FTSE STI closed 3,439.86, up 0.18 points or +0.01% with a total volume of 2.13b and a total value of S$2.21b. Total number of advance vs decline was 186 vs 225. Of the 30 component index stocks, 10 closed positive, 5 unchanged and 15 in the red. The top 5 gainer component stocks were :-
1. Wilmar +0.110
2. GLP +0.080
3. Kep Corp +0.080
4. Sembcorp +0.030
5. CityDev +0.020
5. SingTel +0.020
The top 5 loser component stocks were :-
1. JMH USD -0.250
2. JSH USD -0.180
3. StarHub -0.080
4. SGX -0.080
5. UOB -0.060
5. SIA -0.060
US markets closed negative yesterday and Asian bourses were mixed for the day with Nikkei +0.03%, SSE +1.89% and HSI -0.22%. STI swinging between gain and loss eventually closed flat in higher daily volume and value with 10 of the 30 index stocks posted gain.
US markets fell after US Fed minutes indicating that highly unlikely a rate hike will happen in June. Asian markets were mixed given the weak lead from US markets and after the release of China HSBC flash PMI for this month. Reading came in 49.1, contract for the 3rd straight month but better than expectation of 48.9. The read suggested that the recent stimulus is slowly working and there a possibility that more monetary easing will be down the road. That triggered SSE to rally another 1%. Rest of the markets were however on cautious mode keeping an eye on the Greece's debt. Should Greece unable to get any bailout fund by end of this month, it will run out of money to repay IMF next month. So far, talks on any possible deals yield no outcome.
STI was trading in a narrow range despite the higher daily volume and value. The sudden increase in daily volume and value was due to a block trade of 350m+ shares transacted at price S$2.74 by GLP. Discard those, market was back to the typical thin daily volume and value. That block trade helped GLP to be one of the top gainer among the index stocks rising almost 3%+ for the day. Broader market still in the same range bound mode nevertheless. STI especially the high yield stocks could be set for a rebound next week probably due to end of the month window dressing or perhaps some early window dressing for 1H 2015.
