Mimosa Trading Diary: December 2007

Market Diary:

World Indices:

Monday, December 31, 2007

STI : 3,482.30 ( +36.48 )
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Sunday, December 30, 2007

Stock Watch - FerroChina ($1.79)

Downtrend resistance looks set to be broken. Bullish signals from Parabolic SAR & MACD crossover. To be on the safe side, enter when price hits $1.85 or above. At this level, FerroChina has confirmed to have broken the downtrend trendline and heading for a trend reversal.

Below added on January 2, 2008, 12:00 noon:

DJ MARKET TALK: FerroChina Off 1.1%; Daiwa Cuts Target To S$3
0327 GMT [Dow Jones] FerroChina (F33.SG) off 1.6% at S$1.81 as brief attempt at rebound halts after sinking to 4-month low in mid-December. Shares have been trending down in past months partly on delay in commissioning of newly-built steel mills. Still, Daiwa, which has Buy call, expects galvanized steel coil maker's margins, earnings to improve going forward, boosted by strong capacity expansion. But cuts target price to S$3.00 from S$3.42 based on 8X FY08 P/E (vs 9.2X for HK-listed peers) to reflect concerns over firm's high gearing, which raises prospect of new share issues to raise funds. Support tipped at 10-day moving average of around S$1.78. (FKH)
Contact us in Singapore. 65 64154 150;
MarketTalk@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 01, 2008 22:27 ET (03:27 GMT)

Labels: Stock Pick

Friday, December 28, 2007

Stock Review - Synear ($1.70)

Down trend's Trendline Broken, Possible Double Bottom

On November 29, a bullish signal was spotted (here) but it ended up as a whipsaw. In fact, the technical signal may not be a false one but these days everything is sentiment driven. The volatility of the market is not seen since the Internet bubble's days. TA works well in trending market, extreme volatility makes TA less reliable.

A fresh bullish signal has now emerged. I hope this time it is not a whipsaw. Out of the four previous bullish signals ( depicted by the thin blue lines ), three of them are valid sending the stock prices up by 20 cents to 90 cents. I hope this 5th signal since Sept is a valid one.

Immediate resistance: $1.73, $1.88, $2.00 & $2.12.

Labels: Stock Pick

Mixed Outlook For S-Share Next Year

Mixed outlook for S-shares next year

Singapore-listed China stocks, or S-shares, have reaped strong gains in 2007.
This, as they rode on the China growth story and the qualified domestic institutional investor, or QDII, scheme which allows chinese funds to invest in overseas stocks.
But as 938LIVE's Irene Chan finds out, analysts are split whether this euphoria will continue in the new year..
The Prime Partners China Index, which tracks a basket of 25 S-shares on the SGX, rose over 33 per cent this year, by far beating the benchmark Straits Times Index, which has risen 13 per cent year-to-date.
Head of Research at OCBC Investment Research, Carmen Lee, believes QDII will have a bigger direct impact on S-shares next year.
This as the new batch of QDII funds will focus more on investing in overseas listed chinese stocks.
"We have seen very small amounts of that (QDII funds) coming in, still very insignificant, but I think maybe into 2008, it could possibly become bigger, especially if concerted effort to market Singapore ideas to some of these fundmanagers take place."
OCBC also said the launch of the new FTSE ST China Index on SGX in January will add to the buzz surrounding S-shares, as the index opens opportunities for a wider suite of products.
But General Manager at Fundsupermart, Wong Sui Jau, is however less optimistic about more upside for S-shares.
"They’ve already had a very very strong run. Valuations of China stocks now are more stretched than most other stock averages. There could be a significant risk of a fairly large correction or downside for China stocks."
Generally, analysts agree that consumer-related S-shares should do well next year, leveraging on China's strong consumption growth.

