SINGAPORE stocks opened 0.1 per cent higher on Friday, with the Straits Times Index gaining 3.01 points to 3,524.32 as at 9.03am.

About 67.1 million shares worth S$123.5 million in total changed hands, which worked out to an average unit price of S$1.84 per share.

The most actively traded counter was Sembcorp Marine, which rose seven Singapore cents to S$2.17 with 3.43 million shares changing hands. Other actives included InnoPac and Jiutian Chemical.

Gainers outnumbered losers 65 to 50, or about four up for every three down.

US stocks fell overnight as concerns about a possible US government shutdown and lofty equity valuations dented sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4 per cent to finish the session at 26,017.81. The broad-based S&P 500 lost 0.2 per cent at 2,798.03, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index slipped less than 0.1 per cent to 7,296.05.

The US House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill to fund government operations through Feb 16, but the bill still must be approved by the Senate, where it faces an uncertain future, according to Reuters reporting.

In other stocks, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index gained 0.32 per cent, or 75.92 points, to 23,839.29 in early trading.