Singapore stocks end up 0.18%

Singapore shares closed 0.18 percent higher on Wednesday, as offshore and marine stocks stabilized despite weak crude oil price in Asian markets.
Investors' sentiment also improved amid rising hope of more policy stimulus from China after Beijing reported annual consumer inflation eased to a five-year low of 1.4 percent in November, signaling persistent weakness in the world's second-largest economy.
Brent crude continued to slip little in Asian markets Wednesday, though it remained above a five-year low of 65.29 U.S. dollars per barrel touched on Tuesday. Oil prices have been under pressure amid a massive supply glut. But DBS Group Research said some buyers emerged in the hope that prices are bottoming following a more than 40-percent slide since June.
The benchmark Straits Times Index rose 5.97 points to close at 3,325.81 points. Trading volume was 1.2 billion shares worth 1.11 billion Singapore dollars. Advancers outnumbered decliners 247 to 172, while 520 stocks closed unchanged.
Nordic Group jumped 3.9 percent to 10.7 Singapore cents. It has been awarded a contract worth over 2 million U.S. dollars from a repeat customer. This contract is awarded by Armada Cabaca, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bumi Armada and involves the design and supply of a Remote Operated Hydraulic Valve Control System. With the addition of this contract, the company has an outstanding order book of approximately 43.3 million Singapore dollars as of to date.
Excelpoint Technology rose 3.6 percent to 11.5 Singapore cents. It will be distributing the complete RF and microwave portfolio, including the Hittite Microwave Products from Analog Devices, a global leader in high-performance semiconductors for signal processing applications. These products will be distributed through its network of offices spanning more than nine Asian countries.Among the top gainers, UOB rose 1.2 percent to 24.68 Singapore dollars, whereas Jardine Cycle and Carriage became one of the top losers by falling 1.5 percent to 42.86 Singapore dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.32 Singapore dollars)