Roundup: Singapore stocks end up 0.78 pct

Singapore shares closed 0.78 percent higher on Friday, as investors shrugged off U.S. stock performance overnight.

U.S. stocks eventually ended the Thursday session mixed as investors continued to digest Wednesday's monetary policy statement from the Federal Reserve. U.S. Investors initially reacted positively to the apparent dovishness of the Federal Reserve's statement, but now appeared to be expressing some renewed uncertainty about the outlook of U.S. interest rates.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index rose 26.28 points to 3,412.44 points. Trading volume was 1.27 billion shares worth 1.54 billion Singapore dollars. Advancers outnumbered decliners 247 to 184, while 501 stocks did not move.

Keppel Land dropped 0.2 percent to 4.56 Singapore dollars. Its parent, Keppel Corporation, has acquired 87.2 percent of Keppel Land. Keppel Corporation has extended a deadline to buy back remaining shares in Keppel Land until March 26, and planned to take the subsidiary private.

Noble Group rebounded 2.9 percent to 87.5 Singapore cents. The Singapore-listed commodities trader rose after several large international investors said they had become substantial shareholders with more than 5 percent interest each in the company.

Three Prudential companies and Eastspring Investments ( Singapore) said they had bought additional shares in Noble late Thursday. The company's stock dropped in recent weeks after reports from the analyst firm Iceberg Research claiming accounting irregularities, which Noble denied. Iceberg said another report on Noble will be published soon.

Among top gainers, Jardine Matheson rose 0.6 percent to 62.90 U. S. dollars, while Jardine Strategic became one of the top losers by falling 0.5 percent to 34.41 U.S. dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.38 Singapore dollars) Endi