Singapore stocks opened higher on Wednesday, with the Straits Times Index (STI) rising 8.28 points or 0.14% to 5,723.12 as of 9.07am.
Market breadth was positive, with 132 gainers against 64 decliners. Trading volume stood at 103.64 million shares, with total value reaching S$174.57 million.
Among the STI constituents, OCBC Bank rose to S$32.16, while DBS traded at S$78.35 and UOB at S$43.25. Singtel stood at S$4.30, while ST Engineering traded at S$10.98 and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding at S$5.20.
UMS was among the notable gainers, rising 12 cents or 4.56% to S$2.75.
In the REIT segment, Keppel DC REIT gained one cent or 0.47% to S$2.12. CapitaLand Ascendas REIT traded at S$2.28, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust at S$2.24 and Mapletree Industrial Trust at S$1.87.
The firmer opening came after Wall Street ended lower on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.26%, the S&P 500 declining 0.17% and the Nasdaq Composite slipping 0.08%.
Investors trimmed expectations for another Federal Reserve rate hike next month after New York Fed President John Williams said there was “no urgency” for further action. However, longer-dated US Treasury yields remained elevated, with the 10-year yield rising to 5.255%.
Oil prices fell overnight, with Brent crude declining to US$102.59 a barrel and US crude settling at US$89.38, while spot gold rose 1.46% to US$4,174.26 an ounce.
In derivatives, FTSE China A50 Index futures stood at 13,879, while Nikkei 225 futures traded at 66,320. SGX FTSE Taiwan Index futures stood at 64,276.50 and MSCI Singapore Index futures at 535.85.
The STI tracks the performance of the 30 largest companies listed on the Singapore Exchange by market capitalisation.