Labels: Market Direction

Office & Retail Outlook

Office and retail outlook (938Live)

(This is for my own info since my office lease will expire in Aug 08, nothing to do with stock)

By Yasmine Yahya
Singapore's office rentals were the fastest-growing in the world this year, soaring some 80 per cent since the end of 2006.
But analysts say it's the retail sector that's going into a bull-run next year.
By the third quarter, prime office rents were averaging a record $12.60 per square foot per month.
It was a simple case of demand and supply imbalance, which led to many tenants shifting out of the CBD and into outlying areas and business parks.
Colliers International's Head of Research and Consultancy Tay Huey Ying says this will help to ease the office boom next year.
"The continued upswing in office rents has already actually met with some level of resistance from businesses as they explore other options. For example in the third quarter of 2007, the monthly gross rent of Grade A office in Raffles Place increased by a marginally lower 18.2 per cent, compared to higher gains of 23.5 per cent and 19.4 per cent in the earlier two quarters."
Ms Tay says the pace of rental growth in 2008 will likely moderate to between 12 and 18 per cent.
But the retail sector is expected to zoom ahead, matching its 2007 performance with another 4 to 7 per cent growth in rentals next year.
Director of Retail Services at CB Richard Ellis, Mavis Seow.
"We are seeing another 2.6 million square feet of new retail supply. This is more than double of 2007. Currently in 2007 we have 1.1 to 1.2 million square feet of retail space. Despite the increase we do see rentals actually growing. It's expected to grow further as demand for retail space remains strong."

Labels: Market News

Trading Digest 12/28

STI: 2,445.82 ( -31.38 )

Dow tumbled 192.08 overnight to close at 13,359.61. Media cited the fall as "Wall Street skidded Thursday after the assassination of Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto and after the Commerce Department's durable goods orders exacerbated concerns about the U.S. economy."

DJ MARKET TALK: STI Off 0.5%; First Support Tipped At 3422
0120 GMT [Dow Jones] STI down 0.5% at 3459.35 with most components lower, but index holding up relatively well despite strong pullback on Wall Street overnight. Immediate support tipped at 3422 (61.8% Fibonacci retracement to December low of 3300 from month's high of 3621), followed by 3400. Local house dealer says assassination of former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto shouldn't have huge bearing on market; "I think the fall in the U.S. overnight was very normal. The media is just attaching Bhutto's news to the decline." STI's relative resilience suggests it may rebound later in day on bargain-hunting. Overall market volume thin. (FKH)
Contact us in Singapore. 65 64154 140;
MarketTalk@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 27, 2007 20:20 ET (01:20 GMT)

Labels: Trading Digest

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Trading Digest 12/27

STI : 3,477.20 ( +3.99 )

SINGAPORE - Singapore share prices closed flat on Thursday in lacklustre trading in a holiday-shortened week, dealers said. The Straits Times Index was 0.11 per cent or 3.99 points higher at 3,477.2. Volume totalled 1.18 billion shares worth $1.08 billion (US$750 million), with 289 rising issues, 396 losers and 1,043 flat.
The health of the US economy remains the biggest concern for investors who fear the world's biggest economy may slip into a recession, said dealers.
Recent data gave conflicting signals about the US economy but that is not unusual, they said.
'As long as the US does not go into recession, then it is okay for the markets,' said Gabriel Yap, dealing director at DMG and Partners Securities.

Fund Managers looking for higher stock prices in 2008: OCBC poll

Fund managers are upbeat about prospects for equity markets next year, despite the expected global economic slowdown and the still-unfolding fall-out from the subprime mortgage crisis.
15 fund managers in a poll by OCBC Bank's Wealth Management unit, were unanimous in their choice of equities as the preferred asset class for 2008.
Prudential Asset Management, for example, said valuations in equity markets are still attractive relative to history and compared to government bonds.
Allianz Global Investors is expecting uncertainties surrounding the sub-prime saga to ease by the second quarter of 2008.
The fund managers favoured emerging markets like India and China, and other Asian markets.
DBS Asset Management, in particular, said rising local investor participation will push the Asian growth story further and lend support to the region's equity markets.
At least two fund managers also picked the Singapore stock market for its defensive qualities.

