Singapore News Highlights: 24th Nov 2015

• Singapore shares were up with the STI up 0.04% or 1.05 points to 2,904.54. 

• KLW shares fall 14% after it announced yesterday that it is under investigation by the Commercial Affairs Department for possible offence(s) under the Securities and Futures Act.

• New Silkroutes Group requested to lift its trading halt, after Malta's Ministry of Energy and Health has become a new shareholder of IEG Malta.

• UOB launched its US$8 billion covered bond programme.

• Noble’s battling criticism of its accounting, may have its credit rating cut to junk by S&P's on concerns about the company's liquidity.

• Kepple Corporation has priced the issue of its S$200 million notes due 2023.

• Subsidiary of Midas won 4 contracts worth S$16.1 million to supply aluminium alloy extrusion for metro trains in China, and airport rail trains in Malaysia.

• Yuan fell to its 3-month low as the central bank weakened the currency's reference rate amid a dollar advance and also due to the concern that China will allow a decline to help its economy.

• Risks for S-Reits will rise in 2016, in view of weak economic fundamentals and new supply that will be added into most sectors.

• Singapore inflation eased last month, to -0.8% as compared with -0.6% in September mainly due to the lower costs of oil-related and retail items.

• The creation of the Asean Economic Community has potentially significant consequences for the Singapore economy.

• USD rose yesterday at economic reports expected to show improvements that could support a Federal Reserve interest rate hike next month.

• National Gallery Singapore,was unveiled by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong before it opens to the public from Today.

STI MARKET REVIEW- 5th Oct 2015

Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index opened today at 2,778.59 points, up by 1.21 per cent or 33.92 points and ended 58.10 points or 2.08% higher to 2851.25. STI came off from its intra-day peak of  2851.25 and  low of  2822.28 Wall Street's unexpected bounce on Friday helped add some stability to Asian markets on Monday, enabling the Straits Times Index (STI) to jump 58.1 points or 2.1 per cent to 2,851.25. Turnover however, remained low and concentrated in the 30 index stocks - the entire market traded just 1.1 billion units worth S$942 million of which S$697 million or 74 per cent was generated by STI components.

LOCAL BOURSE  
                                                                        
Singapore Exchange (SGX) has launched a new index business, SGX Index Edge, that will offer comprehensive services aimed at addressing the rising demand for index-linked investment in Asia.

Market forecast:

STI is expected to be bullish tomorrow. STI has the resistance at 2860. If it breaks this level it is expected to go up till 2875. STI has its support at 2820. The bullish trend is supported by weak U.S. job data  which has eased out the fear of U.S. rate hike by FED.

STI COUNTER SPECIFIC NEWS    

• Ascendas Reit has kicked off bookbuilding on its much-anticipated Singapore dollar perpetual non-call 5, with guidance offered in the 5 per cent area.
• OSIM International is down 1.23% at $1.605 after Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration reportedly found excessive levels of pesticide residues in OSIM's majority-owned TWG Tea's "Chamomile Green Tea" that was exported from India.
• Two senior US-based energy executives have left commodity trader Noble Group in the past week.

GLOBAL FACTORS AND WORLD INDICES:

• Hong Kong stocks bounced sharply on Wednesday from the previous session's two-year lows, wrapping up a tumultuous quarter in which the benchmark Hang Seng Index plunged more than 20 per cent. At market close, the Hang Seng was up 1.4 per cent, to 20,846.30, while the China Enterprises Index gained 1.9 per cent, to 9,405.50 points.
• China's stocks rose, paring the biggest quarterly loss since 2008, as the government struggled to halt a US$5 trillion rout and the world's second-largest economy showed signs of a sharper slowdown.
• European stocks advanced, rebounding from Tuesday's decline, as investors paused to assess value in what is heading for the worst quarter in four years. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index jumped 1.8 per cent to 345.43 at 8:07 am in London.
• Nikkei The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 2.2 per cent. The euro zone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index advanced 2.5 per cent.
• Hong Kong stocks closed 1.62 per cent up on Monday. The benchmark Hang Seng Index gained 348.41.79 points to end at 21,854.5.

STI MARKET REVIEW - 1st Oct 2015

STI MARKET REVIEW :

Singapore benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) opened at 2,800.54 points, up 9.65 points or 0.35 per cent, after US stocks gained the previous night and ahead of the release of China's official purchasing managers' index (PMI) data, a manufacturing gauge and ended 11.51 points or 0.41% higher to 2772.36. STI came off from its intra-day peak of 2799.80 and low of 2772.36

Singapore stocks posted gains midday on better-than-expected economic data out of China. China's official Purchasing Managers' Index climbed to 49.8 in September, compared with a median estimate of 49.7 in a Bloomberg poll, as well as an August reading of 49.7.

