Local shares book minor gains on Wednesday; STI up 0.1%
Uma Devi
SINGAPORE stocks eked out slight gains on Wednesday (Dec 21), as traders hunted for bargains in the local stock market and shrugged off concerns over inflationary pressures and interest rate hikes.
About 951.7 million securities worth S$740.8 million changed hands on the local bourse, with advancers outnumbering decliners 247 to 219. The Straits Times Index (STI) ended the midweek trading session up 0.1 per cent or 2.22 points, to close at 3,256.19.
Regional markets ended the day mixed. The Nikkei 225 was down 0.7 per cent, the KLCI lost 0.3 per cent, and the Kospi shed 0.2 per cent. Meanwhile, the Hang Seng rose 0.3 per cent, and the ASX 200 added 1.3 per cent.
IG market analyst Yeap Jun Rong said that the STI “remains fairly stuck within a consolidation zone”. Fund flow data from the Singapore Exchange last week revealed institutional and retail net inflows to be at S$7.9 million and S$5.7 million, respectively.
However, Yeap noted that the STI has been one of the more resilient market indices this year, with a gain of 1.5 per cent. The index has been “tapping its defensive status in the region for some traction amid the global economic challenge”, he added.
Nio broke a two-day losing streak, and came up among the top performers on Wednesday. The counter ended the day up 1 per cent or US$0.11, at US$11.11.
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Thinly-traded Old Chang Kee was the biggest loser, crashing 11.6 per cent or S$0.08 to S$0.61 with just 1,000 shares traded.
Venture Corporation was also among the top decliners, shedding 0.3 per cent or S$0.05 to S$16.93.
Marco Polo Marine was the most actively traded stock, with about 127.4 million shares transacted. The counter fell 2.3 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.043.
Golden Agri-Resources was also heavily traded, and lost 3.9 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.245 after 26.5 million shares changed hands. It said on Tuesday that it expected to remain profitable in its fourth quarter ending Dec 31, despite a fair value loss.
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