SINGAPORE shares rose on Thursday (Aug 15) morning, after US and Europe indices finished in positive territory overnight.
The Straits Times Index (STI) opened 0.3 per cent or 8.67 points higher at 3,294.95 as at 9.01 am. Across the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers 73 to 48, after 45.7 million securities worth S$66.1 million changed hands.
Index counter Genting Singapore was the most actively traded counter by volume, gaining 1.8 per cent or S$0.015 to S$0.83 with 7.4 million shares transacted.
Other heavily traded securities as at 9.02 am included Seatrium, which gained 2.1 per cent or S$0.03 to S$1.44 with 4.1 million shares changing hands, as well as Singtel, which rose 0.7 per cent or S$0.02 to S$2.93 with 1.5 million shares traded. The telco on Thursday posted a 42.9 per cent increase in net profit to S$690 million for the first quarter ended Jun 30, from S$483 million in the corresponding year-ago period.
The three local banks traded mixed as at 9.03 am on Thursday. DBS fell 0.4 per cent or S$0.15 to S$34.46. UOB edged up 0.2 per cent or S$0.07 to S$29.70, while OCBC rose 0.7 per cent or S$0.10 to S$14.05.
Wall Street stocks edged higher on Wednesday as traders reacted to evidence of cooling consumer inflation, a positive sign for the Federal Reserve as it weighs cutting interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.6 per cent higher at 40,008.39, while the broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.4 per cent to 5,455.21. The Nasdaq increased marginally by around 0.03 per cent to 17,192.6.
Over in Europe, the main stocks index rose on Wednesday, boosted by travel and leisure and financial shares. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.5 per cent higher at 504.1, with all the major regional bourses also ending in positive territory.
