Singapore Shares Close Flat Ahead of Key FOMC Meeting

STI MARKET REVIEW :

Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) opened 9.91 points lower or 0.35% lower at 2805.13 on Monday after a mixed showing of overseas markets overnight with Wall street and European stocks and ended higher to 2815.52.

ahead of the US Federal Reserve's Open Markets Committee (FOMC) meeting this week at which an interest rate hike is expected to be announced.

3 Days Free Trial Signals

STI came off from its intra-day peak of 2833.92 and low of 2800.71. The Straits Times Index (STI) traded between 2,800.71 and 2,833.92, after opening 0.23% lower at 2,808.63.

LOCAL BOURSE

Singapore Exchange (SGX) was named "Global Exchange of the Year" for the first time at the recent Futures & Options World (FOW) International Awards ceremony, as well as "Exchange of the Year - Asia, Australasia and MEA."

FOW cited SGX's strong volume growth through 2015 with trading levels up more than 60% year-on-year, as well as continued innovation across the risk management portfolio.

MARKET FORECAST

STI is expected to take side ways trend. Its suport level is at 2801 and resistance level is at 2832, if breaks this level it is expected to go up to level of 2850. However, market sentiment still remains bearish due to widely expectation of increase in US interest rate at the end of the two-day meet on 15-16 december.

STI COUNTER SPECIFIC NEWS

• XMH Holdings , recorded a 69.3% increase in 1H16 ended October of $3.57 million from a year ago.The increase came on the back of a 10.1% increase in revenue to $49.56 million, primarily supported by the increase in the projects segment, following the inclusion of ZPA's results.XMH had acquired an 80% stake in ZPA in March for $12.8 million.
• Sinarmas Land has revealed its plans for Nuvasa Bay development project on the beachfront of Nongsa on Batam island.Batam's first luxury integrated residential and mixed-use development will integrate an exclusive residential area with a full suite of resort facilities surrounded by an 18-hole international golf course along the 1.2km-long beachfront.
• VALLIANZ Holdings Limited said its subsidiary, Rawabi Vallianz Offshore Services Limited (RVOS), intends to enter into a refinancing exercise for the bulk of its bank loans amounting up to 1.1 billion Saudi riyal (US$293.3 million).These loans are currently secured on RVOS' fleet of 20 vessels comprising mainly anchor handling tugs and platform support vessels with an aggregate net book value of about 1.52 billion Saudi riyal.

GLOBAL FACTORS AND WORLD INDICES:

• Asian shares firmed on Tuesday as recently volatile crude oil prices showed some stability, though gains were limited by caution ahead of a widely anticipated U.S. interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve.
• China's yuan, weakened against the dollar after the People's Bank of China (PBOC) set its official midpoint rate at its lowest level in more than four years for a second day.
• China stocks ended slightly lower on Tuesday, with a correction in banking and resource shares countering a surge in property firms that was triggered by hopes of more support measures for the real estate market.The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 0.5 per cent to 3,694.39 points.
• Tokyo stocks fell on Tuesday as investors booked profits ahead of a US Federal Reserve meeting where policymakers will decide on whether to announce a long-awaited interest rate rise.The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange dropped 1.68 per cent, or 317.52 points, to close at 18,565.90, while the Topix index of all first-section shares was down 1.66 per cent, or 25.33 points, to 1,502.55.
• Australian shares gave up early gains to hit a 2-1/2-year low led by a late sell-off in banks and resources shares after the government forecast its budget deficit would swell to A$37.4 billion (S$38.2 billion).
• Singapore employment growth fell sharply from a year ago in the third quarter, bringing growth in the first nine months of this year down to the lowest since the recession year of 2009.Total employment rose 12,600 in the third quarter - against an earlier estimate of 16,400, and 33,400 for the same quarter a year ago.
• The People's Bank of China set its official midpoint rate at 6.4559 per dollar prior to the market open on Tuesday, its weakest level since July 2011, and 0.1 per cent weaker than the previous fix of 6.4495.Guided by a series of weaker PBOC fixes, spot yuan hit its lowest level in 4-1/2 years.
• The US dollar edged lower on Tuesday as "nervous" markets focus on a Federal Reserve meeting this week where policymakers are expected to decide on a long-awaited interest rate rise.After months of speculation, the US central bank is widely seen as all but certain to give the green light to a small increase in borrowing costs for the first time in nearly a decade - usually a plus for the dollar.
• Oil prices were mixed in Asian trade on Tuesday after rebounding from sub-US$35 levels in New York, but traders were braced for more downward pressure ahead of an expected hike in US interest rates,with global oversupply still dictating price trends.
• Gold was hurting from overnight losses on Tuesday and the metal looked vulnerable to a drop back to multi-year lows on expectations of a US rate hike later this week.The Federal Reserve will kick off its last policy meet of the year later on Tuesday.