Singapore stocks open higher on Monday; STI up 0.1%

SINGAPORE shares started the week in positive territory following a mixed showing in global markets overnight. 

As at 9.01am on Monday (Aug 7), the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 4.45 points or 0.1 per cent to 3,296.84. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 58 to 44 after 28.9 million securities worth S$29.01 million changed hands.

The most actively traded counter by volume was Seatrium , whose share price remained flat at S$0.135 after 12.5 million of its securities were transacted. 

Other heavily traded securities included Yangzijiang Shipbuilding , which saw brisk activity as its share price rose 1.3 per cent or S$0.02 to S$1.60. Fuel oil trader AnAn International rose 5 per cent or S$0.001 to S$0.021 at the open. 

The trio of local banks logged gains in early trade. DBS rose 0.4 per cent or S$0.13 to S$34.38 while OCBC increased 0.2 per cent to S$0.03 to S$12.97 and UOB climbed 0.5 per cent or S$0.13 to S$28.93. 

US indices closed lower on Friday after a report of slowing US labour market growth.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 150.27 points or 0.4 per cent to 35,065.62 and the broad-based S&P 500 fell 23.86 points or 0.5 per cent to 4,478.03 while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 45.18 points or 0.3 per cent to 13,914.54. 

European stocks steadied after falling for three days straight, following upbeat earnings and US jobs data that showed signs of the labour market staying resilient. 

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index edged up 0.3 per cent to 459.28, after shedding about 3 per cent in the past three sessions.