Daily Markets Briefing: STI down 0.05%

Strong US performance could boost local sentiment.

The Straits Times Index (STI) ended 1.49 or 0.05% lower at 3,188.68.

The top active stocks were DBS, which rose 0.63%, CityDev, which slipped 1.52%, Singtel, which remained unchanged, OCBC, which declined 0.52%, and UOB with a 0.6% advance.

The FTSE Mid Cap dropped 1.85% whilst the FTSE Small Cap dipped 0.38%.

According to OCBC Investment Research (OIR), stocks kicked off February on a tepid note but managed to close mostly higher Friday on the back of an unexpected strong January.

Six out of eleven S&P 500 industries ended higher, led by Energy (1.83%) and Information Technology (0.6%). Consumer Discretionary (-1.77%) and Real Estate (-0.67%) led the declines.

"The strong US economic data and positive comments on the US-China trade talks could lift local sentiment. But we expect the trading volume to be subdued today, due to Lunar New Year holidays," OIR said.