"December's reading of global sentiment is a good supporting datapoint that we may be heading in the right direction," he added.
Among the STI constituents, Sembcorp Industries emerged as top performer for the day, inching up S$0.01 or 0.59 per cent to close at S$1.71. On the other end of the spectrum, Jardine Strategic Holdings was the biggest decliner, falling US$0.83 or 3.23 per cent to end at US$24.88. JSH was one of four stocks identified as STI's strongest performers in the quarter to date, and ranked highly for value factors, said the Singapore Exchange in a market update on Tuesday.
Advancers outnumbered decliners 221 to 182 for the day, with 665.63 million securities worth S$548.44 million changing hands. Elsewhere in Asia, investors in Chinese markets soaked in the festive mood. The Hang Seng Index gained 84.02 points or 0.31 per cent to close at 27,231.13, while the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was trading up 28.34 points or 0.83 per cent at 3,442.79 as at the mid-day break.For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to