Singapore shares open higher tracking US gains; STI up 2.5%

SINGAPORE shares opened higher on Tuesday after US stocks had closed higher overnight despite a sharp increase in coronavirus cases in the US and other major economies.

The Straits Times Index gained 61.06 points or 2.5 per cent to 2,477.30 as at 9.04am, paring some of the losses from its 4.5 per cent decline on Monday.

Gainers outnumbered losers 131 to 32, after 163.3 million securities worth S$514.1 million changed hands.

Singtel was the most traded counter by volume in the morning, rising S$0.08 or 3.3 per cent to S$2.50 after 23.1 million shares were traded.

Other actives included Genting Singapore which gained S$0.05 or 7.8 per cent to S$0.69 with 19.9 million shares changing hands, and CapitaLand Commercial Trust which advanced S$0.02 or 1.3 per cent to S$1.51 on 6.9 million units traded.

Meanwhile Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust gained S$0.09 or 3.3 per cent to S$2.80 on eight million units traded.

Among financial stocks, DBS gained S$0.41 or 2.2 per cent to S$18.71 while UOB rose S$0.46 or 2.4 per cent to S$19.67. OCBC, which saw heavy trading of its shares, was up S$0.13 or 1.5 per cent to S$8.65.

In the US, stocks gained more than 3 per cent on Monday as markets weighed a dire near-term economic outlook against unprecedented federal spending and central bank interventions.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 3.2 per cent or nearly 700 points to finish the day at 22,327.48. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 3.4 per cent to close at 2,626.85, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 3.6 per cent to 7,774.15.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks also opened higher. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.3 per cent or 59.98 points to 19,144.95 in early trade while the broader Topix index slipped 0.2 per cent or 2.19 points to 1,433.35.