FTSE STI closed 3,513.00, up 10.25 points or +0.29% with a total volume of 1.88b and a total value of S$1.31b. Total number of advance vs decline was 270 vs 182. Of the 30 component index stocks, 19 closed positive, 5 unchanged and 6 in the red. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. Jardine C&C +0.720
2. UOB +0.310
3. DBS +0.150
4. AscendasReit +0.080
5. Kep Corp +0.080
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. JMH USD -0.120
2. SGX -0.050
3. OCBC -0.040
4. ThaiBev -0.020
5. Noble -0.020
5. CityDev -0.020
US markets closed positive yesterday and Asian bourses were mostly negative with Nikkei -0.83%, SSE -0.46% and HSI +0.84%. STI opened positive swinging between gain and loss eventually closed +0.29% in slightly higher daily volume and value than yesterday with 19 of the 30 index stocks registered positive closing.
Nasdaq hit 15-years high with the help of tech stocks while rest of the markets held positive due to corporate earning. Asian markets however were on a profit taking mode with most of the markets closed in the red. Investors also cautious ahead of tonight emergency meeting among EU Finance Ministers on whether Greece is able to tap the emergency fund before it goes default this month. Most expecting the chance of a Greek deal is low and even possibility of it being exit of euro. Should that happen, the impact, short-term wise still have to the cautious as the extend of the damage still an unknown at the moment.
STI was flat for most part of the day as profit for the weekend and staying sideline to remain cautious of any negative Europe event. The index was popped up during closing probably due to short-covering of the index stocks. While stock price for those yet to release earning might be resilience but most of those who have released their earning were facing a "sell on news" type of scenario given that most of those have run up prior to their earning. Short-term traders and punters will have to be careful but for mid and long term investors stay patience, there will be time for the price to pull back for bargain hunting for the next 3 months.
