Singapore shares end flat on Monday on lack of market drivers

SINGAPORE stocks started the week on the back foot on Monday, with the local benchmark dipping amid a lack of market drivers.

The Straits Times Index closed at 3,280.09, down just 0.03 per cent or 0.94 point, following a session which saw active trading among penny stocks and temporary glitches in the Singapore Exchange's website.

Advancers outpaced decliners 202 to 192 on the local bourse, while 12 of the index's 30 stocks finished in the red.

Turnover was unusually high, with 2.48 billion securities changing hands, but trading value totalled just S$838.65 million, suggesting heavy trading in penny stocks.

But analysts are expecting the week to be a relatively quiet one.

"We have one of the quietest trading weeks ahead as many Asian markets close for the Chinese New Year holidays," Singapore-based brokerage KGI Securities said in a note on Monday.

Another analyst predicted that Monday's trading action would taper off over the next few days in the lead-up to Chinese New Year, saying "nobody is keen to build new positions".