Singapore stocks open lower on Monday

SINGAPORE stocks opened lower on Monday. As at 9.06 am, the benchmark Straits Times Index was down 2.34 points or 0.07 per cent at 3,217.08.

Some 60.1 million shares worth S$52.9 million changed hands, with gainers outnumbering losers 75 to 72.

The highest value-traded stocks by 9.06 am were DBS, down six cents to S$20.74; Golden Agri-Resources, down half a cent to S$0.38; and Jardine Cycle & Carriage, up seven cents to S$44.43.

In Tokyo, stocks opened flat on Monday. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.05 per cent, or 10.34 points, to 19,697.18 at the start; while the Topix index of all first-section issues edged up 0.04 per cent, or 0.7 point, to 1,570.12.

On Wall Street last Friday, stocks drifted marginally higher to new records. The broad S&P 500 gained a fraction to end the week at 2,415.82, while the Nasdaq rose 0.8 per cent to close at 6,210.19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was virtually flat at 21,080.28, putting it down less than three points below Thursday's close.