Malaysian Stocks Closes At All Time High For New Year

FBM KLCI Closes At Record High

In an unprecedented move, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) breached the psychological mark to end at a new high for the second consecutive day, fueled mainly by gains in plantation stocks.

The market barometer gained 18.47 points or 1.2 per cent to end at 1,551.89 in brisk trading. It opened 1.15 points higher at 1,534.57.

Positive vibes from most regional equities market, supported by overnight gains on Wall Street, prompted the momentum here, said a dealer.

"A strong signal of a global economic recovery, as more statistics emerge indicating that the United States economy is gaining strength, has served as tonic to boost the local bourse," he said.

Yesterday, data released in the US indicated that the manufacturing sector grew in December at its fastest pace in seven months, reinforcing recovery signs.

News reports stated that US automobile sales also probably grew at the fastest pace since 2009 in December as well as employment increase for a third month.

Regionally, the Hang Seng Index rose one per cent to 23,668.48, Japan''s benchmark Nikkei finished 1.7 per cent higher at 10,398.10.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks both A and B shares, ended up 1.6 per cent to 2852.65 and closer to home, Singapore's Straits Times Index ended 14.52 points higher at 3,250.29.

On Bursa Malaysia, the Finance Index climbed 136.87 points to 14,116.32, the Industrial Index increased 53.84 points to 2,930.08 and the Plantation Index surged 146.28 points to 8,279.61.

The FBM Emas Index jumped 121.75 points to 10,613.49, the FBM Ace Index perked 35.23 points to 4,394.72 and the FBM70 Index gained 106.67 points to 11,169.58.

Advancers thumped decliners 637 to 233 while 262 counters were unchanged, 249 untraded and 30 others were suspended.

Total volume surged to 2.011 billion shares, worth RM2.88 billion, from last Monday's 1.608 billion shares valued at RM2.09 billion

HAPPY NEW YEAR INDEED!!!

WALL STREET >>> Bulls Usher In 2011 With 93pts Gain & New Highs

Bullish Enthuiasm For New Year
Dow Soars To 2-year High
Wall Street flipped the calendar to 2011 with bullish enthusiasm on Monday as the Dow soared to fresh two-year highs in the wake of a wave of strong manufacturing reports from around the world.

Stocks hit the ground running in the first session of 2011, thanks to promising economic figures and a solid showing among the blue chips. Bolstering the bulls early on was the Institute of Supply Management's (ISM) index of manufacturing activity, which rose for the 17th straight month in December. Separately, the Commerce Department said construction spending revved 0.4% higher in November, besting economists' expectations for a more modest rise of 0.2%. Elsewhere, news that Bank of America Corp. (BAC) settled a dispute with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac added fuel to the blue chips' fire, while Goldman Sachs' (GS) $450 million Facebook investment stoked the bullish flames among financials. Against this backdrop, all three major market indexes extended their quest for multi-year highs, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) finishing north of 11,600 for the first time since September 2008.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA – 11,670.75) rallied as high as 11,711.47 – its loftiest intraday peak in 28 months – before pulling back in afternoon trading. Nevertheless, the blue chip barometer tacked on an impressive 93.24 points, or 0.8%, as all but five of its 30 components ended higher. Bank of America paced the advancers with a 6.4% rally, while Intel Corp. (INTC) bucked the trend with a loss of 0.9%; meanwhile, Merck (MRK) called the session a wash.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX – 1,271.87) touched a multi-year high of 1,276.17 – marking its first foray north of 1,270 since September 2008 – before settling with a slimmer gain of 14.2 points, or 1.1%. In similar fashion, the Nasdaq Composite (COMP – 2,691.52) skyrocketed as high as 2,704.86 – a three-year acme – in intraday trading before finishing with a gain of 38.6 points, or 1.5%. What's more, today marks the tech-rich index's best single-session performance since Dec. 1.

For every stock that fell, three rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where nearly 1.1 billion shares traded.

Oil Climb Above $92 @ 27-months High
Oil futures continued their recent climb today, as encouraging data both domestically and across the pond fueled hopes for increasing demand. Meanwhile, predictions for more cold weather also helped black gold higher. By the close, February-dated crude futures added 17 cents, or 0.2%, to end at $91.55 per barrel – the front-month contract's loftiest finish in 27 months.

HAPPY TRADING

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HAPPY TRADING

U.S. Equities Look Upbeat For The New Year

But A Late Q1 Pullback Anticipated

Good night, 2010. Farewell, "flash crash." Good riddance, vuvuzelas. However, some of the headlines of the old year will continue to resonate in the new. Unemployment remains high. European debt issues haven't gone away. Talking heads are still debating the effectiveness -- and wisdom -- of QE2. Most of us will see slightly larger paychecks in 2011, thanks to the tax cut extension engineered by President Obama. And despite a rocky summer, the stock market is apparently on track to continue its amazing 21-month rally off of the March 2009 low.

The final week of 2010 didn't offer even a hint of the drama we saw earlier in the year (apologies to those of you buried by Sunday's blizzard). Instead, we saw the usual low-volume holiday lull, with the market coasting into the end of the year on its own momentum.

Last Friday (0f 2010) was slow. The Dow inched ahead by 0.07%. For the week, the Dow was virtually flat, advancing only 0.04%, plateauing after a steady 5.2% march upward for December.

Stick a fork in it: The year 2010 is done. The verdict? "Not too shabby." All three major market indexes registered double-digit annual gains, settling near annual highs. Looking ahead, we remain bullish on U.S. equities but must also concedes the case for a pullback at the beginning of the year.

