Market ends flat after strenuous week

ALTHOUGH the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting this week provided the main talking point among investors, there were many others that were almost equally noteworthy.

There was a bond default by a large China property firm and simmering tensions in Ukraine because of Russia's annexation of Crimea that raised anxiety levels. Closer to home, there was negative news affecting Johor property play Albedo Investment that dampened sentiment in penny stocks and large movements in the Jardine group - particularly Jardine Cycle & Carriage (JC&C) - that caused heightened volatility in the Straits Times Index (STI).

At the end of the five days the index stood almost flat, registering a 0.33 point loss to 3,073.39, yesterday's 16.19-point rise coming largely because of gains in Jardine Matheson, JC&C and the banks. Volume in yesterday's session was, however, a poor 1.6 billion units worth $1.2 billion. The lowest volume came on Tuesday, when $944 million was done.