Singapore shares lower

Singapore shares closed 3.24 percent lower on Wednesday after investors took profits and awaited fresh leads following two days of gains, dealers said. The blue chip Straits Times Index ended 68.92 points lower at 2,059.39. Volume totalled 1.14 billion shares worth 1.21 billion dollars (824 million US).
Losers led gainers 394 to 137 while 785 issues were unchanged. Neptune Orient Lines was 11 cents lower at 1.65 and agribusiness giant Wilmar International was off 28 cents at 2.30. Among the banks, DBS eased 70 cents to 14.60, UOB dropped 42 cents to 15.58 and OCBC finished 15 cents lower at 6.50. Beverage maker Fraser and Neave bucked the trend, rising two cents to 3.11.