Singapore shares open higher on Wednesday; STI up 0.3% to 3,041.65

SINGAPORE stocks opened higher on Wednesday, with the Straits Times Index advancing 0.3 per cent , or 10.26 points to 3,041.65 as at 9.05am.

Gainers edged out losers 68 to 50, as some 52.4 million shares worth S$55.5 million in total changed hands.

The most actively traded counter was Rex International with 15.77 million shares changing hands, sliding 5.75 per cent or 0.5 Singapore cent to trade at 8.2 Singapore cents.

Other actives included Nico Steel with 11.15 million shares traded, up 66.67 per cent or 0.2 Singapore cent to 0.5 Singapore cent; and YZJ Shipbuilding with 5.01 million units traded, rising 0.83 per cent or one Singapore cent to S$1.22.

All three local banks rose on Wednesday, compared to Tuesday's dip at the closing bell. DBS added 0.46 per cent or 11 Singapore cents to S$24.08, while UOB advanced 0.4 per cent, or 10 Singapore cents, to S$25. OCBC Bank rose 0.76 per cent, or eight Singapore cents, to S$10.64.

In Tokyo, stocks opened higher on Wednesday as bargain-hunters moved in after a sharp drop a day earlier on lingering worries over geopolitical risks.

In US markets overnight, Wall Street stocks lost ground again Tuesday to finish the session modestly lower amid mixed earnings, mounting geopolitical unease over Saudi Arabia, and Italy's budget standoff with the European Union.