Daily Markets Briefing: STI up 1.36%

Continued optimism on US-China trade talks may boost local sentiment.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 43.62 or 1.36% higher at 3,244.77.

The top active stocks were DBS, which climbed 2.3%, UOB, which rose 2.45%, Singtel, which remained unchanged, OCBC, which edged up 1.39%, and YZJ Shipbuilding with a 0.71% advance.

The FTSE Mid Cap grew 1.94% whilst the FTSE Small Cap slipped 0.39%.

According to OCBC Investment Research (OIR), US stocks closed higher Wednesday after president Donal Trump said he may let a China trade-deal slide if the two sides made enough progress.

Nine out of eleven S&P 500 industries ended higher, led by Energy (1.29%) and Industrials (0.63%). Communication Services (-0.1%) and Utilities (-0.31%) lost ground.

"The gains on Wall Street overnight amidst the optimism on US-China trade negotiations are likely to keep the local sentiment fairly positive today," OIR said.