Wall Street’s theme going into 2011 is how bullish everyone seems to be on the economy, but that optimism should be tempered by the knowledge that housing, lending and jobs have yet to recover.

Yet, the new year is likely to be better “for earnings, balance sheets and growth, which will likely translate into higher home prices, more loans and an increase in employment,”

Looking Back on 2010

SPX is up more than 10%, but it took all year to get there

The S&P 500 Index was similarly torpid for the week, settling in the black by only 0.07%, but registering a 6.5% win for the month. Those of us who follow the market closely can usually spew forth the current price of all the major stock indexes on demand. Not nearly as many are attuned to the gains or losses for these indexes over important time frames, but this additional information can actually be quite valuable. For example, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) has gained 11.46% year-to-date.

The Nasdaq Composite, on the other hand, slipped 0.5% in the final week of the year, but gained 6.2% for the month.

The final tally for the year: The Nasdaq Composite led the charge with an impressive 17% surge, followed by the S&P 500 Index, which advanced 13%, while the Dow brought up the rear, at 11%. Still, not too shabby, indeed.

EXPERT QUOTES (analysts, economists, staticians, strategists ... blah blah blah)

"I predict deep into the year the Fed, through mental telepathy or a hidden word woven through a statement, will transmit the idea that it will start tightening rates by .0000001 of a percent during the year."

"U.S. markets will rally as the president moves more to the middle and businesses realize they have two years to prove friendlier policies work for everyone. Plus history is on side of market see 1984, 1952, 1920 and 1893."

"I think that 2011 will be a relatively tame year compared to what we have seen since 2007. There is plenty of fear out there. From a second dip in housing and European contagion to a self-imposed, government-run slow down of the Chinese economy and states in fiscal crisis. Much could go wrong, but I have the sneaky suspicion we will be talking about many of these same fears a year from now. The U.S. stock markets will experience a gradual ascent by year end as fears continue to subsidise.

"I have trouble predicting what's going to happen later today, but I will say that 2011 feels like it will finally be the year of economic recovery."

"Experts I talk to say we will see Dow 12000 before Dow 10000"

"A growing pool of evidence points to much higher economic growth and even higher stock prices next year. The causes go well beyond low interest rates, higher capital levels at banks or even the latest pickup in retail sales. It's always risky to predict economic gains with the community-organizer-in-chief still in the White House and businesses grappling with his "signature achievement," ObamaCare."

"Having put half of my dough into stocks for the first time since the 2008 crash, I feel pretty confident about 2011. I would say we could go up another 15% or more by the end of 2011."

WISHING YOU A PROSPEROUS 2011

HAPPY TRADING

WALL STREET >>> Dow end 2010 at Pre-Lehman Brothers Levels

Bulls End The Year With 7.8pts Finale
11% Gains For 2010

It was another quiet session on Wall Street, with volume on the New York Stock Exchange totaling fewer than 600 million shares . However, after 12 months that were jam-packed with market melodrama -- including the May 6 flash crash, the European debt crisis, and the resurrection of General Motors -- the past week's worth of relative calm was a welcome change of pace. With very little in the way of data to drive the day's action, stocks wobbled back and forth between positive and negative territory. Despite a mixed finish to the session, though, all three major market indexes ended the month, and the year, with impressive gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA – 11,577.51) settled for a slim gain of 7.8 points, or 0.07%, as 19 of its 30 components closed higher. Alcoa (AA) led the advancing blue chips, while Chevron (CVX) and Intel (INTC) paced the eight decliners. Meanwhile, Cisco Systems (CSCO), Kraft Foods (KFT), and McDonald's (MCD) all closed the session right where they started. Caterpillar was the best-performing Dow component of 2010, adding 64% during the past 52 weeks, while Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) lagged its peers with an 18.3% swoon.

The Dow ended the week up just 0.04%, but notched a healthy gain of 5.2% in December. In the process, the Dow collected its first monthly finish north of 11,500 since August 2008 -- just weeks before the infamous Lehman Brothers collapse that marked the onset of the U.S. financial crisis.

For the year, the blue chip barometer rose 11%.

The S&P 500 Index (SPX – 1,257.64) ended fractionally lower, shedding 0.2 point, or 0.02%. The SPX added 0.07% for the week, and tacked on 6.5% in December -- bringing its 2010 advance to a healthy 12.8%. The broad-market bellwether remains pinned beneath short-term pressure at 1,260, but managed a monthly finish above 1,250 for the first time since August 2008.

Finally, the Nasdaq Composite (COMP – 2,652.87) turned in the worst daily performance -- but easily one-upped its peers on an annual basis. The COMP gave up 10.1 points today, or 0.4%, pushing the tech-rich index to a weekly deficit of 0.5%. However, the COMP added 6.2% for the month, and rose 16.9% in 2010. The COMP closed below its 10-day moving average for the first time since Nov. 30, but settled the month above 2,600 for the first time since December 2007.

ANALYSTS (year end) QUOTES

Nine out of ten Americans who buy a home do so by borrowing via a mortgage, and people need stable jobs in order to feel comfortable taking on that kind of debt.”

The U.S. housing market is an “Achilles heel of the economy.”

“It’s all about the employment market. And I’m not just talking about employment but stable employment.”

ZLBT WISHES EVERYONE & THEIR FAMILIES
"HAPPY & PROSPEROUS 2011"