Singapore shares open Tuesday slightly higher; STI up 0.1%

SINGAPORE stocks opened slightly higher on Tuesday (Dec 12) following overnight gains in the US and European stock markets as investors anticipate upcoming interest rate decisions by central banks.

The Straits Times Index (STI) inched up 0.1 per cent or 2.2 points to 3,092.40 as at 9.01 am. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 54 to 36 after 33.8 million securities worth S$40.7 million changed hands.

The most active counter by volume was Seatrium , which held steady at S$0.108 with 12.1 million shares traded.

Other heavily traded securities included Thai Beverage , which remained unchanged at S$0.50 with 5.4 million shares traded, and Genting Singapore , which gained 0.5 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.98 with 2.6 million shares traded.

Banking stocks were mixed in early morning trade. DBS shed 0.1 per cent or S$0.03 to S$31.36, while UOB rose 0.2 per cent or S$0.06 to S$27.50, and OCBC edged up 0.1 per cent or S$0.01 to S$12.55.

Wall Street stocks finished higher on Monday ahead of major economic releases, including a reading for the consumer price index and retail sales, and the Federal Reserve’s last monetary policy decision of 2023.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4 per cent to 36,404.93, its highest close since January 2022. The broad-based S&P 500 also rose 0.4 per cent to 4,622.44, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index closed 0.2 per cent higher at 14,432.49.

In Europe, the pan-European Stoxx 600 gained 0.4 per cent, maintaining its highest level in 22 months.