Market Summary -- 8th Mar 11

FTSE STI closed 3,103.84, up 37.32 points or +1.22% with a total volume of 1.21b and a total value of S$1.41b.  Total number of advance vs decline was 301 vs 154.  Of the 30 component index stocks, 24 closed positive, 5 closed negative and 1 remained unchanged.  The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-

1. KepCorp  +0.400

2. UOB  +0.360

3. SembMar  +0.260

4. SIA  +0.220

5. JSH 500US$  +0.220

The 5 loser component stocks were :-

1. JMH 400US$  -0.300

2. HKLand US$  -0.070

3. SMRT  -0.020

4. CapMallsAsia  -0.010

5. SIA Engg  -0.010

US markets fell at least 0.5% yesterday with investors concern about middle east unrest resulting in oil price rose to US$106 and also tech stocks being downgraded also weighed on the index.  Asian bourses however were positive for the day as oil price pull back to US$103 due to talk of Gaddafi's exit plan.  Nikkei closed +0.19%, SSE +0.12% and HSI +1.71%.  STI moved back above 3,100 level with oil&gas play led by KepCorp and SembMar.  Easing of middle east unrest with oil price pulling back to US$103 also attracted bargain hunters coming in.  24 of the component stocks managed to close positive.  Investors will be monitoring the situation in middle east whether Gaddafi's exit really materialize.