SINGAPORE shares closed higher on Tuesday (Sep 3), even as most regional indices ended in the red. The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.5 per cent or 17.26 points to 3,480.34.
Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 302 to 226, after 1.1 billion shares worth S$1 billion were traded.
The biggest gainer on the STI was real estate investment manager CapitaLand Investment (CLI), which climbed 3.4 per cent or S$0.09 to S$2.78.
The counter rose after CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust earlier on Tuesday proposed to purchase a 50 per cent interest in retail mall Ion Orchard from CLI.
Meanwhile, several real estate investment trusts (Reits) rounded up the bottom of the index.
CapitaLand Ascendas Reit had the biggest decline on the STI. The counter slid 2.1 per cent or S$0.06 to S$2.82.
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Units of Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust fell 1.5 per cent or S$0.02 to finish at S$1.35.
Despite their performance, Reits were among the sectors that performed well in August along with real estate and healthcare, said Paul Chew, an analyst at Phillip Securities Research.
With the potential for six to seven rate cuts in the next 18 months, there is further upside for Reits, he added.
Integrated resort developer Genting Singapore was the most actively traded counter by volume on Tuesday, with 49.2 million shares worth S$40.8 million changing hands. The counter climbed 1.2 per cent or S$0.01 to close at S$0.83.
Across the region, most markets were in the red.
Australia’s ASX 200 fell 0.1 per cent while Japan’s Nikkei slipped by 0.04 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.6 per cent, amid the country’s August inflation figures falling to their lowest in more than three years.
