It seems there are no Santa gifts for the stock market on Christmas Eve as Asian markets opened lower following 2.9% slump in NASDAQ index last Friday.
The Technology shares gauge entered into bear market as it has already fallen over 20% from the peak seen in end November. Concerns over earnings growth slowdown, monetary tightening, trade war and a temporary Federal government shutdown during holiday season weigh on sentiments. And policy makers are getting increasingly worried about rising market volatility – which could spiral into a bigger problem if negative ‘’wealth effect’ hurts consumer spending and quench credit lending.
US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin called top executives from the six largest US banks over the weekend to assure the market that the lenders have ample liquidity and the markets continue to function properly in spite of recent equity turmoil. I doubt this would help to calm down market in a time when everything seems to be heading south.
Major global markets are closed or trading half-day today, suggesting volume and volatility is likely to remain contained for a short period of time. Going forward, major market uncertainties need to be cleared in order to restore investor confidence – including sustainable and robust earnings growth, positive breakthrough in US-China trade talks and a more accommodative monetary environment.
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index exhibited resilience against global headwind, down 1% to 3,036 points this morning. Immediate support level could be found at around 2,955-3,000 area. Meanwhile falling crude oil price is a dragging factor for offshore & marine and banking sector. Before we see a turnaround in crude oil prices, those sectors are likely to remain fragile on profit and asset quality concerns respectively.
Trading Hours during Christmas Holiday
