* Index down 0.32 pct, seen in 3,000-3,042 range afternoon
* SingTel, StarHub and M1 drop on fears of new competition
* SingTel falls ahead of announcement on new Australia govt
By Charmian Kok
SINGAPORE, Sept 7 - Singapore shares dropped 0.32 percent, weighed by losses in telcom operators after a newspaper reported the government may allow a fourth mobile phone operator in the city-state.
By the midday break the Straits Times Index <.FTSTI> was down 9.73 points at 3,024.85. More than 131.8 million shares had changed hands.
"Singapore shares are likely to trade sideways later this afternoon, as there's little movement in U.S. futures so far. As the U.S. was on holiday yesterday, the STI is mainly taking its cues from Japan, which is down," said Carey Wong, an analyst at OCBC Investment Research.
The benchmark index is likely to trade with a downward bias in the 3,000-3,042 band, traders said.
Shares of Singapore's three telcom operators fell on Tuesday after the Business Times reported Singapore will auction another third-generation spectrum in November, paving the way for a fourth mobile phone operator. [ID:nSGE68601F]
Singapore Telecommunications
SingTel shares fell 1.6 percent to S$3.06 with 10.5 million shares changing hands, StarHub dropped 2.8 percent, while M1 declined 1.3 percent.
"If the opposition party wins, this may be bad news for SingTel, as the new government may not spend as much on broadband infrastructure in Australia," said a local trader.
Australia's conservative opposition said last month it would scrap the current government's plan to build a high-speed broadband network if it won, which could have negative implications for SingTel's Australian unit Optus. [ID:nSGE67901G]
Singapore-listed casino operator Genting Hong Kong
