Singapore shares open lower on Friday; STI down by 0.1%

SINGAPORE stocks began Friday (Sep 27) trading in negative territory, despite overnight gains in global markets. 

As at 9.01 am, the Straits Times Index (STI) dropped 0.1 per cent or 2.12 points to 3,580.11. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 61 to 39 after 30.8 million securities worth S$41.2 million changed hands. 

Investment holding company Adventus was the most actively traded counter by volume. It was up 16.7 per cent or S$0.001 at S$0.007 with 6 million securities changing hands. 

Other actively traded counters included investment holding and air-conditioning company Progen, which rose 15.8 per cent or S$0.006 to S$0.044 and resort and casino operator Genting Singapore which climbed 0.6 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.84. 

Banking stocks were mostly trading down at the open. UOB dropped 0.1 per cent or S$0.03 to S$32.33, while DBS fell 1 per cent or S$0.37 to S$37.93. OCBC traded flat at S$15.23. 

Wall Street stocks powered high on Thursday, tracking strong Micron earnings and Beijing statements signaling likely additional stimulus. Analysts said Micron’s earnings were a boon as they showed strong profitability and lifted other tech shares, as the computer memory chip maker’s own shares jumped nearly 15 per cent. 

The broad-based S&P 500 finished up 0.4 per cent at 5,745.37, clocking a fresh record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6 per cent to 42,175.11, narrowly missing a record of its own, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 0.6 per cent to 18,190.29.

European shares jumped as China-exposed stocks outperformed on news of aggressive Chinese economic stimulus and chip stocks advanced following Micron’s strong revenue forecast. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 1.3 per cent higher at 525.61 points, an all-time closing high and 0.2 away from the intraday record high.