chief executive Tan Hee Teck will be retiring from the position on May 31. He will also be stepping down as chair and chief executive of Resorts World Sentosa.

The group also reported that net profit after taxation tumbled 41 per cent to S$145 million in the first quarter ended Mar 31, from S$247.4 million in the corresponding year-ago period.

Outside the STI, private cord-blood bank Cordlife Group jumped 54.8 per cent or S$0.085 to S$0.24. This comes after Thai-listed Medeze Group launched a partial offer for a 10 per cent stake in Cordlife at an offer price of S$0.25 a share.

The three local banks all gained ground. DBS climbed 1.9 per cent or S$0.85 to S$45.10, OCBC increased 0.4 per cent or S$0.06 to S$16.24 and UOB ascended 0.6 per cent or S$0.22 to S$35.49.

Regional indices were in the red. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 0.8 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.7 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1 per cent and the Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index retreated 0.7 per cent.