Singapore stocks rise at Thursday's open; STI up 0.2%

SINGAPORE shares opened higher on Thursday, tracking overnight rallies on Wall Street.

As at 9.01am, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.2 per cent or 4.77 points to 3,063.38. Gainers outnumbered losers 79 to 29, after 44.9 million securities worth S$48.3 million changed hands.

Malaysian property developer Hatten Land PH0 : PH0 0%was the most actively traded counter by volume in the morning, surging 28 per cent or 0.7 Singapore cent to 3.2 cents with 11.8 million shares changing hands.

Prior to the market open, the group had announced strategic initiatives involving cryptocurrency mining with SMI, and solar energy with Bursa-listed Nestcon. It will also raise up to S$1.8 million from a proposed share placement, which will be used to help fund these initiatives.

Index stocks ComfortDelGro C52 and Singtel Z74 a : Z74 0%lso saw brisk trading at the open. The land transport operator dipped S$0.01 or 0.7 per cent to S$1.54 with about 3.6 million shares traded as at 9.01am, while Singapore's largest telco inched up S$0.01 or 0.4 per cent to S$2.39, with some 2.3 million shares changing hands.

The trio of local banks were mixed in early trade. UOB U11 was down S$0.03 or 0.1 per cent at S$25.57. DBS D05 and OCBC O39 bo : O39 0%th rose by S$0.01, or 0.03 per cent and 0.1 per cent to S$30.08 and S$11.61, respectively.

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Over in the US, stocks finished solidly higher on Wednesday to signal underlying confidence in an economic rebound, despite the ongoing wave of Covid-19 infections that has weighed on sentiment.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7 per cent to 34,814.39, the broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.9 per cent to 4,480.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 0.8 per cent to 15,161.53.

European shares slipped on Wednesday as utilities fell on Spain's move to cap energy bills, while luxury stocks continued to weaken on worries about a slowing Chinese economy.

The benchmark Stoxx 600 index was down 0.8 per cent, and off about 2.5 per cent from the record high in mid-August.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo stocks opened higher on Thursday as investors took heart from a Wall Street rebound, with hopes for stimulus under the next government in Japan continuing to support the market.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.3 per cent or 75.28 points at 30,586.99 in early trade, while the broader Topix index rose 0.2 per cent or 5.00 points to 2,101.39.