Biden’s peaceful inauguration brought some support; STI climbed above 3,000 on Thursday but fell back on Friday; Wall St’s fall on Friday attributed to Fauci warning about new virus strains; Singapore govt keeping close eye on property market; Takeover offer for Sunningdale Tech was raised; CDL expects material impairment loss from controversial Sincere investment in China; Oceanus was in play, drawing SGX query Biden assumes US presidency peacefully, market hopes for stimulus soon There was a sense of relief last week that the inauguration of new US President Joe Biden passed without any problems. This helped bolster sentiment on Wall Street, where the mood remained positive that the incoming administration will soon put into placed a large stimulus package. However, as the week pr

To say that 2020 has been a wild ride will be an understatement, especially in the stock markets. We entered 2020 on the back of the longest bull run on record, quickly plunged into the fastest 30% stock market decline in history after COVID-19 uncertainties unravelled, and subsequently re-entered a new bull run after markets gained 20% in a matter of weeks. What Was The STI Return In 2020? At the end of 2020, Singapore’s benchmark index – the Straits Times Index (STI) – delivered a return of close to -8%. This was a weak showing compared to other major global indexes, such as the S&P 500 which delivered a positive return of 18% and ended close to its all-time highs. Note that to gain investment exposure to the STI, we have to invest in one of the two STI ETFs listed on the Singa

The Straits Times Index gained 3.8% over the week at 2,813.01; Main drivers were a new trade deal and vaccine news; Wall Street dipped on Friday as Treasury and Fed disagree on emergency funds; DBS India to merge with troubled Lakshmi Vilas; Starburst’s bosses under investigation; Penny stocks in play included Oceanus and Blumont; SPH’s shares surge 22% on Friday on restructuring speculation   RCEP and vaccine news provided main backdrop News of the freshly signed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a mega free trade deal backed by China and involving 14 other Asia-Pacific countries including Singapore was one big driver of the local stock market in the early part of the week. The other driver was hope that there might be a viable vaccine soon to combat COVID-19, th