Singapore stocks open higher on Thursday amid global retreat; STI up 0.04%

SINGAPORE shares opened slightly higher on Thursday (Mar 31), bucking the global retreat seen elsewhere.

The Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.04 per cent or 1.35 points to 3,443.96 as at 9.02 am.

Gainers outnumbered losers 67 to 55, as close to 57.4 million securities worth S$76 million were traded.

The most heavily traded counter on Thursday morning was S51 . Some 13.8 million securities of the oil and gas company changed hands, though its share price remained unchanged at S$0.099.

Y92 also saw brisk trading, with 3.9 million shares transacted. The beverage company's share price rose 0.7 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.715.

Another counter that was actively traded was investment holding company 43E , as more than 2.7 million of its securities changed hands. Its share price jumped 5.9 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.018.

Lendlease Reit (real estate investment trust) and PH0 were among the top 10 active counters on Thursday morning after both companies made announcements before the market opened.

Over 1.4 million securities of JYEU were transacted, though its unit price fell 1.3 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.76. The manager on Thursday declared an advanced distribution of S$0.011371 per unit to be paid in connection with the real estate investment trust's recently announced private placement.

As for property developer Hatten Land, some 1.3 million securities changed hands, with its share price climbing 2.3 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.044. Its subsidiary Hatten Edge entered into an agreement with a new business partner, which will allow the addition of up to 550 crypto mining rigs to Hatten Land's crypto mining facilities in Melaka, announced the group on Thursday.

The shares of the 3 local banks saw relatively muted trade. D05 and O39 were both flat at S$36.13 and S$12.45, respectively. U11 declined 0.1 per cent or S$0.04 to S$32.27.

In the US, stocks fell on Wednesday, with the Dow and S&P 500 snapping 4-session winning streaks, on waning signs of progress for peace talks between Ukraine and Russia against a backdrop of a hawkish Federal Reserve curbing economic growth.

The S&P has rebounded more than 5 per cent in March after starting the year with 2 straight monthly declines. Still, the benchmark index is on track for its first quarterly decline since the first quarter of 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic in the US was reaching full swing.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 65.38 points or 0.2 per cent to 35,228.81, the S&P 500 lost 29.15 points or 0.6 per cent to 4,602.45 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 177.36 points or 1.2 per cent to 14,442.28.

European stock markets also fell after 3 straight sessions of gains on Wednesday, as investors paused to take stock of the outcome of Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 0.4 per cent, or 1.9 points to 460.19, losing its previous gains which had reached levels before the conflict at Tuesday's close after peace talks between Russia and Ukraine yielded the most tangible sign of progress towards negotiating an end to the war.

The global retreat also continued in Asia with Tokyo shares opening lower on Thursday on receding hopes for a breakthrough in the war in Ukraine and ahead of the Tokyo Stock Exchange's market realignment next week.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gave up 0.8 per cent or 221.22 points to 27,806.03 in early trade, while the broader Topix index fell 0.8 per cent or 15.83 points to 1,951.77.