Singapore stocks rise at Wednesday's open; STI up 0.1%

SINGAPORE shares opened slightly higher on Wednesday (Feb 16), tracking gains on Wall Street.

The Straits Times Index (STI) grew 0.1 per cent or 4.19 points to 3,425.57 as at 9.03 am. Gainers outnumbered losers 105 to 35, after 74 million securities worth S$113.2 million changed hands.

The most actively traded counter by volume was Genting Singapore G13 , which saw 6.8 million of its shares worth S$5.3 million traded in the morning. Its shares gained S$0.02 or 2.6 per cent to S$0.795.

Among index stocks, Singtel Z74 saw brisk trading, with 2.9 million shares worth S$7.5 million changing hands. Its shares were down S$0.01 or 0.4 per cent at S$2.56.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding BS6 was also actively traded, with 3.3 million shares worth S$4.6 million changing hands. The counter was up S$0.02 or 1.5 per cent at S$1.40.

The trio of local banks were mixed in early trade. DBS D05 gained S$0.20 or 0.6 per cent to S$36.73, UOB grew S$0.03 or 0.1 per cent to S$32.71, while OCBC O39 was down S$0.01 or 0.1 per cent to S$13.25.

UOB U11 on Wednesday reported a 48 per cent rise in net profit to S$1.02 billion for the 3 months ended Dec 31, 2021, beating the average estimate of S$986 million based on 4 analysts polled by Refinitiv. Its board also recommended a final dividend of S$0.60.

In the US, Wall Street stocks cheered Russia's more conciliatory posture on Ukraine on Tuesday, rallying after 3 straight negative sessions and ending with all 3 major indices finished solidly higher.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.2 per cent to 34,988.84, the broad-based S&P 500 gained 1.6 per cent to 4,471.07, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.5 per cent to 14,139.76.

European stocks also pulled back some of their recent losses on Tuesday, following reports that some Russian troops near Ukraine were returning to their bases, while some positive corporate updates also boosted sentiment.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index ended 1.4 per cent higher after falling for 3 consecutive sessions, winding up on Monday at its lowest since Jan 24.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened higher on Wednesday, extending Wall Street rallies on easing fears of an imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 1.4 per cent or 381.03 points at 27,246.22 in early trade, while the broader Topix index gained 1.3 per cent or 24.94 points to 1,939.64.