MONEY MASTER

Invest at the bottom of the market and sell at the top. That’s solid advice, but it’s not easy to follow. Consider the stock market right now, for example. Is this the top of the market? Is it time to sell? With the American stock market already up more than 300 percent since March 2009, including dividends, these are pertinent questions. Several readers asked them in response to last week’s column, which pointed out that wherever the market goes next, it is definitely not at the bottom now. After years of spectacular gains, stocks are anything but cheap. What’s more, the market has been so placid this year — despite the turmoil emanating from Washington — that the calm on Wall Street has been almost supernatural. By some measures, stocks haven’t been this steady in more than 50 years. Furthermore, the economic expansion now underway is already the third longest since 1854. It takes little imagination to envision a sudden rout. Those observations unnerved some readers who aske...

FBM KLCI fell 13.11 points Reuters reported that oil prices slid on Wednesday, extending the sharp falls from the previous session after top exporter Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and industry data showed a further build in US crude stockpiles. US crude futures were trading at US$31.25 per barrel at 0758 GMT, down 1.95% from their last settlement. International Brent futures were down around 1% at US$32.90 a barrel. Both dropped more than 5% in intra-day trading the previous day. The consequence of the fall in oil prices are obvious given what we have seen in the past few months...the market fall as well. FBM KLCI dropped by 0.8% or 13.11 points to close at 1,664.17.  Across Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 0.85% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 1.15%. Bursa Malaysia saw 1.53 billion shares valued at RM1.51 billion traded. Decliners beat gainers at 601 versus 229. The top gainers included Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd and PPB Group Bhd.  The leading decli...

Just this morning, Malaysians were greeted with a good news, the oil rally of 6% and it already feels like it’s gonna be a good day for the market. FBM KLCI closed marginally higher while Asian stocks dropped Well, it did, at least for a start but as at 5pm, FBM KLCI closed at 1,677.28 points on profit taking after reaching an intraday high at 1,685.88. In the Asia region, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.37%, South Korea's Kospi dropped 0.11%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng down to 0.25%. The oil rally on Monday that had boosted global equity markets made a U-turn. US front-month West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were trading at US$32.72 per barrel at 0753 GMT, down 67 US cents from Monday's settlement. International benchmark Brent was also down 61 US cents at US$34.08 a barrel. On Monday, we have seen oil prices jumped to as much as 7% as there are speculations over the falling US shale output fed the notion that crude prices may be...

The rally in oil prices lifted Wall Street on Monday as energy stocks that have been crushed recently find strength. This includes stocks like Chevron and Schlumberger.   As what have been seen over the last few months, Wall Street has been dictated by the oil prices' trend, which have left the market down so far in 2016, although we are seeing a slight recovery last week. The recovery seems to continue as oil gains some strength. The US crude prices were up by more than 6% albeit still at around decades low. We are seeing strength in the market across the board, with all 10 major S&P sectors finishing higher. Besides oil, prices of industrial metals such as copper and zinc rose as concerns and worries over the potential shortages arise. The Dow Jones industrial average were up by 1.39% to close at 16,620.66 points while the S&P 500 jumped 1.45% to 1,945.5. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.47% to 4,570.61. Recent turmoil in global markets and macroeconomic uncer...

FBM KLCI closed down 0.67 points It's quite unbelievable. With the "news" of the meeting and the freeze in oil, FBM KLCI seems to have found the light at the end's tunnel but it doesn't last. The market started on a high note, climbing to a high of 1,669.02 points in a volatile trade before closing marginally lower at 1664.32, down by 0.67 points from previous close. The Russia and Saudi effect on oil prices doesn't last as speculation is that Iran will not join in the deal to freeze output at January levels. The oil prices dropped, reversing gains earlier in the session as the concern remains that oil's oversupply is here to stay if Iran were not part of the deal. Brent crude was down 31 US cents at US$31.87 a barrel by 0739 GMT, after settling down US$1.21 in the previous session. It had climbed to US$32.83 a barrel in early trade on Wednesday. US crude fell 25 US cents to US$28.79 a barrel, after trading for much of the Asian session...

FBM KLCI goes up by 0.9%, following the Asian region trend. This came as the market sentiment improved, due to oil gain. At 5pm, the KLCI closed at 1,664.99 points. Gains in counters such as SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd and UMW Holdings Bhd supported the index's advance. FBM KLCI increased by 0.9% Brent crude surged above US$35 a barrel as energy ministers from Saudi Arabia and Russia, two of the world's biggest oil producers, met in Doha on Tuesday to discuss the market. Bursa Malaysia saw 1.8 billion shares worth RM1.77 billion traded. Gainers outnumbered decliners at 551 against 303. Hubline Bhd was the most-actively traded stock. The leading gainer was Genting Bhd.   Top Active Top Gainer British American Tobacco (M) Bhd and Petronas Gas Bhd were among the biggest decliners.  Top Loser Asian stock indices rose. In China, the Shanghai Composite gained 3.29%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.08%. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.2% while Sou...

