STI Gains 0.32% to 5,714.37 as Banks and Yangzijiang Lead; SGX Slumps 5.72%
The Straits Times Index closed at 5,714.37 on Monday, up 18.44 points, or 0.32%, after trading between an intraday high of 5,725.56 and a low of 5,677.79. The advance came even as decliners outnumbered advancers across the index, 15 to 10, with five names unchanged — gains concentrated in the three local banks and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding offset a sharp slide in SGX shares and continued softness across REITs and property counters.
The three banks extended Friday's synchronized advance into a second straight session, building on last week's milestone SGD tokenised-deposit settlement on Swift's blockchain ledger and this week's Forbes ranking placing OCBC and DBS atop its 2026 global banking list. UOB led the trio after pricing a covered-bond issue, while DBS added a fresh piece of survey data on corporate sentiment. Yangzijiang Shipbuilding rose on a tightening global tanker market reshaping order-book and margin expectations for shipbuilders. Those gains were large enough to lift the index even as SGX shares themselves fell sharply and REITs and several property names stayed under pressure.
Session Movers
Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (BS6.SG, +2.61%) rose as a report on tightening global tanker freight markets highlighted rerouted trade flows and fleet-renewal demand reshaping order books and contract mix for shipbuilders including Yangzijiang, Cochin Shipyard and Samsung Heavy Industries. The stock trades at 10.76 times earnings, cheaper than roughly 12% of the past five years, with a consensus target of $5.24 implying modest upside from current levels.
UOB (U11.SG, +2.59%) led the three banks higher after pricing a €500 million covered-bond issue maturing 2031; a fair-value analysis this week put the stock at roughly 5% undervalued against an estimated $43.43, citing digital transformation and ASEAN expansion, though it flagged cooling short-term momentum. Separate reporting this week named UOB among the more active buyback participants over the past two weeks, alongside Keppel.
DBS (D05.SG, +0.86%) rose alongside UOB and OCBC for a second straight session. A DBS Hong Kong survey released this week showed 63% of firms upbeat on the 12-18 month outlook, though AI-adoption rates diverged sharply between large corporates (62%) and SMEs (38%). The bank is also running a 2027 reserve-cadre recruitment programme aimed at cultivating AI-era financial leadership.
SGX (S68.SG, -5.72%) fell sharply even as the exchange disclosed plans to file cryptocurrency perpetual futures contracts with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, aiming to become one of the first major traditional exchanges to offer the product to US institutions, and Lim & Tan Securities reiterated a Hold rating with a $25.00 target. No negative company disclosure accompanied the decline, which extended a slide flagged in recent sessions despite strong August turnover data.

One point worth noting
Decliners outnumbered advancers 15 to 10 across the STI's constituents, yet the index still rose 0.32% — a breadth-versus-index divergence that has recurred through the past several weeks. SGX shares alone fell 5.72%, the basket's sharpest single move, while the index's gain rested almost entirely on the three banks and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, a reminder that a handful of heavyweights can offset broad softness elsewhere in the market.
This recap is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

