Singapore shares decline at Tuesday's open; STI down 0.4%

SINGAPORE stocks opened lower on Tuesday, following mixed trading in global markets amid a week of heavy corporate earnings and concerns over the pace of coronavirus vaccinations.

The Straits Times Index (STI) lost 11.73 points or 0.4 per cent to 2,961.92 as at 9.01am.

Gainers outnumbered losers 84 to 57 after 119.6 million securities worth S$69.7 million changed hands.

Oceanus was the most actively traded counter in the morning. The watch-listed group gained 0.1 Singapore cent or 1.9 per cent to 5.5 cents after 23.6 million shares changed hands.

Other active counters by volume included The Place Holdings, which was up by one Singapore cent or 7.8 per cent at 13.8 cents after some 5.7 million shares were traded. The property firm was queried after its share price surge on Monday, to which it responded that it is engaged in various discussions on opportunities and projects with no definitive agreement reached.

All three local banks were down in early trade. DBS dipped 0.5 per cent or S$0.13 to S$25.80 as at 9.01am. UOB and OCBC were both down by 0.4 per cent, or S$0.09 and S$0.04 respectively, at S$23.52 and S$10.53.

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Over on Wall Street, tech shares surged on Monday as a heavy week of corporate earnings kicked off while pharmaceutical companies offered mixed news on coronavirus vaccines.

The Nasdaq Composite Index finished at a record for the fourth straight session, gaining 0.7 per cent to close at 13,635.99. The S&P 500 rose 0.4 per cent to end at 3,855.36, also edging to a fresh record. The bellwether Dow Jones Industrial Average however shed 0.1 per cent to 30,960.00.

European shares closed at two-week lows on Monday as a slump in German business morale underscored the damage from tighter Covid-19 restrictions, while investors feared a slow vaccine roll-out could further delay an economic recovery. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index reversed early gains and finished 0.8 per cent lower.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened lower on Tuesday in cautious trade ahead of corporate earnings reports at home and abroad.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.5 per cent or 147.96 points at 28,674.33 in early trade, while the broader Topix index edged down 0.5 per cent or 9.28 points to 1,852.72.