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STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index flat; United Fiber, Tat Hong gain

Singapore shares were little changed on Wednesday, after scaling to its highest in more than five years just last week.

The Straits Times Index traded flat, while the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan shed 0.1 percent.

"In a scenario of a destabilising U.S. QE unwind, we would expect some Asian economies or markets to be hurt more than others," Nomura Research said in a report.

"We view Hong Kong and Singapore, currencies pegged or closely managed to the USD, as highly vulnerable," it added.

Shares of palm oil producer Golden Agri-Resources Ltd rose 1.7 percent to a one-week high of S$0.585.

Among small cap gainers, United Fiber System Ltd, an investment holding company, jumped as much as 23 percent to S$0.037, after it posted a net profit of $15.6 million for the first quarter, boosted by a $16.9 million gain on the deconsolidation of its subsidiary, Poh Lian Construction.

More than 200 million shares changed hands, 21 times the average full-day volume over the past 30 days, making United Fiber the top traded stock by value.

Shares of cranes and heavy equipment supplier Tat Hong Holdings Ltd, rose 1.3 percent to S$1.53, after it posted fourth-quarter net profit of S$18.6 million ($14.7 million), up 66 percent year-on-year.

"The outlook for its key markets remains positive, underpinned by a number of infrastructure projects," said OCBC Investment Research, noting that the company's improving cashflow would bring its gearing level to a more sustainable level.

The brokerage kept its "buy" rating and unchanged fair value estimate of S$1.75 on the stock.

1248 (0448 GMT)