FTSE STI closed 3,079.14, up 21.28 points or +0.70% with a total volume of 1.68b and a total value of S$993M. Total number of advance vs decline was 195 vs 181. Of the 30 component index stocks, 7 closed negative, 4 unchanged and 19 closed positive. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. JMH 400US$ +2.050
2. JSH 500US$ +1.150
3. Jardine C&C +0.990
4. HKLand US$ +0.170
5. OCBC +0.070
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. SGX -0.020
2. StarHub -0.010
3. Wilmar -0.010
4. Olam -0.010
5. IHH -0.005
5. GoldenAgr -0.005
5. NobleGrp -0.005
US markets closed mostly positive yesterday night with only Nasdaq slight negative due to drag on tech stocks. Asian bourses however were mixed for the day. Nikkei -0.12% and both SSE and HSI still close for holiday. STI rose 0.70% with thin volume and 19 of the 30 index stocks posted positive closing.
US ISM data came in better than expected in expansion mode after past months of decline and that brought cheer to the market. However that was not a big enough catalysts for Asian bourses to go on a rally given that SSE and HSI still close for holiday, a lack of direction for investors. STI though rose 0.7% performing better than regional bourses, most of the gain on STI were by the Jardine Groups and HKLand. That was not a strong indicator of STI performance. Volume was still thin as investors are still caught in 2 minds whether to buy or wait for pull back.
Market should still be in consolidation mode ahead of earning season starting in 2 weeks time.
