SG Market (21 Nov 14)

US Market: US stocks notched fresh records, led by energy and small caps, as a batch of encouraging economic data alleviated concerns over continuing signs of slowing growth in Europe and China. The blue-chip DJIA climbed 33 pts to 17,719 (+0.2%), while the broad-based S&P 500 advanced 4 pts to 2,053 (+0.2%) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 26 pts to 4,702 (+0.6%). The small cap Russell 2000 rallied 1.1%. The CBOE Volatility Index, a measure of market fear, eased 2.7% to 13.58. Ahead of the opening bell, stock futures were pressured by weak economic indicators from Europe and Asia. A flash purchasing managers’s index for business activity in the euro area dropped in Nov to a 16-month low, while the HSBC PMI for China fell to 50 in Oct, right at the edge of a contraction. Markets turnoved positive after strong US economic releases showed the Philly Fed index jumping to 40.8 in Nov, its highest level since Dec 1993 and more than double the 18.3 forecast, while existing home sales unexpectedly rose in Oct to a one-year high as low borrowing rate helped sustain the recovery in the housing market. Separately, the Conference Board of leading indicators widened more than estimated last month, while consumer prices were flat in Oct and initial jobless claims fell by 2,000 to 291,000, below the 300,000 mark for the 10th straight week. The only weak spot was seen in Nov’s Markit manufacturing PMI, which slid to 54.7 for its third monthly decline. Energy (+1.1%) and retail (+0.9%) sectors gave the biggest lift to the market. Oil stocks, including Chesapeake Energy (+3.9%), Apache (+3%), Halliburton (+1.6%) and ConocoPhillips (+1.5%) all rose as crude oil advanced for the first time in four days. Retailers rallied as the peak holiday season nears sparking hopes of higher sales, with Urban Outfitters gaining 7%. Best Buy jumped 7% after the electronics chain reported earnings that beat expectatations on better comparable store sales. Discount retailer Dollar Tree, which is seeking to merge with rival Family Dollar, gained 5.2% after beating 3Q sales and profit estimates snd posting its best sales figures since 2011. Tech shares also outperformed, led by Intel (+4.7%), after the chipmaker gave an upbeat 2015 forecast and raised its annual dividend by 6.7%. But cloud computing company Salesforce.com skidded 4.5% after forecasting 4Q earnings which missed estimates. Among other stocks in focus, Keurig Green Mountain tumbled 7.4% after forecasting earnings which fell below estimates, whle Ceasers Entertainment soared 5.4% on news that the casino operator plans to turn its largest unit into a REIT. Volume was thin with 5.7b shares were traded on US exchanges, 12% below the three-month average. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones by 2 to 1 on both the NYSE and Nasdaq. S’pore shares may advance, tracking the record-breaking run on Wall Street with the STI headed towards the next objective 3,360 with downside support at 3,270. Stocks to watch: *GDS: FY14 net profit soared 161% to $4.5m, as revenue jumped 52% to $23.9m due to increase in door and shutter system sales from industrial and commercial demand, and from spillover sales from FY13. Gross margin dipped 2.4ppt to 46.5%. High operating leverage allowed bottom line to grow at faster clip than revenue. First and final DPS of 1.3¢ (FY13: 0.7¢). *Keppel Land / Keppel T&T: Deppel Data Centres Holding, a JV between KPLD and KT&T, will acquire the Almere Data Centre 2 located in Almere, the Netherlands, adding more than 5,000 sqm of data centre space to its capabilities. The JV also signed up a major tenant who will commit ~40% of the space at Almere Data Centre. *First REIT: Clarifies that operations of its properties in Manado, namely Siloam Hospitals Mandao & Hotel Aryaduta Manado were not affected by the earthquake that rocked the Maluku Islands in Eastern Indonesia on 15 Nov. *DeClout: Its wholly-owned Acclivis unit launched a cross-platform Blackberry Enterprise Mobility Management solution to customers in Asia Pacific, marking its foray into enterprise cloud security space. *Starland; Expects to report full year net loss due to lower revenue, an impairment loss on property in Singapore, and because the pre-sales of its Singapore Garden Project in Chongqing will only be recognized in FY15.