FTSE STI closed 3,431.59, up 12.57 points or +0.37% with a total volume of 1.50b and a total value of S$1.21b. Total number of advance vs decline was 249 vs 160. Of the 30 component index stocks, 18 closed positive, 2 unchanged and 10 in the red. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. JMH USD +0.390
2. DBS +0.180
3. Kep Corp +0.110
4. Capitaland +0.070
5. UOB +0.070
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. SIA -0.220
2. CityDev -0.120
3. JSH USD -0.110
4. Jardine C&C -0.060
5. HongkongLand USD -0.060
US markets fell at least 1.5% yesterday and Asian bourses were mixed for the day with Nikkei -1.39%, SSE +0.59% and HSI -0.13%. STI continued to move higher from yesterday with a 0.37% gain in typical daily volume and value with 18 of the 30 index stocks posted gain.
US durable goods orders fell 1.4% in February, worse than expectation and with concern of valuation of biotech stocks being overvalued, investors and fund managers chose to sell and lock in profit for 1Q 2015 causing Nasdaq to drop more than 2%. For Asian, it was a mixed performance with the selling of tech stocks weighed on certain Asian markets but the rebound of crude oil price helped markets which were heavy on energy stocks to move higher. Investors will be watching for tonight US 1Q final GDP figure and most are expecting a weaker figure.
STI edged higher in contrast to US markets overnight. While there was window dressing to the downside for US markets, it was the opposite for STI as fund managers window dressing to the upside. The rebound of crude oil price helped most of the O&G stocks on a rebound and together with banking stocks cushioning the market to stay positive. It was the 2nd day in a row that blue chips, large cap and fundamental strong mid-cap stocks were lifting the market higher and very obvious the work done by fund managers for next week end of 1Q window dressing.
