Singapore shares open higher on Thursday; STI up 0.2%

SINGAPORE shares began Thursday (Oct 3) trading in positive territory, after global markets had mixed performances.

As at 9.02 am, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 8.75 points or 0.2 per cent to 3,593.42. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 87 to 37 after 65.9 million securities worth S$76 million changed hands.

Oil exploration and production company Rex International was the most actively traded counter by volume. The counter gained 4.3 per cent or S$0.005 to S$0.121 after nine million shares changed hands.

Other actively traded counters included upstream oil producer RH PetroGas, which rose 2.4 per cent or S$0.004 to S$0.173. Watch-listed petroleum exploration and production company Interra Resource advanced 4.6 per cent or S$0.002 to S$0.046.

Banking stocks were trading mixed at the open. UOB rose 0.1 per cent or S$0.02 to S$31.93, and DBS climbed 0.2 per cent or S$0.08 to S$37.85. OCBC dropped 0.1 per cent or S$0.01 to S$14.96.

Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday with investors monitoring ongoing Middle East tensions and weighing solid hiring data. After veering in and out of positive territory, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.1 per cent at 42,196.52. The broad-based S&P 500 was mostly flat at 5,709.54, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 0.1 per cent to 17,925.12.

Over in Europe, shares ended flat on Wednesday as investors shied away from risk-taking amid more warfare in the Middle East, although advancing energy shares kept a lid on losses. The pan-European Stoxx 600 held steady at 521.14 at the close, after trading near flat throughout the session.