Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 1.09%

Expect more good news today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 36.79 points or 1.09% higher to 3423.38, taking the year-to-date performance to +18.84%.

The top active stocks were DBS, which gained 2.22%, Global Logistic, which closed unchanged, Singtel, which gained 0.55%, OCBC Bank, which gained 1.79% and UOB, with a 2.10% advance.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index gained 0.24%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index rose 0.07%.

According to OCBC Investment Research, US stock-market indexes ended at records and near session highs on Tuesday, finding support on another round of strong earnings, with technology shares leading the way.

Ten out of 11 S&P 500 industries finished higher, led by Information Technology, which rose 1.19%, and Healthcare, which gained 0.87 %, whilst Telecommunication Services, which fell 0.54%, bucked the trend.

"Continued gains on Wall Street overnight could keep local sentiment upbeat today," OCBC said.