LOCAL BOURSE

Singapore home prices dropped for an eighth quarter, matching the longest losing streak in 13 years, as tighter mortgage curbs cooled demand in Asia's second-most expensive housing market.
An index tracking private residential prices fell 1.3% in the three months ended Sept. 30 from the previous quarter. The slump was the most since June 2009, in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

Market forecast:

STI is expected to be positive tomorrow as China’s official Purchasing Managers' Index has come better than expected. STI has the support level of 2778. STI has its resistance at 2828.

STI COUNTER SPECIFIC NEWS

• Singtel's Thai associate Advanced Info Service Public Company Ltd has submitted for arbitration, on Sept 30, a claim for 70 billion baht (S$2.7 billion) from Thai state-owned telco TOT Public Company Ltd.
• QT Vascular has successfully defended itself against a patent infringement lawsuit filed by another medical company- AngioScore.
• ST Engineering CEO will retire next year.
• Hong Leong Asia expects to post a loss for its third quarter and nine months ended Sept 30.

GLOBAL FACTORS AND WORLD INDICES:

• European shares rose on Thursday, buoyed by a further rebound for mining and trading company Glencore after a painful sell-off earlier in the week and bid talk for German salt and fertilizer company K+S
• Malaysian shares closed higher on Thursday, with the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index gaining 12.89 points to 1,633.93. Some 1.52 billion lots, valued at RM 1.82 billion, were traded. Gainers out numbered losers 465 to 306.
• Australian shares closed higher for a second session on Thursday, continuing to recover from a recent slide to a two-year low with the help of solid gains in the financial sector. The S&P/ASX 200 index put on 1.8 per cent, or 90.5 points, to 5,112.1, pulling further away from a trough of 4,918.4 set on Tuesday. The index has gained nearly 4 per cent in the past two sessions.

Weekly Technical view on STI : 21st Sept 15 to 25th Sept 15

Weekly wrap of STI:

Straits Times Index (STI) opened at 2855.04 ie., 24.55 or 0.85% lower and ended at 2832.64 ie., 46.95 points or 1.63% lower to 2832.64 this week. STI came off from its weekly peak of 2904.98 and low of 2816.76.
Singapore's August industrial production data due later today will likely hint at a risk of a technical recession, says DBS. A technical recession occurs when there are two consecutive quarters of decline in gross domestic product. According to prediction a 6.8% on-year decline in industrial output in August.



LOCAL BOURSE

Factory output contracted for the seventh consecutive month in August, performing worse than private-sector forecasters had expected. The latest manufacturing data, which showed output sliding 7% last month from a year ago, came in below the 5.3% decline forecast.
Consumer confidence in Singapore fell 0.9 point to 129.6 in September on heightened concerns about the economy in the next five years.
TI remained in negative sentiment this weak. It is expected to consolidate next week. It has it weekly support at 2800. STI may take reboud after taking support at 2800. Concern over US interest rate has increased after FED officials and Janet Yellen made a statement supporting rate hike by the end of this year. Market sentiment over slowdown of China’s economy is also negative.

TI COUNTER SPECIFIC NEWS :

• IPS Securex Holdings has placed out 8.9 million shares to "certain institutional investors" at 71 cents per share to raise $6.32 million.
  
• Ezra Holdings says Capt. Adarash Kumar Chranji Lal Amarnath has stepped down as group chief operating officer and executive director of the company effective Friday. His resignation is in compliance with the Code of Corporate Governance 2012 of having independent directors making up at least half of the board.
  
• Emas Offshore named Ezra ex-COO as CEO.
  
• NOL couldn't explain high volume, except maybe market talk of Temasek selling stake.
  
• Olam Intl is eyeing at US$2.72bn opportunity for acquisitions from commodity crisis.
  

