Singapore shares open lower on Friday; STI falls 0.4%

SINGAPORE shares opened in the red on Friday (Dec 6) , mirroring declines in the broader Asian region.

The benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) fell 14.78 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 3,807.9 as of 9.03 am. Across the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 56 to 55, with 54.3 million securities worth S$88.2 million changing hands.

OKH Global was the most heavily traded stock, with nearly 11 million shares transacted. The company on Wednesday said it planned to acquire Chip Eng Seng Construction for about S$118.5 million. It said the deal could help to revitalise its business and “provide a strong financial footing” to pursue future growth opportunities. The counter rose S$0.002 or 7.7 per cent to S$0.028.

Singapore Post (SingPost) was also actively traded, with 2.4 million shares changing hands. It had been placed on CreditWatch negative by global ratings agency S&P, following the sale of its Australian business and a change in its future strategy. S&P said the sale would lead to the loss of a earnings pillar. Shares of SingPost fell S$0.005 or 0.9 per cent to S$0.585.

The trio of banking shares fell in the morning open. DBS dropped S$0.27 or 0.6 per cent to S$43.99, OCBC dipped S$0.05 or 0.3 per cent to S$16.32. UOB slipped S$0.32 or 0.9 per cent at S$36.83.

Asian equities tracked a drop in US shares ahead of jobs data that may help shape the direction of the Federal Reserve’s policy path later this month. Equities in Japan and Australia fell, taking cues from the downbeat mood on Wall Street.

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US stocks retreated from records on Thursday, taking a breather from a post-election rally. The broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.2 per cent to 6,075.11, ending a streak of four straight records.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6 per cent to 44,765.71, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 0.2 per cent to 19,700.72.

Over in Europe, equities closed at their highest in more than a month, aided by bank stocks as investors hoped a new budget could be passed in France after Prime Minister Michel Barnier’s government was toppled.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 finished 0.4 per cent in the green, logging its sixth-straight session of advances. France’s CAC 40 came off a three-week high and ended with a 0.3 per cent gain.