SINGAPORE - Singapore shares opened higher on Friday (Aug 30), with the benchmark Straits Times Index gaining 0.7 per cent, or 20.88 points to 3,102.71 as at 9.01am.

This comes after Wall Street stocks notched up their biggest one-day gain in a fortnight on comments from Chinese officials hinting that Beijing might not retaliate against the latest US tariff escalation, easing trade war fears.

The Dow and the broader S&P 500 each closed 1.3 per cent higher overnight, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.5 per cent, placing US stocks on track for their first weekly gain since July.

On the Singapore bourse, gainers outnumbered losers 91 to 15, after about 47 million shares worth $128 million changed hands.

Among the most heavily traded by volume, YZJ Shipbuilding gained 2.8 per cent, or 2.5 cents to 93.5 cents, with 8.2 million shares traded, while Singtel lost 0.3 per cent, or one cent to $3.14, with 4.5 million shares traded.

Banking stocks were all in the green in the early morning trade - DBS added 0.8 per cent, or 20 cents to $24.44, UOB gained 1.2 per cent, or 30 cents to $25.08, and OCBC was up 0.9 per cent or nine cents to $10.66.

Other active stocks included City Developments which rose 1.8 per cent, or 17 cents to $9.68, and Genting Singapore, which was up 1.1 per cent, or one cent to 89 cents on a cum-dividend basis.

Elsewhere in Asia, equities also ticked higher on Friday, tracking the Wall Street rally. Japanese and Australia stocks both advanced 0.8 per cent each, and South Korea's Kospi added 1.2 per cent.