Market starts year on low volume, low volatility

IN a holiday-shortened week that straddled 2014 and 2015, the Straits Times Index (STI) managed a three-point rise to 3,370.59 to go with last year's gain of 6.2 per cent. The bulk of 2014's rise came from bank outperformance, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that this week's main bluechip plays involved DBS, UOB and OCBC.

Friday's session yielded a 5.44-point rise for the STI, an advance-decline score excluding warrants of 279 to 154, and weak volume of one billion units worth S$557 million. This full-day figure compares with Wednesday's half-day total of S$514 million.

Many players are said to be still away because of the holidays, so perhaps the poor volume is understandable. By the same token, however, is the worry that liquidity, which dried up considerably in 2014, will continue to do so in 2015. For comparison, the first trading day of 2014 saw 4.33 billion units worth S$847 million done.