Singapore shares close mixed as STI stages late rebound

A VOLATILE session on Tuesday ended with the Straits Times Index first sinking to an intraday low of 2,820 before recording a modest loss of 1.74 points at 2,834.23 at 5pm, most likely in anticipation of a Wall Street rebound on Tuesday. This was based largely on a firm opening for Europe in the late afternoon, even though the Dow futures at 5pm stood 35 points weaker.

Turnover here remained weak at 1.2 billion units worth S$895 million, of which S$621.5 million or 70 per cent was done in the 30 STI components. Excluding warrants, there were 216 rises versus 190 falls.

A new name entered the top volume list, one which has not featured in recent weeks but jumped to the top on Tuesday. Luzhou Bio-Chem's shares surged S$0.014 or 42.4 per cent to S$0.047 on volume of 111.6 million, drawing a morning query from the Singapore Exchange (SGX). The company replied in the afternoon that it did not know of reasons for the sudden activity in its shares.

Seafood restaurant operator Jumbo Group has stood out in recent weeks with its resilience, and on Tuesday rose S$0.01 to S$0.46 on volume of 10.3 million. In a "buy" with S$0.58 target price, Maybank Kim Eng said Jumbo's expansion in China is just beginning.