FBM KLCI rose 6.22 points The celebration of love seems to continue, as the market celebrate post-Valentine's day with an uptrend. FBM KLCI closed at 1,649.96 points after rising to an intraday high of 1,661.34. This was an increase of 6.22 points or 0.4%. The market basically had a good day as most Asian stock index rose as well.  Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 7.16%, South Korea's Kospi gained 1.47% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 3.27%. Some of the positive news are coming through after a losing streak last week, as China's central bank fixed the yuan sharply stronger, easing fears of depreciation for now, though a string of weak data from Japan to China and Indonesia suggested the bounce may be short-lived. On the broader market, Bursa Malaysia saw a total of 1.54 billion shares worth RM1.54 billion traded. Gainers outnumbered decliners at 497 against 297. Hubline Bhd was the most-actively traded stock. The leading gainers included United Plantations ...

US stocks rebounded after a rather bad week. Wall Street Update It wasn't easy, after the bad week that seen US led a global equity decline. The rebound was largely due to the oil price that had its best day in seven years and bank shares jumped the most since 2011.  The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index’s still lost slightly for the week, albeit only at less than 1% after the rally yesterday. Statistical data released has shown a higher retail sales. Banks seen a rally of about 4% after JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Jamie Dimon said he bought more shares in the bank, while Commerzbank AG’s results helped European equities rebound from the lowest level since 2013.  The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed for the first time in six days. Crude rallied 12 percent from a 12-year low to top $29 a barrel in New York. The week ended on a slightly positive note for US and European shares, as Commerzbank’s results eased concern that lenders won’t find ways to be profitable a...

FBM KLCI was dragged lower at closing albeit at a marginal level in comparison to the rest of the Asian markets.  Most Asian shares traded in the red on Friday with Japan’s Nikkei 225 fallen as much as 5.3% to a 15-month low in the morning, due to an unexpected spike in the yen and a sell-off in the Wall-Street. At 5pm, the KLCI was down 0.21 point or 0.01% to 1,643.74. Turnover was 1.33 billion shares valued at RM1.57bil. Decliners beat advancers about two to one or 517 losers to 271 gainers and 312 counters were unchanged.  The ringgit weakened against the US dollar, po und sterling and Singapore dollar. It was at 4.1640 to the greenback from the previous close of 4.1453 and it was at 6.0492 to the pound from 5.9856. It eased to 2.9833 against the Singapore unit from 2.9819. Oil prices jumped after comments by the energy minister of OPEC-member United Arab Emirates sparked hopes of a coordinated production cut, yet analysts said such a move remained unlikely and that...

The worst start to the year just got crazier as global bear markets looks to worsen . And the US stock market's decline continued as well. The stock markets closed lower on Thursday but way better off than their lows, as investors digested a massive global sell-off, falling oil prices, and chatter about a possible OPEC production cut. The Dow briefly fell 400 points in afternoon trading as Boeing and Goldman Sachs weighed the most on the blue chips index before rebounding to close 254 points lower than previous closed. The rebound was due to a report that energy minister of the United Arab Emirates on Sky News Arabia saying OPEC members were ready to cooperate on a production cut. Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazrouei also said low prices were already forcing non-OPEC members to cap production. The S&P 500 dropped 1.23 percent as financials fell. The financial sector was on track for its first five-day losing streak since August. At session lows, S&P briefly broke below...

The FBM KLCI index started the day with a plunge to a low of 1,638.88 before rebounding to close marginally lower at 1,643.95, down 0.46 points from a day earlier. This was largely due to the concern of a global economic meltdown with regional markets continued to head south. FBM KLCI closed marginally lower The first trading day of the Lunar Year doesn't go so well for Hong Kong market as it led the fall in the regional markets today. Hang Seng Index plunged 3.85% to 18,545.80 points as the sentiment was badly hit by the violent street protest in the special administrative region on the second day of Chinese New Year. The growing concerns on the US interest rate policy's direction and the health of global financial institutions also contributes to the negative sentiments and feeling around the equity market. Overnight, the US Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen spoke about risks to the economic outlook that could delay the central bank’s plans for raising rates.  M...

