FTSE STI closed 3,107.87, up 21.23 points or +0.69% with a total volume of 1.27b and a total value of S$1.19b. Total number of advance vs decline was 246 vs 151. Of the 30 component index stocks, 8 closed negative, 8 unchanged and 14 closed positive. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. Jardine C&C +3.420
2. JMH 400US$ +2.460
3. JSH 500US$ +0.780
4. UOB +0.090
5. SIA +0.060
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. ST Engg -0.060
2. KepCorp -0.040
3. SIA Engg -0.020
4. SPH -0.010
5. SembCorp -0.010
5. SGX -0.010
5. CapMallsAsia -0.010
US markets closed at least +0.4% yesterday night with better than expected jobless claims data. Asian bourses taking the cue were all positive for the day with Nikkei +0.44%, HSI +0.50% and SSE still close for holiday. STI rose 0.69% with moderate volume and 14 of the 30 index stocks registered positive closing.
ECB yesterday maintained interest rate at 0.75% and continued to stress that they are ready to aid Spain should it require a bailout. Investors were also anticipating a much improvement in tonight US unemployment situation. However, do note that US unemployment data is not a priority to determine market direction. The outcome of the data tonight might have influence on how Americans going to vote next month for President but at the end of the day, it is the new President's policy that will change the game of US unemployment. QE3 to help unemployment ? That still unconvincing. The priority for global events at the moment are EU Summit on 18th - 19th Oct in which EU leaders should follow up on the austerity vs growth policies (not whether Spain need to bailout or not) and the fiscal cliff from US in which should be in focus after the November Presidential election.
STI was dominated with 2 themes for the day. Short-covering of the blue chips ahead of tonight unemployment data and STI rose 0.69% was not a true reflection either as most of the gain was contributed by the 3 Jardine groups of share. Taking those out, STI pretty much flat. Another theme for STI was yield chasing. High-yield stocks were again chased up ahead of their earning (dividend distribution).
Should tonight US unemployment data disappoints and causes panic sell down next week, that will be the cue to buy on dip and should market continue to advance with maybe better than expected data, do not chase the price. The unemployment data is not a priority on term of global events that will determine the direction of the market.