GLOBAL FACTORS & WORLD INDICES:

• Shares in Hong Kong ended the week on a high Friday after tumbling more than three per cent in the previous two sessions but ongoing concerns about China's economy saw Shanghai check out with heavy losses. Hang Seng Index added 0.43 per cent, or 90.34 points, to close at 21,186.32.
• The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index, which had fallen 2.1 per cent on Thursday, climbed back up 2.2 per cent in early trading, while the euro zone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index also advanced 2 per cent. Nevertheless, the FTSEurofirst was still down 2.3 per cent from the end of last week.
• The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 1.6 per cent, to 3,231.95, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.6 per cent, to 3,092.35 points.
• Australian shares fell 0.6 per cent on Friday led by losses in banks after US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said she expects the central bank to begin raising rates later this year. The index ended the week down 2.5 per cent, after two straight weekly gains. It has lost 3.2 per cent in September so far, after falling 8.6 per cent in August - its worst monthly performance since the global financial crisis.
• Tokyo shares gained 1.76 per cent Friday, shrugging off a weak inflation report after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen hinted at a US rate hike by the end of 2015.
• Taiwan stocks were up slightly on Friday after the central bank cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2009 as the island's export-driven economy faces headwinds from a China-led global economic slowdown.
• Indonesia's economy is expected to grow at more than 5 per cent in the fourth quarter, a central bank official said on Friday, adding that gross domestic product was expected to expand at an annual 4.9 per cent pace in Q3.
• Gold dropped from its highest in a month on Friday as the dollar rallied on an assurance from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen that the US central bank would begin raising rates this year.
• Oil markets remained subdued in early trading in Asia on Friday after weak data from Japan reinforced concerns over global economic growth.

STI MARKET REVIEW - 22nd Sept 2015

Singapore share prices opened higher on Tuesday with the Straits Times Index (STI) up 11.13 points or 0.39 per cent to 2,890.11 and ended 12.58 points or 0.44% higher to 2869.69. STI came off from its intra-day peak of 2890.11 and low of 2862.72.

Singapore equities inched up at noon, with no clear direction to trading and little in the way of local new cues. STI rose 0.42% to 2,894.40. Market breadth was positive. However, later in the day STI was dragged in red through heavy selling in the market.

LOCAL BOURSE

Singapore's GDP grew at a slower pace of 1.8% on-year in the second quarter, from 2.8% in the first quarter. On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted annualized basis, the economy contracted by 4.0%, a reversal from the 4.1% growth in the preceding quarter.

Singapore is experiencing hazy conditions on Tuesday, with the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) staying at the high end of the moderate range. PSI was 79 to 91. The three-hour PSI, which is not linked to any health advisory, had been rising since morning.

Market forecast:

STI is expected to take side ways trend. It has support level at 2850, if it breaks this level it may down till 2830. It is trading within the range of 2830 - 2905. It has its resistance at 2905.

STI COUNTER SPECIFIC NEWS

• A subsidiary of Magnus Energy is forking out A$1 million (S$1 million) in cash to subscribe for 8 million shares in a new Australian oil and gas company.
• Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) on Tuesday said that besides reports that surfaced in July saying Singapore state investment firm Temasek Holdings has put it up for sale, it was not aware of anything else which might explain the trading in its shares.
• DBS has ambitions to introduce cashless options through a first-of-its-kind mobile application to hawker centers and quick-serve restaurants in Singapore, a senior bank executive said on Tuesday.
  
  

GLOBAL FACTORS AND WORLD INDICES:

• Shares in Hong Kong rose Tuesday following gains in New York after top Federal Reserve officials moved to reassure dealers about the US economy after being spooked by last week's decision to hold interest rates. The Hang Seng Index climbed 0.18 per cent, or 39.65 points, to close at 21,796.58.
• China stocks rebounded for the second day on Tuesday, in a further sign of improving investor sentiment that may help the market gradually stabilise after the rout since mid-June.
• Asian shares rose on Tuesday and the dollar held steady as US markets bounced back and the European Central Bank said it was prepared to ease monetary policy further.
• Taiwan stocks rose on Tuesday mostly following overseas markets and some bargain hunting after the previous day's losses, but further gains were capped due to uncertainties ahead of the central bank's policy meeting.
• The introduction of a new accounting standard for financial instruments will be challenging for the banking industry, especially when it comes to modeling for expected losses, the European Central Bank's supervisory chief said on Tuesday.
• The dollar advanced against the euro and other leading currencies Monday on comments from US central bankers who continue to eye a 2015 interest rate increase.
• US home resales fell more than expected in August, a cautionary sign for the US housing market which has recently looked on stronger footing. The National Association of Realtors said on Monday existing home sales dropped 4.8 per cent to an annual rate of 5.31 million units.
• Gold steadied below a near three-week high on Tuesday, retaining overnight losses as Asian equities and the dollar edged higher and as investors worried over the possibility of a US interest rate hike later this year.
• Oil prices rebounded on Monday , looked like a technical correction from heavy losses last week as the basic global oversupply picture remained intact.