Singapore stocks open lower on Tuesday; STI down 0.7%

SINGAPORE shares opened lower on Tuesday (Feb 22), with the Straits Times Index (STI) falling 0.7 per cent or 23.22 points to 3,413.14 as at 9.04 am.

Losers outnumbered gainers 105 to 33, after 58.5 million securities worth S$73.3 million changed hands.

The most actively traded counter by volume was Thai Beverage Y92 , which saw 4.8 million of its shares worth S$3.3 million traded in the morning. Its shares lost S$0.005 or 0.7 per cent to S$0.695.

Hutchison Port Holdings Trust NS8U was also actively traded, with 4.3 million units worth US$1 million changing hands. The counter was flat at US$0.24.

Among index stocks, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding BS6 saw brisk trading, with 3.1 million shares worth S$4.3 million changing hands. Its shares were down S$0.01 or 0.7 per cent at S$1.39.

Transport operator ComfortDelGro C52 also saw active trading in the morning, with 2.7 million shares worth S$4 million changing hands. The counter fell S$0.03 or 2 per cent to S$1.47.

The trio of local banks were down in early trade. DBS D05 lost S$0.17 or 0.5 per cent to S$36.34, UOB U11 fell S$0.33 or 1 per cent to S$32.33, while OCBC O39 was down S$0.12 or 0.9 per cent to S$13.23.

In the US, markets were closed on Monday for the Presidents Day holiday.

Meanwhile, European shares dropped to a 4-month low on Monday, with auto and technology stocks leading the losses after comments from the Kremlin quelled hopes of a resolution to Europe's biggest military crisis in decades.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 slid 1.3 per cent to its lowest level since October over concerning headlines related to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo's key Nikkei index opened down 2 per cent on Tuesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops into 2 Moscow-backed rebel regions of Ukraine, defying Western threats of sanctions.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 2 per cent or 540.09 points at 26,370.78 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was down 1.7 per cent or 33.26 points at 1,877.42.