DBS, OCBC at fresh highs as Singapore banks lead STI gains
RHB cites wealth momentum as a tailwind as it lifts its rating on Singapore banks to ‘overweight’
[SINGAPORE] Shares of DBS and OCBC hit record highs on Tuesday (Jun 2) morning as Singapore banks ranked among the top gainers of the Straits Times Index (STI) and drove the blue chip barometer up 0.8 per cent to 5,078.16 points.
DBS was up 2.6 per cent or S$1.62 at S$64.46 while OCBC rose 2.4 per cent or S$0.55 to S$23.95. UOB climbed 2.1 per cent or S$0.78 to S$38.38.
The rally of Singapore shares mirrored gains abroad, as Wall Street stocks closed Monday higher amid ongoing US-Iran peace negotiations, where US President Donald Trump said that talks with Iran would continue.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.09 per cent to 51,078.88, the S&P 500 gained 0.26 per cent to 7,599.96 and the Nasdaq Composite advanced or 0.42 per cent to 27,086.81.
Closer to home, however, some regional markets posted losses. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.9 per cent, South Korea’s Kospi index dropped 1.5 per cent and Indonesia’s IDX declined 0.1 per cent.
The gains also follow recent announcements by DBS and OCBC of plans to boost their wealth offerings.
DBS on Monday unveiled plans to launch 18 new and 36 upgraded Asia-Pacific wealth centres by end-2027, while OCBC’s private bank, Bank of Singapore, intends to sharpen its focus on ultra-high-net-worth clients.
Notably, the continued wealth momentum of local lenders was cited as a tailwind for the sector in a RHB report from last Thursday, where the brokerage upgraded its rating on the three Singapore banks to “overweight” from “neutral”.
RHB analysts in the Thursday report also evolving rate expectations and resilient fee income generation as fuelling renewed investor interest in Singapore banks.
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