Singapore's Straits Times Index rallied above 5,400 points at market open on Thursday, owing to strong gains by local bank stocks ahead of the second-quarter corporate earnings season in early August.
The STI, a key benchmark for the Singapore Exchange, rose in early trade by 0.7%, or 36.45 points, to open at 5,406.020.
Strong institutional inflows pushed Singapore bank stocks to record highs on Thursday, with DBS Group (SGX:D05) briefly crossing SG$70 for the first time. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (SGX:O39) and United Overseas Bank (SGX:U11) also hit new peaks, pushing the STI as investors positioned ahead of the earnings season and sought to secure first-half dividend payouts.
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