Singapore shares close 0.3% lower on Monday

SINGAPORE share prices finished 0.26 per cent lower on Monday, with the Straits Times Index (STI) falling 7.29 points to 2,845.55 on lower trading volumes.

The blue-chip index was dragged down as Brent crude oil futures plummeted to as low as US$36.17 per barrel, their weakest level since 2004.

About 911.1 million shares worth S$626.1 million changed hands, which worked out to an average unit price of S$0.69 per share.

The most actively traded stock was engineering company Terratech, which leapt 49 per cent or 1.9 Singapore cents to S$0.058 with 70.8 million shares changing hands. Other actives included Ezra Holdings, Rex International and QT Vascular.

Though the STI slipped, smaller counters seem to have fared a bit better. In the broad market, gainers outnumbered losers 205 to 171, or about six up for every five down.