U.S & European stocks logged their largest weekly falls for 2023. What’s next for the equity markets? (26 Feb 23)

Dear all With reference to my writeup published on 30 Jan 2023 (click HERE), where I mentioned I would be cautious in the overall markets, especially after a sharp run up, US stocks have dropped consecutively for the in the past three weeks. Dow has fallen consecutively for the past three weeks and logged its sharpest 1,010 points or 3.0% last week.   So, what is next for our markets? Do we buy, hold or sell? Just to highlight, the below is a sample of a brief stock alert or / and observation which I typically send to my clients […]

Dow seems to have formed a bullish double bottom formation (25 Oct 2022)

Dear all Talk to anyone and I guess at least 50% of them are shaking their heads. Some of their usual concerns are a) Anxieties on the economy and their jobs in 2023; b) Hit by inflationary pressures from rising costs ranging from food, fuel, electricity, cars and properties; c) Worries over their home mortgage as rates are soaring through the roof; d) Concerns on their portfolios whether there may be more losses ahead and etc… At the point of writing this article, Hang Seng closed -1,030 points lower, or -6.4% to close 15,181. Is it all doom and gloom? […]

What are reits? (25 Jul 22)

Dear all I am reproducing this article in its entirety. This article first ran on Manulife US REIT’s thought leadership column, Viewpoints, which publishes regular content on the U.S. economy and the office sector. Follow MUST on LinkedIn for all the latest updates! What are REITs? REIT is short for ‘real estate investment trust’. In Singapore, REITs are a type of professionally managed collective investment scheme which acquires, owns and finances income-generating real estate. Because of the stable stream of contractual rents they collect from tenants and their requirement to distribute a minimum 90% of their earnings, REITs provide investors with […]

STI is up 10.1% YTD; may face profit taking in the near-term (16 Feb 2022)

Dear all STI has been on a tear since the start of the year. With reference to my write-up published on 5 Jan 2022 (click HERE) citing that Asian indices are likely to outperform that of the U.S. market in 2022, STI has indeed notched strong year to date (“YTD”) gains of 10.1% to close 3,439 on 16 Feb 2022. This outperformance is especially stark if we compare it to S&P500’s -6.1% YTD returns. As I have shared with Lianhe Zaobao on 9 Feb 2022, I personally feel that our STI is overbought in the near term with several near-term […]

STI – having closed at a record YTD high, will it continue higher? (7 Nov 2021)

Dear all With reference to my market outlook published on 3 Oct (see HERE) citing opportunities in our Singapore market, STI has soared 191 points, or 6.3% from 3,051 on 1 Oct to close at a year to date high 3,242 on 5 Nov. Will STI continue to march higher, or will there be some profit taking?   Very briefly, my personal view is It is likely that STI may face some profit taking in the near term, attributable in part to the following factors: a) With reference to Figure 1 below, MSCI Singapore index will undergo a rebalancing in […]

Nasdaq – potential bearish head and shoulders formation in the making? (29 Sep 19)

With reference to my earlier write-up (click HERE) titled “S&P500 at 2,979 – limited potential upside (8 Sep 19)”, S&P500 touched intraday highs of 3,021 – 3,022 on 12 Sep 2019 and 19 Sep 2019 but it was still lower than the record intraday high of 3,028 on 26 July 2019. S&P500 closed at 2,962 on 27 Sep 2019. Hang Seng and STI touch one-month intraday highs on 13 Sep 2019 before profit taking sets in. October is likely a volatile month ahead given (just to cite a few examples) more news on trade talks (e.g. U.S vs China; U.S. […]

S&P500 at 2,979 – limited potential upside (8 Sep 19)

With reference to my earlier write-up (click HERE) titled “Why am I cautious going into July…”, July was coincidentally the peak for S&P500. Hang Seng touched an intraday high of 29,008 on 4 Jul 2019 before slumping 4,108 points to an intraday low of 24,900 on 15 Aug 2019 (Hang Seng closed at 26,691 on 6 Sep 2019.) Personally, given the current market levels and information, I am not comfortable to raise my current percentage invested from 53% to significant levels (say >80%). Why am I cautious in the market? Do read on…   Factors supporting my cautious basis Above […]

S&P500 logged its largest one day fall since Jan. Buy more, or head to the exit? (27 Mar 2019)

Dear readers, Last Fri, S&P500 logged its largest one day fall since 3 Jan 2019, due in part to the weak European PMI and the yield curve inversion between U.S. 3-month bill and 10-year note yields. At the time of writing this, Dow closed 0.55% higher on Tues as U.S. 10 year bond yields stabilise. Is last Fri’s fall the precursor to something more serious? Or it is a false alarm?   First things first, what are the reasons for the sharp rally since late Dec? S&P500 has rallied approximately 20.1%, or 471 points from the intra-day low of 2,347 […]

Caution ahead? Most market strategists think so… (26 Aug 2016)

Dear readers, Various foreign houses such as Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and UBS etc. are advocating caution in the markets ahead. Some of the commonly cited reasons are valuations; still weak corporate results; U.S. election etc. To be balanced, Morgan Stanley in its 12 Aug 2016 write-up said they continue to be bullish on equities. As you are aware, I operate my portfolio on a short term basis. Based on my views in my previous week market write-up dated 19 Aug 2016 (click HERE), I have reduced my equity allocation from 82% on 19 Aug 2016 to […]