Singapore stocks open higher on Thursday; STI up 0.1%

SINGAPORE shares began trading on Thursday in slightly positive territory, with the Straits Times Index (STI) gaining 3.54 points or 0.1 per cent to 2,545.62 as at 9.01am.

Advancers outpaced decliners 82 to 48, after 122.6 million securities worth S$44 million changed hands.

Among index securities, the most heavily traded by volume was ComfortDelGro which edged up S$0.01 or 0.7 per cent to S$1.47, with 1.9 million shares traded.

DBS analyst Yeo Kee Yan said in a report on Wednesday that ComfortDelGro will be a beneficiary from the increased demand for transport, as more workers return to workplaces after stints of working from home.

Meanwhile, Wilmar International added S$0.02 or 0.5 per cent to S$4.37, with 846,000 shares changing hands.

The trio of local lenders were in the green in early trade on Thursday. DBS rose S$0.01 or 0.05 per cent to S$20.69, United Overseas Bank added S$0.14 or 0.7 per cent to S$19.70 on an ex-dividend basis, while OCBC Bank gained S$0.03 or 0.4 per cent to S$8.70.

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Other active securities include Silverlake Axis, which dipped one Singapore cent or 3.3 per cent to 29.5 cents. This comes after the fintech firm on Wednesday posted a 12 per cent fall in net profit to RM59.1 million (S$19.4 million) for its fourth quarter ended June 30, as the Covid-19 pandemic hampered the timely closing of deals, it said.

Over in the US, major Wall Street indices continued their winning streak on Wednesday, shrugging off worries about a hurricane approaching a key oil-producing region and renewed coronavirus fears that had stymied indices elsewhere.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted yet another record close, while the Dow finished up 0.3 per cent despite weak opening momentum.

Stocks in Europe also climbed on Wednesday, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 index adding 0.9 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened flat on Thursday. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up just 0.02 per cent or 4.27 points at 23,295.13 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.1 per cent or 1.93 points to 1,622.55.