FTSE STI closed 2,796.57, up 5.56 points or +0.21% with a total volume of 1.27b and a total value of S$1.00b. Total number of advance vs decline was 208 vs 231. Of the 30 component index stocks, 12 closed positive, 13 closed negative and 5 remained unchanged. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. JMH 400US$ +0.120
2. KepCorp +0.080
3. CityDev +0.080
4. DBS +0.060
5. Wilmar +0.060
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. Jardine C&C -0.500
2. JSH 500US$ -0.220
3. OCBC -0.100
4. HKLand US$ -0.030
5. StarHub -0.030
US markets moved higher last Friday after unemployment rate dip from 10.2% to 10.0%. Asia bourses however were mixed with US performance as investors now worried that if the labor market is recovering, US Fed might raise interest rate and this caused USD to rebound today, potentially USD carry trade unwinding. Nikkei closed +1.45%, SSE +0.45% and HSI -0.77%. STI was traded in a tight range today yet failing to clear the 2,800 resistance level. STI closed +5.97 points at 2,796.98 with mixed performance of the blue chips. European markets opened were mixed and coupled with a negative DJ future, investors played cautious taking profit off the table.
