Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 0.37%

Investors are urged to take caution today.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 13.24 points or 0.37% higher to 3547.23, taking the year-to-date performance to +4.24%.

The top active stocks today were Singtel, which declined 0.57%, DBS, which gained 0.80%, UOB, which gained 1.53%, OCBC Bank, which gained closed unchanged and CapitaLand, with a 1.04% fall.

The FTSE ST Mid Cap Index declined 0.05%, whilst the FTSE ST Small Cap Index rose 0.15%.

OCBC Investment Research noted that US stock indexes ended mostly lower on Thursday, switching between gains and losses as fears of a pick-up in inflation and rising bond yields fostered emerging volatility on Wall Street.

Seven out of 11 S&P 500 industries finished lower, led by Real Estate, which fell 1.85%, and Utilities, which fell 1.58%, whilst Telecommunication Services, which gained 2.47%, and Energy, which gained 1.10%, led the gains.

"The muted performances on Wall Street overnight are likely to keep local sentiment cautious today," OCBC said.