Singapore shares outlook - Lower on renewed weakness on Wall Street

Singapore shares outlook - Lower on renewed weakness on Wall Street

	Published : Wed, 01 Aug 2007 00:53 By : Agencies Print this Story

SINGAPORE (Thomson Financial) - Singapore share prices are expected to open lower Wednesday after Wall Street pulled back on Tuesday because of persistent concern about the US sub-prime mortgage market.

Here Tuesday, the Straits Times Index closed 21.37 points or 0.6 percent higher at 3,547.66, after trading between 3,533.52 and 3,577.53.

The volume traded was 3.54 billion shares worth 3.68 billion Singapore dollars.

Losers outpaced gainers 581 to 392, with 657 counters unchanged.

While the market may follow Wall Street's decline, buying of shares in select sectors, such as oil-and-gas-related and property stocks, may limit the fall.

Investors have once again started nibbling on property stocks, which plummeted in the past two weeks after the government announced an increase in the tax on property redevelopment.

Fear among investors that the government will take measures to curb spiraling prices of residential property has been allayed somewhat by remarks reportedly made by Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan. The local media quoted Tan as saying the government has no intention of taking measures to cool the booming property market in the near future.

The strength of the earnings of COSCO Corp (Singapore) may encourage further buying of shipyard stocks, which are benefitting from the oil and gas boom. COSCO Singapore's second-quarter net profit was 58 percent higher than a year before at 80.40 million Singapore dollars.

Singapore Airlines is releasing its results for its financial first quarter ended June after the market closes. Two analysts polled by Thomson Financial expect the airline to post a net profit in the range of 300-357 million dollars, down from 575 million dollars a year before, when its earnings were bolstered by a gain of 223 million dollars from the sale of its office building.

Trading begins Wednesday in the stock of Ascendas India Trust and Reyphon Agriceutical Ltd. Ascendas India, an operator of information technology parks in India, sold 423.38 million shares at 1.18 Singapore dollars apiece in its initial public offering, which was 43.8 times subscribed. Reyphon, a manufacturer of gibberellic acids in China, sold 78.6 million new and vendor shares at 39 cents apiece in its IPO, which was 13.5 times subscribed.

(1 US dollar = 1.51 Singapore dollars)

TFN.Singapore@thomson.com

jb/jm

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