Singapore shares opened higher on Thursday—STI gained 0.6%

SINGAPORE: Singapore shares opened higher on Thursday morning, buoyed by a mixed bag of global market results.

The Business Times reports that the Straits Times Index (STI) gained 20.29 points or 0.6% to reach 3,197.77 by 9.01 am. In the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers with a ratio of 111 to 30, with 49.5 million securities valued at S$80.6 million changing hands.

The most actively traded stock by volume was Marco Polo Marine, which saw a 5.08% increase, climbing S$0.002 or 3.4% to S$0.061 following the transaction of 4.6 million securities.

Other notable counters included Seatrium and Singtel. Seatrium remained unchanged at S$0.079 after 4.5 million shares were traded, while Singtel saw a 0.4% gain, increasing by S$0.01 to S$2.53 after 1.6 million securities changed hands.

Banking stocks showed early strength, with DBS advancing by 0.8% to S$35.22, OCBC rising by 0.8% to S$13.52, and UOB climbing by 0.4% to S$29.01.

In the United States, indices hit new records on Wednesday following the Federal Reserve’s reaffirmation of plans for interest rate cuts in the coming months, easing concerns about a retreat despite higher-than-expected inflation data.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index surged by 1.3% to 16,369.41, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1% to close at 39,512.13. The S&P 500 also rose by 0.9% to reach 5,224.62.

Meanwhile, European shares saw minimal movement on Wednesday, mainly due to sell-offs in luxury stocks as well as cautious sentiments ahead of the Federal Reserve decision after European markets closed. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed nearly unchanged at 505.21. /TISG

Read also: Singapore shares saw gains on Wednesday—STI surged by 0.2%