SGX Comex Recommendations

INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY NEWS :
Gold prices eased in Asia on Thursday even as the dollar weakened slightly in intraday trade.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery fell 0.49 to trade at $1,228.50 a troy ounce.Overnight, gold rose to the highest levels of the session on Wednesday, after data showed that retail sales in the U.S. fell more than expected in December, dampening optimism over the strength of the economic recovery. U.S. Commerce Department said that retail sales declined by a seasonally adjusted 0.9% last month, worse than expectations for a drop of 0.1%. Rising retail sales over time correlate with stronger economic growth, while weaker sales signal a declining economy.

TRADING STRATEGY :
BUY GOLD ABOVE 1233 TARGET 1238 1244 SL 1227
SELL GOLD BELOW 1225 TRAGET 1220 1214 SL 1231

SGX IForex Recommendations

TRADING TIPS :

GBP/USD touched highs of 1.5223 overnight, before pulling back to 1.5168.Sterling remained under pressure after data on Tuesday showed that the annual rate of consumer inflation in the U.K. slowed to 0.5% last month from 1.0% in November.Consumer prices were unchanged from a month earlier, compared to expectations for an uptick of 0.1%.The report said inflation was flat in December due to falling gas and electricity costs. In addition, transport costs fell by 0.2% from a month earlier, due to falling petrol and diesel prices. The slowdown in inflation underlined expectations that the Bank of England will keep interest rates on hold at record lows for most of this year.

INTRADAY OUTLOOK

Support: 1.5142

Resistance: 1.5203

RECOMMENDATION:

1. Buy GBP/USD Above 1.5205-TG: 1.5225/1.5255 SL 1.5175

2. Sell GBP/USD Below 1.5140-TG: 1.5120/1.5090 SL 1.5170

INTRADAY OUTLOOK

Immediate Support: 1.1725

Immediate Resistance: 1.1796

RECOMMENDATION:

1. Buy EUR/USD Above -1.1798 TG: 1.1818/1.1848 SL 1.1768

2. Sell EUR/USD Below -1.1723 TG:1.1703/1.1673 SL 1.1753 

SGX Stock Recommendations

MARKET UPDATES :

• Ezra Holdings, a Singapore-listed oilfield service company, said on Wednesday it had put on hold a plan to list its subsea services unit in the United States, prompted by unfavourable market conditions.”Given where the markets are, we have effectively put that on hold,” Eugene Cheng, group chief financial officer of Ezra, told Reuters.Mr Cheng said comparable companies were now trading at a ratio of three to four times EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), down from seven to eight times EBITDA when Ezra was considering the option.

• SINGAPORE remains the favoured Asean hub, where 80 per cent of multinational companies locate their regional head office, according to the latest findings of a Baker & McKenzie report released on Wednesday.Meanwhile, Indonesia and Myanmar were cited as the most preferred destinations for new factories over the next five years, followed by the Philippines and Vietnam. The number of factories in Indonesia is expected to rise by nearly 70 per cent over the next five  years.

• SINGAPORE shares ended lower on Wednesday with the Straits Times Index slipping 14.91 points to 3,326.16.Some 1.17 billion shares, valued at S$1.13 billion were traded. Gainers numbered 145 while losers numbered 256.

• A Singapore navy ship has located the fuselage of the AirAsia plane that crashed into the sea late last month with 162 people on board, the city-state’s defence chief said on Wednesday.Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said in a Facebook post he had been informed that one of Singapore’s navy ships involved in the search, MV Swift Rescue, “has located the fuselage of the AirAsia plane in the Java Sea”.