JAKARTA, April 4 — Most South-east Asian stock markets rose today, in line with other Asian indexes after better-then-expected US payroll data underpinned investor risk sentiment.
Singapore’s Strait Times Index rose 0.7 per cent, rebounding from a 0.8 per cent fall on Friday, when it closed at its lowest level since March 10. Property developers in Singapore were the biggest gainers, with City Developments Ltd rising 2.3 per cent and Wing Tai Holdings adding 0.6 per cent.
Singapore home prices fell at a lower-than-expected rate, indicating resilience in the property market, broker Maybank Kim Eng said in a note.
A recent reversal in interest rates should also support property prices, the broker added. Manufacturing data from the US helped eased concerns about slump in the global manufacturing activity.
“Employment remains the strongest and more resilient pillar of the US economic recovery... Still, the report is unlikely to be a game changer and the Fed will most likely wait for further evidence that the economy is on a solid path of growth before thinking about raising rates again,” BIMB Securities said in a note.
Malaysia and the Philippines each gained 0.5 per cent. Indonesia’s composite index posted a small 0.1 per cent gain amid expectation of a fall in inflation as the government lowered fuel price this month. Bucking the trend, Thailand’s SET Index and Vietnam index both fell 0.1 per cent each. — Reuters
