Singapore shares closed higher on Tuesday with the blue-chip Straits Times Index up 7.13 points to 2,975.51. Gainers led losers 277 to 214. Last night, the Dow Jones industrial average eased 3.56 points, or 0.03%, to finish at 10,969.99. But the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 2.00 points, or 0.17%, to 1,189.44. Here are some stocks to watch:

The Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index, which tracks prices of 19 commodities including corn and copper, fell 0.4% in New York yesterday, paring gains in the past three days to 1.9%. Noble Group (NOBL SP), a Hong Kong-based commodity supplier, rose 0.6% to $3.21. Olam International (OLAM SP), a supplier of agricultural commodities, lost 0.4% to $2.61.

Shipping companies: The Baltic Dry Index, which measures the cost of shipping commodities, fell 0.3% in London yesterday. Cosco Corp. Singapore (COS SP), the China-based shipbuilder that also operates bulk carriers, gained 0.8% $1.35. STX Pan Ocean Co. (STX SP), South Korea’s biggest bulk carrier, rose 0.1% to $16.40.

Unionmet Singapore (UMS SP): The producer of indium ingots used in the manufacture of flat panel displays and solar energy batteries said it had a net profit of US$460,000 ($642,390) in the first quarter ended February, compared with a net loss of US$3 million a year earlier. Unionmet was unchanged at 4.5 cents.

Yongnam Holdings (YNH SP): The Singapore-based construction company said it won a $20.2 million contract to provide engineering works for Ssangyong Engineering and Construction Co., which is building a new highway in Singapore. Yongnam stock rose 5.6% to 28.5 cents.