Labels: Market Direction, Trading Digest

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Tricky Year For Singapore Stocks In 2008

Tricky year for Singapore stocks in 2008 (938Live)

It's going to be tricky year for Singapore stocks in 2008.
As 938LIVE's Irene Chan finds out, after a five-year bull run, the period of uninterrupted positive year-on-year performance may be over..
It has been a volatile 2007 for Singapore stocks.
The benchmark Straits Times Index started the year at slightly over 3000 and rallied to a record high of 3905 in October, buoyed by strong economic growth and unprecedented exuberance in the Chinese markets.
But as it looks now, the key index will at most end the year with a return in the low teens as a result of the fallout from the subprime crisis.
Head of research at CIMB-GK Song Seng Wun says it's unlikely 2008 can match up to the performance this year.
"It's probably going to be a much more tricky year for 2008 as a result of a lot more uncertainty out there for investors to digest. Cause typically at this juncture, if you look back in the last few years, people tend to be sort of cautiously optimistic about the coming year, but this time around, there has been a lot more uncertainty as a result of oil prices being where it is today, the US economy perhaps paying back for so many years of excesses. And all that combined together has certainly put a lot more questions in the mind of equity investors than any time before."
Despite all the uncertainty, Head of Research at OCBC Investment Research, Carmen Lee doesn't think Singapore is headed towards a bear market next year.
"Because fundamentals for the whole region is still very sound. A lot of the sectors are actually seeing very strong orders. The construction sector for example in Singapore, we're talking about a huge,up to $20 billion of construction demand, with the IR and all the enbloc sales, I think that will still keep the construction sector very active for at least another 2 to 3 years. The property markets also, I think a lot of them have done pre-booking already of the profits and that will again last for another 2 to 3 years. On the oil sector front, we see unprecedented orders again and that will last you until 2010, 2011."
Ms Lee added that her top picks for next year are oil & gas stocks as well as Singapore listed China-stocks.

Labels: Market Direction

Trading Digest 12/26

STI : 3,473.21 ( +38.68 )

STI edged up on thin volume (1.35b) on the backdrop of window dressing. It is interesting to observe if STI can break 3,620. This is a critical resistance level, failing to break this before it U-turn signals a bearish trend. Window dressing alone may not take the index to 3,620 as it is more than 150 points away but window dressing only last for a few days.

What is Window Dressing?

A strategy used by mutual fund and portfolio managers near the year or quarter end to improve the appearance of the portfolio/fund performance before presenting it to clients or shareholders.

Performance reports and a list of the holdings in a mutual fund are usually sent to clients every quarter. To window dress, the fund manager will sell stocks with large losses and purchase high flying stocks near the end of the quarter. These securities are then reported as part of the fund's holdings. Another variation of window dressing is investing in stocks that don't meet the style of the mutual fund. For example, a precious metals fund might invest in stocks that are in a hot sector at the time, disguising the fund's holdings, so clients really have no idea what they are paying for. Window dressing may make a fund appear more attractive, but you can't hide poor performance for long.

Labels: Trading Digest

Friday, December 21, 2007

STI Technical Analysis - Kim Eng

The Straits Times Index tested 3300 support on 18 Dec, which was followed by a sharp rebound back to positive territory. The index subsequently closed near the day’s high and formed a white candle, suggesting a rebound may occur in the near term. Near-term resistance at 3621.
Although bears continue to dominate the bulls in December, the Straits Times Index may be finally testing for firm support around the 3300 baseline. One key indicator that we will monitor closely is the reversal of the ADX which is still rising with the DI+ above the DI. The narrowing of the DI+/DI- gap will signal an end to the current downtrend.

Labels: Market Direction

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Mid-tier, mass market homes may lead gains

