Roundup: Singapore stocks end up 0.18 pct

Singapore shares closed 0.18 percent higher on Wednesday, as investors cheered China's latest trade data for December which turned out to be much better than market expectation.

Official data showed China's exports rising 2.3 percent in December from a year earlier in Chinese yuan terms, after a drop of 3.7 percent in November. The monthly data was much better than market's average forecast which had predicted a drop.

Still, last year was the worse year for China's foreign trade since 2009, following the global financial crisis. Despite improvements in December, China's exports fell 2.8 percent for the whole year of 2015 in dollar terms, while imports declined 14.1 percent. In 2009, China's exports dropped 16 percent, while imports declined 11 percent.

Meanwhile, investors also took comfort in steady Chinese yuan after China's central bank fixed the yuan at 6.563 to one U.S. dollar on Wednesday, marking the fourth day that it has kept its yuan guidance roughly stable.

Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index rose 4.72 points to 2,696.5 points. Trading volume was 1.11 billion shares worth 1.16 billion Singapore dollars. Advancers slightly outnumbered decliners 208 to 201, while 518 stocks did not move.

Among top actives, Biosensors International closed flat at 81.5 Singapore cents. Its substantial shareholder CB Medical Holdings has agreed to raise the offer price to 84 Singapore cents for each Biosensors share the third time for the proposed amalgamation of the two companies announced on Oct. 28 last year. CB Medical, a subsidiary of CITIC Private Equity Funds Management, had originally valued each share of the medical stent manufacturer at 81.5 Singapore cents in cash before raising it to 82.5 Singapore cents.

Among the top gainers, Jardine Matheson rose 4.7 percent to 51.06 U.S. dollars, whereas DBS Group became one of the top losers by falling 0.5 percent to 15.29 Singapore dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.43 Singapore dollars) Endit