Singapore shares open 0.7% down

SINGAPORE shares opened 0.7 per cent lower as at 9.03 am on Friday, with the Straits Times Index down 19.5 points to 2,826.24 after US Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen said in overnight remarks that she was personally supportive of a rate hike this year.

The banks weighed on the index, with DBS Group Holdings down by 1.5 per cent or 25 Singapore cents to change hands at S$16.65 as at 9.03 am. OCBC Bank slipped 0.3 per cent or three Singapore cents to trade at S$8.88, while United Overseas Bank eased by 0.7 per cent or 14 Singapore cents to cross at S$18.83.

About 85.1 million shares worth S$98 million in total changed hands.

Medtecs International was among the most active right out of the gate, jumping 15.1 per cent or 0.8 Singapore cent to trade at 6.1 Singapore cents with 5.9 million shares changing hands.

Losers outnumbered gainers 82 to 70, or about seven down for every six up.

Bounce in Dow futures helps trim ST Index's loss

THE Straits Times Index (STI) on Wednesday was hit by a combination of factors - a 2.2 per cent loss in the Shanghai Composite after news that China's purchasing managers' index (PMI) has slumped to a six-year low, a 2.3 per cent fall in Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index and perhaps most relevantly.

Stocks to watch: Rowsley, YuuZoo, SGX, industrial Reits

Rowsley: Billionaire Peter Lim's real-estate vehicle Rowsley has decided against waiting for the Iskandar residential market to recover.

Citing "prevailing market sentiment" and a "strong pipeline" for the residential segment there, the firm announced on Tuesday that it now intends to turn its long-delayed mega Vantage Bay project in Johor into a cluster of healthcare-related facilities with an expected total development value of RM5 billion (S$1.6 billion).

This figure is slightly less than the previous RM5.5 billion estimate for Rowsley's original plan for the 9.23 ha Vantage Bay, which was to have been an integrated development comprising a 75-storey condominium, a mall, office blocks and a hotel.

YuuZoo Corporation: The e-commerce company is appointing James Sundram as chief executive officer, starting Oct 1.

Singapore SGX News Highlights for wednesday

• Singapore share prices opened lower with the Straits Times Index (STI) down 11.23 points or 0.39 per cent to 2,857.24
• Asian shares slipped on growth anxiety focus now shifts to China PMI.
• Asian futures point to more stock losses before China factory PMI
• Rowsley has decided not to wait for the Iskandar residential market to recover.
• YuuZoo Corporation is appointing James Sundram as chief executive officer, from Oct 1.
• SGX could face toughest questions yet at an annual shareholders' meeting as pressure mounts to find new sources of revenue.
• DBS will introduce cashless options through mobile app to F&B outlets in Singapore.
• NOL couldn't explain high volume, except maybe market talk of Temasek selling stake
• Industrial Reit in Singapore will remain resilient in the face of the current economic slowdown, underpinned by its "robust" financial profiles.
• Oil moves up on falling US inventories.

STI unmoved by new benchmark entrants

THE usual suspects were strikingly missing from the line-up of local index movers after a significant change to the Straits Times Index (STI) basket took effect on Monday, but the market's attention was already elsewhere.

Singapore shares open higher on Tuesday in Wall St's footsteps

SINGAPORE share prices opened higher on Tuesday with the Straits Times Index (STI) up 11.13 points or 0.39 per cent to 2,893.40 at 9am.

This followed the Dow and S&P 500 which rallied on Monday, recovering some of the prior session's losses. Gains were minimal on the tech-rich Nasdaq, however, due to weakness among biotech shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot up 125.61 points (0.77 per cent) to 16,510.19. The broad-based S&P 500 rose 8.94 points (0.46 per cent) to 1,966.97, while the Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 1.73 points (0.04 per cent) to 4,828.95.

In Asia, financial markets in Japan are closed from Monday to Wednesday for a public holiday.

Stocks to watch: Sembcorp, S-Reits, Ascendas Reit, Asiatravel.com, SHS Holdings

Sembcorp Industries: The group on Monday said its subsidiary Sembcorp Environment has agreed to divest its 40 per cent stake in SembSita Pacific to 60 per cent joint venture partner Suez Environnement Asia for A$485 million (S$488 million). This will be settled in cash.\

Separately, on Friday, Sembcorp also said it has tied up with the Singapore Economic Development Board to be the country's first industrial "living laboratory". This means Sembcorp will grant technology providers access to its proprietary wastewater-treatment and waste-to-energy facilities on Jurong Island for late-stage test-bedding and co-innovation of water and environmental technologies.

Singapore real estate investment trusts (S-Reits): The FTSE ST Reits Index rose as much as 2.5 per cent on Friday, before ending at 694.15, up 0.5 per cent. This outdid the Straits Times Index, which fell 0.6 per cent to 2,879.59. This came after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged.

Reits are rate-sensitive vehicles whose prices tend to move inversely to interest rates, but analysts advised investors against getting carried away, and remained doubtful that the near-term liquidity rush into the sector will revive its index back to the over-770 level that it was at in late July.

Singapore shares continue sell-down on Monday

SINGAPORE share prices opened lower on Monday with the Straits Times Index (STI) down 21.85 points or 0.76 per cent to 2,857.74 at 9.01am.

This followed US stocks, which fell sharply on Friday in the wake of the Federal Reserve's decision against raising interest rates because of worries about slowing global economic growth. The US central bank's failure to act, despite previously suggesting a rate hike was imminent, also left investors uncertain of the outlook for US monetary policy.

According to AFP, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 289.95 (1.74 per cent) to 16,384.79. The broad-based S&P 500 sank 32.11 (1.61 per cent) to 1,958.09, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 66.72 (1.36 per cent) at 4,827.23.

In Asia, financial markets in Japan are closed from Monday to Wednesday for a public holiday.