by Tan Shih Ming
SINGAPORE, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Singapore shares closed 0.1 percent lower on Monday, as investors were uncertain about the timeline of the next U.S. interest rate hike.
Investors are waiting for the gathering of global central bankers later this week at Jackson Hole, Wyoming to look out for any signal that might suggest when the U.S. central bank will hike interest rates. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is due to speak at the gathering on Friday.
DBS Group Research maintained view that the Straits Times Index is poised to re-test the Brexit low at 2,714 points over the next one to two months.
Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index inched down 2.83 points to 2,841.19 points. Trading volume was 1.14 billion shares worth 644 million Singapore dollars. Decliners outnumbered advancers 214 to 151, while 542 stocks did not move.
SembCorp Marine rose 0.4 percent to 1.33 Singapore cents. It has entered into an agreement to acquire a 100-percent equity stake in LMG Marin AS for 20 million U.S. dollar cash. LMG is a naval architecture as well as ship design and engineering house headquartered in Bergen, Norway, with offices in Poland and France.
KS Energy soared 20.9 percent to 10.4 Singapore cents. It has been awarded a drilling contract valued at 17.4 million U.S. dollars for work in Indonesia which is expected to commence in January 2017 and continue for approximately 14 months.
Among top gainers, Best World International jumped 5.6 percent to 1.78 Singapore dollars, while Jardine Cycle and Carriage became one of the top losers by falling 1.1 percent to 43.41 Singapore dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.35 Singapore dollars)
