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Roundup: Singapore stocks end up 0.35 pct

Xinhua, April 10, 2015 Adjust font size:

Singapore shares closed 0.35 percent higher on Friday, lifted by news that Greece had made a 450-million-euro loan payment to the International Monetary Fund( IMF).

While there was still skepticism over Athens' commitment on economic reforms, the payment to the IMF secured extra emergency lending for Greek banks and improved global investment sentiment.

Meanwhile, a smaller-than-expected rise in U.S. weekly jobless claims alleviated investors' concern about the U.S. labor market after last week's dismal March payrolls report.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index rose 12.08 points to 3,472.38 points. Trading volume was 2.7 billion shares worth 1.31 billion Singapore dollars. Advancers outnumbered decliners 320 to 139, while 478 stocks did not move.

Among top actives, Noble Group rebounded 3.5 percent to 89 Singapore cents. It said its balance sheet had never been stronger and that Muddy Waters had omitted the impact on its results from the sale of its 51 percent interest in Noble Agri.

It added that its debt to capitalization ratio of 38 percent at the end of December 2014 was a record low. The U.S.-based research firm Muddy Waters had criticized Noble in a report dated April 8 that Noble "seems solely to borrow and burn cash" and accused it of misleading investors on previous acquisitions.

SMRT Corporation rose 0.6 percent to 1.615 Singapore dollars. It subsidiary Singapore Rail Engineering (SRE) and Faiveley Transport, a global manufacturer and supplier of railway equipment, have entered a joint venture agreement to market and supply maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for rolling stock components in South-east Asia.

The scope of the agreement covers the region except for Thailand, China's Taiwan and Hong Kong. The joint venture company will market and supply MRO services for brakes, access doors, platform screen doors, heating ventilation and air-conditioning systems, and automatic power supply systems.

Among top gainers, Jardine Cycle and Carriage rose 1.4 percent to 42.80 Singapore dollars, while UOB became one of the top losers by falling 0.9 percent to 23.16 Singapore dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 0.942 Euro and 1.36 Singapore dollars) Endi