Wall Street Update   Wall Street has seen an early rally lost steam yesterday as market closed mix, with the Dow Jones Industrial average turned negative and fell 100 points, or 0.6%, to 15,915, after being up for most of the day and rising as high as 190 points in early trading. The early rally was sparked after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's prepared remarks to lawmakers cited emerging headwinds that could signal a pause in its plan to raise interest rates. S & P 500 was off its earlier highs and ended up down just 0.02% to 1852. The Nasdaq composite index rose 15 points, or 0.4%, to 4284. Investors continue to remain nervous about a potential slowing down of the economy and uncertainty surrounding plans for further interest rate hikes. Analysts were hoping that Yellen would hint that the Federal Reserve could hold off on additional rate hikes, due to tightening financial conditions caused by market tumult and slowing global growth since its December meeting, w...

The market dropped as anticipated, with the FBMKLCI closing 1.1% lower to 1,644.41. This was in line with the global equities' decline. US equities closed near flatline Tuesday , after a choppy trading session, as US oil prices seesawed and investors looked ahead to Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen’s testimony. Across the exchange, a total of 887.61 million shares, worth RM1.06 billion, were traded. Market sentiment was bearish, as decliners beat gainers by 506 to 249, while 220 counters were unchanged. Leading the decliners were blue chips like Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd and British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd, while gainers were led by Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd. The top active stock was Tiger Synergy Bhd. Across the region, Japan’s Nikkei fell 2.31%, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.52%. China stock markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holidays. According to Bloomberg data, the ringgit strengthened to 4.1243 against the US...

Stocks closed near the flatline Tuesday after a choppy trading session as U.S. oil prices seesawed and investors looked ahead to Fed Chair Janet Yellen's testimony. The Dow fell nearly 150 points shortly after the open but briefly turned positive. The blue chips index briefly rose 100 points in late-afternoon trading, with Home Depot contributing the most gains. The S&P 500 dropped nearly 1 percent at the open before briefly turning positive. The index held lower for most of the afternoon but briefly tried for gains as energy traded off its session lows. The Nasdaq composite seesawed, opening down more than 1 percent, before reversing losses and gaining about 1 percent. In afternoon trading, however, the index fell more than 1 percent before trying for gains. Investors also kept an eye on oil prices Tuesday. WTI futures plunged 5.89 percent, or $1.75, to trade at $27.94 a barrel in choppy trading. Earlier, the International Energy Agency said that demand for oi...

Wall Street might not like 2016. It already seem like it. Another Friday free fall...and there goes the short winning streak in this week. The downtrend seems like something that continue The market was hit badly with disappointing jobs report. Nasdaq composite fall to its lowest level in more than 15 months. The Dow Jones industrial average, which had patched together two straight days of gains, was down 211.61 points, or 1.3%, to 16,204.97. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 was down 35.40 points, or 1.9%, to 1880.05. Nasdaq tumbled 3.3% The real carnage was in the Nasdaq, which tumbled 146.41 points, or 3.3%. to 4363.14 -- its lowest close since Oct. 20, 2014. And for the week, the Nasdaq posted more than 5% loss. The Dow dropped about 1.6% and S&P 500 tumbled 3.5%. The release of a weak January jobs report, pointing to a possible downshift in the U.S economy. This adds to the uncertainty to Federal Reserve interest rate policy. The new jobs crea...

The FBM KLCI rose 23.47 points or 1.4%, tracking regional share gains as a crude oil price rise buoyed sentiment. The crude oil futures extended gains thanks to a weaker dollar and speculation on talks among oil producers on a potentially meeting to discuss output cuts. Below are some of the top movers in the index. Top movers in FBM KLCI Hubline Bhd was the most-actively traded stock. Today's biggest gainers were Nestle (M) Bhd, PPB Group Bhd, and Sime Darby Bhd. The biggest decliners included British American Tobacco (M) Bhd and Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd. Despite the rally in the index, analysts were mindful of the sustainability of the index's advance. Asian share indices gained. In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.01%, while the Shanghai Composite was up 1.53%. South Korea's Kospi rose 1.35%. Japan's Nikkei 225, however, fell 0.85%. Asian shares rallied on Thursday as speculation the US Federal Reserve might o...

It seems like it's destined to be another day of disappointment for Wall Street but a late rally helps US Down Jones and the S&P 500 to go back to green. The Nasdaq remains weaker, but was way better than the day's low. Wall Street Update As the USD weakened, investors were quick to act on it and this help to snapped a two days oil rout. Russia's foreign minister's comments also reignited hopes of a deal among oil producers to trim output. The energy index jumped on this news. The battle to be the most valuable company continues as Alphabet shares tumbled 4% to US$749.38, with Apple regaining the position in terms of market capitalization. Apple rose 2% to US$96.35. The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI ended up 183.12 points, or 1.13 percent, to 16,336.66, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 9.5 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,912.53 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 12.71 points, or 0.28 percent, to 4,504.24. Stocks' late-day rally reversed sharp losses...