Singapore shares open 1.8 points higher on Friday

SHARES in the local bourse opened higher on Friday, with the key Straits Times Index rising 1.8 points to 2,847.86.

Some 40 million shares worth S$46 million were done as at 9.01am, with 69 counters up and 54 down.

Local stocks may have been buoyed by US stocks which rallied overnight on Thursday as the uncertainty over the decisions by two major central banks - the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan (BOJ) - over interest rates cleared up. Wall Street was also buoyed by a rise in crude oil prices.

The Fed left short-term interest rates unchanged this week while the BOJ affirmed its commitment to monetary easing.

"It is becoming increasingly clear that the ongoing global uncertainties have created an unstable financial landscape which continues to keep most central banks cautious," said FXTM research analyst Lukman Otunuga.

"Although the decision to keep rates unchanged was warmly welcomed by global equities, the shocking divide between Fed officials is something which remains a cause for concern," he added.