Singapore stocks open slightly lower on Monday; STI down 0.1%

SINGAPORE shares started the week slightly lower on Monday (Oct 25), with the Straits Times Index (STI) down 0.1 per cent or 3.20 points at 3,201.94 as at 9.04 am.

Gainers and losers were evenly matched at 71, after 102 million securities worth S$73.8 million changed hands.

As at 9.03 am, the most actively traded counter by volume was Hatten Land, which saw 12.2 million of its shares worth S$790,000 traded. Its shares were down S$0.002 or 2.9 per cent to S$0.066.

Among index stocks, ComfortDelGro was actively traded, with 2.1 million shares worth S$3.2 million changing hands. The counter gained S$0.01 or 0.6 per cent at S$1.57.

The transport provider on Friday (Oct 22) said its Australian unit, CDG Corp, is hungry for acquisitions while forecasting profitability. CDG Corp expects to post a top line of A$672 million (S$676.5 million) and a profit of A$42.1 million, up 14.1 per cent a year ago.

Singtel also saw brisk trading, with 1.8 million shares worth S$4.7 million traded. Its shares were flat at S$2.57.

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The telco operator announced on Monday (Oct 25) that its cybersecurity arm Trustwave has divested SecureTrust, its payment card industry compliance business, to Sysnet Global Solutions, for a cash consideration of US$80 million.

The trio of local banks were mixed in early trade. DBS gained S$0.10 or 0.3 per cent to S$31.47, UOB fell S$0.05 or 0.2 per cent to S$26.83, while OCBC was down S$0.05 or 0.4 per cent at S$11.95.

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at a record Friday (Oct 22) - up 0.2 per cent at 35,677.02 - capping a strong week for US stocks following mostly solid corporate earnings that have offset worries about inflation.

But both of the other 2 major indices retreated, even as all 3 indices won gains for the week. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.8 per cent to 15,090.20, while the broad-based S&P 500 ended down 0.1 per cent to 4,544.90.

Meanwhile, European stocks rose on Friday (Oct 22) on a surge in technology stocks, strong earnings from France's L'Oreal and a broad boost to sentiment provided by a surprise interest payment from debt-ridden China Evergrande Group.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 added 0.5 per cent to close at over 6-week highs and logged its third consecutive week of gains, up 0.5 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened lower on Monday (Oct 25) as investors await corporate earnings and Japan's upcoming general election.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.9 per cent or 265.45 points to 28,539.40, while the broader Topix index dipped 0.6 per cent or 11.78 points to 1,990.45.