Singapore shares rise at Friday’s open; STI up 0.5%
Vivienne Tay
SINGAPORE stocks opened higher on Friday (Mar 17), tracking solid gains in global markets following several major developments in the banking sector worldwide.
Data from Enterprise Singapore also showed that the Republic’s key exports contracted for the fifth straight month in February, albeit at a slower pace than the month before, as the decline in non-electronic shipments eased.
On the Singapore bourse, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.5 per cent or 14.84 points to 3,170.38 as at 9.03 am. Gainers outnumbered losers 101 to 30, or about three securities up for every one down, after 148.9 million securities worth S$117.7 million changed hands.
The most active counter by volume was Sembcorp Marine , which dropped 0.9 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.109, with 87.2 million shares changing hands as at 9.03 am.
Thai Beverage rose 1.6 per cent or S$0.01 to S$0.635 with 15.6 million shares traded, after the company clarified on Thursday that it has no concrete plans to list or sell its spirits business in response to a Bloomberg report stating that it is exploring options, including an initial public offering in Singapore.
Genting Singapore , another heavily traded counter, was down 1 per cent or S$0.01 to S$1.04, with 7.4 million shares traded.
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Banking stocks were mixed in early morning trade. DBS was down 0.3 per cent or S$0.08 to S$32.47, UOB was up 0.6 per cent or S$0.17 to S$28.17, while OCBC advanced 0.5 per cent or S$0.06 to S$12.21.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore said on Thursday that the trio’s exposures to troubled Credit Suisse are insignificant, in response to media queries on the local fallout of the Swiss lender.
Other active index counters included Singtel, which was up 0.8 per cent or S$0.02 to S$2.40, as well as Yangzijiang Shipbuilding , which rose 2.5 per cent or S$0.03 to S$1.25.
Wall Street stocks closed higher on Thursday. All three major US indices rose after a consortium of major US private banks announced a US$30 billion rescue package for embattled lender First Republic.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1.2 per cent higher at 32,246.55, the broad-based S&P 500 climbed 1.8 per cent to 3,960.28, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.5 per cent to end at 11,717.28.
European shares, meanwhile, finished higher following a volatile session, with the Stoxx 600 up 1.3 per cent. The Swiss National Bank’s lifeline to Credit Suisse calmed the markets amid fears of a global banking crisis and worries over the European Central Bank’s 50 basis point interest rate hike.
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