Singapore stocks fall at Monday's open; STI slips 0.8%

SINGAPORE shares opened lower on Monday, tracking losses on Wall Street. The Straits Times Index (STI) lost 0.8 per cent or 24.89 points to 3,119.27 as at 9.01am. Losers outnumbered gainers 115 to 47, with 101.5 million securities worth S$139.8 million changing hands.

Shen Yao Holdings, previously known as LionGold Corp, was the most actively traded counter by volume, with 16.5 million shares traded within the first minute of market open. Its shares were flat at 0.7 Singapore cent.

LifeBrandz also saw brisk trading in the morning. Its shares were flat at 0.6 Singapore cent after 2.1 million shares changed hands. The food and beverages group on Friday said its renounceable non-underwritten issue of rights with warrants was about 103 per cent subscribed.

Index stock Sembcorp Marine was also actively traded, with 3.7 million shares worth S$710,000 traded as at 9.01am. The counter remained flat at 19.4 Singapore cents.

Local banks were lower in early trade. DBS lost 0.9 per cent or S$0.26 to S$29.51 in early trading, OCBC fell 1.6 per cent or S$0.19 to S$11.86 and UOB lost 1 per cent or S$0.26 to S$25.58.

Over on Wall Street, US stocks ended sharply lower on Friday after the Federal Reserve indicated that it might raise interest rates sooner than previously expected with both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the benchmark S&P 500 posting their worst performance in months.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 533.37 points or 1.6 per cent to 33,290.08, the S&P 500 lost 55.41 points or 1.3 per cent to 4,166.45 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 130.97 points or 0.9 per cent to 14,030.38.

European stocks also ended Friday lower, with bank and energy stocks leading losses. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 7.28 points or 1.6 per cent to end at 452.05, snapping a four-week winning streak.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks tumbled as investors took in the Federal Reserve's signals towards a more restrictive monetary policy. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 3 per cent or 870.79 points to 28,093.29 just over 30 minutes after the opening bell, while the broader Topix index was down 2.4 per cent or 47.51 points to 1,899.05.