Singapore shares hold steady at Wednesday’s open; STI up 0.04%
Vivienne Tay
SINGAPORE shares were little changed at Wednesday’s (Sep 20) open, tracking a subdued performance in Europe and overnight losses on Wall Street as investors anticipate the Federal Reserve’s next decision.
The Straits Times Index (STI) edged up 0.04 per cent or 1.34 points to 3,242.09 as at 9.01 am. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 49 to 35 after 31 million securities worth S$38.6 million changed hands.
The most active counter by volume was Rex International , which fell 3.4 per cent or S$0.007 to S$0.198 with 4.7 million shares traded.
Other heavily traded securities included Genting Singapore , which remained unchanged at S$0.88 with 3.3 million shares traded, as well as Yangzijiang Shipbuilding , which rose 1.2 per cent or S$0.02 to S$1.67 with 2.2 million shares traded.
Banking stocks opened in mostly positive territory. DBS was flat at S$33.83, UOB was up 0.2 per cent or S$0.06 to S$28.61, while OCBC gained 0.3 per cent or S$0.04 to S$12.71.
On Wall Street, stocks finished lower on Tuesday as investors wait for a Federal Reserve decision on interest rates, which are widely expected to remain unchanged. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 per cent to 34,517.73, while the broad-based S&P 500 slid 0.2 per cent to 4,443.95. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also lost 0.2 per cent to reach 13,678.19.
European shares were muted on Tuesday after gains in energy stocks offset losses in industrials, with investors also exercising caution ahead of central bank decisions around the work this week. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index held steady at 456.52 points, while Germany’s DAX dipped 0.4 per cent.
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