FTSE STI closed 3,310.53, up 3.64 points or +0.11% with a total volume of 1.50b and a total value of S$819M. Total number of advance vs decline was 191 vs 207. Of the 30 component index stocks, 19 closed positive, 3 unchanged and 8 in the red. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. Jardine C&C +0.620
2. CityDev +0.110
3. DBS +0.100
4. UOB +0.100
5. JSH 500USD +0.050
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. JMH 400USD -0.360
2. ComfortDelGro -0.040
3. SingTel -0.030
4. SGX -0.020
5. SPH -0.010
5. SIA -0.010
5. Noble -0.010
US markets fell at least 1% yesterday and Asian bourses started the day in the red but managed to recover and closed mixed. Nikkei -1.01%, SSE +0.17% and HSI -0.28%. STI fell 0.3% on start but crawled back to close +0.11% in thin volume and value day. 19 of the 30 index stocks posted gain.
When positive corporate earning led US markets higher in the earlier part of the day but 2 events that surprised and shocked the world that eventually sent US markets doing a sharp sell off posting at least 1% drop. Israel sent ground troops to Gaza and a Malaysian Airline MH17 was shot down while flying over Ukraine air space killing all onboard around 300. While fingers were pointing to pro-Russian rebel that shot down MH17 but nothing has been confirmed. The 2 sudden events caused global markets to sell off but Asian bourses managed to rebound from the knee-jerk sell off. The question will be now whether Russia has any part to do with the incident and if they do, both US and EU will be imposing further more sanctions on it. Investigation is still undergoing as to who actually shot down plane.
STI like regional bourses suffered the initial knee-jerk reaction but managed to recover to eventually close flat but volume and value were thin for the day as investors stayed sideline to wait for clearer picture of the incidents. The MH17 shot down could be a short-term jitter to STI depending on what actually happened but the Israel issue might not be so straight forwards as the normal middle-east tension usually caused rising crude oil price which pro-long period will have some impact on global economy. Meanwhile, investors should keep an eye on the corporate earning in Singapore which will be in full swing next week.