Business Times - 17 Dec 2007
Mid-tier, mass market homes may lead gains
Performance hinges on HDB upgraders, en bloc millionaires, say consultants
By ARTHUR SIM
(SINGAPORE) Next year could be the year of the mid-tier and mass market sectors with prices expected to rise between 8 and 15 per cent.
Whether this will happen depends largely on en bloc millionaires, the return of HDB upgraders, the resilience of the Singapore economy, and the possibility of more developers stemming supply and landbanking their redevelopment sites.
CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho expects 10,000-13,000 new homes to be sold, 'with more activity seen in the mid-tier and mass market'.
The number falls short of the estimated total number of 15,000 units sold in 2007. But Mr Li said that, in the event of a downturn, developers who can hold will push back their launches until the market turns around.
'This is possible because most of the collective sale sites are on freehold tenure,' he added.
Mr Li also noted that while about 67 per cent of the development sites sold in 2006 were in the prime districts of District 9, 10 and 11, this fell to 49 per cent in 2007.
'More sites outside the prime districts were acquired via the collective sale route in 2007, compared to 2006 when there was more supply in prime areas, and when prices were more affordable,' he added.
Based on total sites sold, CBRE estimates that there could be about 14,000 units ready for launch outside the prime districts next year. This includes a potential 1,600-unit 99-year leasehold condo built by Frasers Centrepoint and Far East Organization in Tampines, and a 630-unit 99-year leasehold condo by Sim Lian Land in Bishan.
Savills Singapore director of marketing and business development Ku Swee Yong reckons that of the new launches, the majority would be mid-tier.
'There are not enough launch-ready mass market sites of significant size,' said Mr Ku.
He believes that there could be more mass market sites in the Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme, with prices for the mass market gaining 30-50 per cent, and mid-tier prices rising 20-40 per cent.
Apart from a rising number of new citizens and PRs (permanent residents), Mr Ku expects an influx of integrated resorts-related foreign manpower in the second half of 2008.
'The high-end will be replenished with the re-construction of en bloc sites but the mass market housing for junior level expats and foreign talent will have to come from GLS sites,' he added.
Colliers International director of research and consultancy Tay Huey Ying also expects buyers hoping to reap rental returns to make up a significant portion of the mass market.
However, Ms Tay believes that the mass market and mid-tier sectors will no longer be quite as easy to define.
With many developers improving their product to try and price their projects at benchmark levels, Ms Tay says, there is a noticeable blurring of tiers as the higher-end of each tier encroaches into the lower-end of the next tier.
'As such, it would be more appropriate to segmentise the residential property market into seven tiers, namely, mass, upper-mass, mid-tier, upper mid-tier, high-end, luxury and super luxury,' she explained.
Colliers' target prices for the mass and upper-mass market developments are below $750 psf, and between $750 and $1,100 psf respectively.
Projected prices for the mid-tier market are from $900 to $1,800 psf, and upper mid-tier market, from $1,800 to $2,500 psf.
At these prices, HDB upgraders could be priced out of the private market.
Resale HDB prices are rising with cash-over-valuation now as high as $150,000. Although this is for very select units, sellers are nevertheless holding out for higher resale prices. ERA Singapore assistant vice-president Eugene Lim, for one, does not expect resale volume in 2008 to top the estimated 30,000 units sold in 2007.
PropNex CEO Mohamed Ismail reckons that resale prices will rise 10-15 per cent in 2008. In spite of this, he believes interest on mortgages, stamp duty and legal fees will still leave about 10 per cent of HDB sellers in negative equity if they sell now.
Highlighting a recent trend, Mr Mohamed notes that 5-room flats in areas such as Bishan, Bukit Merah, Bukit Timah, Central, Clementi, Kallang, Marina Parade, Queenstown and Toa Payoh commanded cash-over-valuation of $50,000 and above in Q307. He added that buyers were mainly private property downgraders or en bloc millionaires who are also finding private property too expensive.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Labels: Market News

STI Direction

During my vacation last week, STI lost 321 points from an intra-day high of 3,621 on 12/7 to an intra-day low of 3,300 on 12/18. Fortunately, it rebounded from 3,300 yesterday, which is an important support from a previous low on 11/22. 3,300 is also the 300DMA. Hopefully, STI will retest the 200 DMA ( around 3,490 ) and find its support there.

A possible double bottom maybe forming giving hope to a good sign. However, the two "highs" on 12/7 & 11/1 presented some worries on whether they are "lower high". Regardless, I hope the double bottom is a valid one. This may tally with the 12/27 window dressing and hopefully take us to 3,625 and beyond breaking the worry of lower high !!

