SGX Comex Recommendations

INTERNATIONAL COMMODITY NEWS :
Gold prices eased in Asia on Friday, driven by shifting sentiment on the dollar and the timing for a rate hike as widely expected by the Federal Reserve later this year.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery fell 0.20% to $1,262.30 a troy ounce.Also on the Comex, silver futures for March delivery eased 0.18% to trade at $17.072 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for March slumped 1.33% to trade at $2.544 a pound.A day earlier, copper hit $2.423, a level not seen since June 2009, before settling at $2.505, down 13.8 cents, or 5.24%, as concerns over the global economic outlook and the impact on future demand prospects dampened the appeal of the commodity. The U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits increased by 19,000 last week to 316,000, the highest in almost four months. Analysts had expected initial jobless claims to decline by 6,000 to 291,000 last week from 297,000 in the preceding week.

TRADING STRATEGY :
SELL GOLD BELOW 1255 TARGET 1250 1244 SL 1261
BUY GOLD ABOVE 1264 TARGET 1269 1275 SL 1258

SGX IForex Recommendations

TRADING TIPS :

GBP/USD hit 1.5201 during European morning trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.5187, shedding 0.31%. The dollar regained some ground after falling broadly on Wednesday when a report showed the largest drop in U.S. retail sales in 11 months in December.Official data showed that U.S. retail sales fell 0.9% last month after rising 0.4% in November. Separately, sentiment on the pound remained vulnerable 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 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: 1.5204

Resistance: 1.5278

RECOMMENDATION:

1. Buy GBP/USD Above 1.5280-TG: 1.5300/1.5330 SL 1.5250

2. Sell GBP/USD Below 1.5202-TG: 1.5182/1.5152 SL 1.5232

INTRADAY OUTLOOK

Immediate Support: 1.1659

Immediate Resistance: 1.1726

RECOMMENDATION:

1. Buy EUR/USD Above -1.1728 TG: 1.1748/1.1778 SL 1.1698

2. Sell EUR/USD Below -1.1657 TG:1.1637/1.1607 SL 1.1687

SGX Stock Recommendations

MARKET UPDATES :

• THE manpower crunch will put pressure on companies this year to pay higher wages to retain and attract talent, but productivity must improve in tandem to ensure wage increases are sustainable in the long run, said the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).In its 2015 outlook for the unionised sector, NTUC highlighted that the labour market here is expected to remain tight as foreign manpower quotas continue to shrink this year. As such, the Labour Movement will continue to push for broad-based real wage increases by advocating greater adoption of the progressive wage model, emphasising productivity improvements in particular.

• Robust car sales boosted Singapore’s retail sales in November, which rose 6.5 per cent year-on-year, according to the Department of Statistics. Excluding the sale of motor vehicles – which jumped a significant 50.2 per cent – retail sales would have decreased 0.4 per cent in November. Total retail sales value in November was estimated at S$3.2 billion, higher than the S$3.0 billion in November2013. The double-digit surge in motor vehicle sales helped to offset poorer performances in areas such as furniture & household equipment (-6.8 per cent), recreational goods (-6 per cent), and petrol service stations (-5.7 per cent).

• DBS Bank has agreed with Postal Savings Bank of China (PSBC) and five other Chinese corporates to set up a consumer finance company – China Post Consumer Finance Company Limited (CPCFC) – which will be registered in Guangzhou city. DBS Bank will be investing 120 million yuan (S$25.83 million), representing 12 per cent of CPCFC’s registered capital. This makes the wholly-owned subsidiary of DBS Group Holdings the second largest shareholder and only foreign shareholder in CPCFC.

• KEPPEL Offshore & Marine’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Keppel Singmarine, has clinched a contract worth S$265 million to build New Orient Marine’s first ice-class multi-purpose vessel.New Orient Marine is the subsidiary of Luxembourg-based Maritime Construction Services SA.Vessels with an ice class have a strengthened hull to enable them to navigate through sea ice. Designed to operate in ambient temperature as low as minus 30 degree Celsius, this vessel will have an ‘Ice Class Arc 5′ notation and capabilities such as ‘Class 3′ dynamic positioning and diving support functions.