Labels: Market Direction

Revised Bid Size ( 12/24/2007 )

With effect from December 24, 2007, the bid size of SGX stocks will be revised to:

Current Bid Size - Shares, rights, options and other securities
Below $1.00..........................$0.005
$1.00 – $2.99.......................$0.01
$3.00 – $4.98.......................$0.02
$5.00 – $9.95........................$0.05
$10.00 & above.....................$0.10
+/-6 bids

New Bid Size - Stocks (including preference shares), Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS), business trusts, warrants and any other class of securities not specified in this table
Below $1.00............................$0.005
$1.00 – $9.99.........................$0.01
$10.00 & above.......................$0.02
+/-10 bids

Labels: Market News

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Trading Digest 12/19

STI : 3,369.31 ( +15.75 )

Singapore shares were tracking volatile movements across the region, as investors are ruffled by Wall Street's tumble overnight ( Dow -172.65 to 13,167.2). However, losses were pared in the afternoon.

Historically, STI should edge up by around 12/27 due to window dressing and the upward ride should continue at least until 1st week of Jan.

........................................................................................

High-end home prices facing price pressures: OCBC

Price pressures have already began to appear in Singapore's high-end residential property segment, and this only means the segment is headed for a price correction soon..
As such, OCBC Investment Research says it's keeping its neutral weighting on Singapore's property sector, and says it prefers stocks of developers that are domestic-focussed, such as City Developments and UOL Group.
OCBC's property analyst Winston Liew in a research report today referred to the OIR Forward Price Indicator and noted signs of price pressure.
He said if transaction volume for high-end properties continues on a downtrend, prices will follow suit.
Mr Liew also pointed to demand-supply mis-match in this segment.
He explained developers had built up their land-bank in Singapore on the premise that foreigners and speculators will continue to bid up prices.
"There've been a lot of enbloc sales in late 2006 and and 2007. We estimate that in 2007, there's going to be at least 14,000, 15,000 units from the enbloc redevelopments. Enbloc developments are located in the upper end of the market, so developers have been buying all these enbloc on the back of their belief that demand coming from foreigners and speculators will continue."
But he said going by past experience, their demand had been unreliable.
Mr Liew believes local buyers will not hold up this segment of the market as they have traditionally been willing to pay for new homes in the range of about $600 per square foot..
And this is about half the breakeven point for most developers that bought land via enbloc sales in 2007.
Finally, Mr Liew says further risk also resides in the fact that the Singapore government may intervene in the property market in its fight against the general market inflation.
The good news is -- the price pressure is only confined to the high-end segment.
Low- to mid-end private homes should be fairly immuned as there hasn't been excessive speculation and demand fundamentals remain strong.

...........................................................................................

Business Times - 18 Dec 2007
Private home sales inch up; prices remain firm
URA data shows 4,000 units in 70 developments with pre-requisites for sale as at end-Nov
By ARTHUR SIM
(SINGAPORE) The number of private homes sold by developers inched up 4.7 per cent to 593 units in November, up from 566 units in October.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) also revealed monthly property market data of transacted benchmark prices as well as median prices. During the month, a significant number of transactions were seen at Amber Residences, which sold 85 units at the median price of $1,392 psf, and Casa Fortuna which sold 103 units at $1,009 psf.
CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho also noted that 20 units at 8 Napier were sold at a median price of $3,557 psf and pointed out that these were likely to have been made by a single buyer.
On the performance in November, Mr Li said: 'Overall, prices are firming. Sales volume and prices in December should remain at the same levels as October and November.'
Indeed, developers told BT that launch prices are being maintained even though buyers are now a bit more 'cautious'.
UIC Ltd's 192-unit Park Natura, across from Bukit Batok Nature Park, saw 56 units sold in the month at a median price of $945 psf. The price was slightly lower than the October median price of $1,022 but UIC group general manager Vito Koh explained that this was because units sold in November included those with private enclosed spaces like roof terraces.
Mr Koh said that the withdrawal of the Deferred Payment Scheme (DPS) have made buyers more cautious but added that he believes developers are not lowering prices to move units. 'Prices are not coming down, but they are not going up either,' he said.
A comparison of the median price of Amber Residence ($1,392 psf) and the reported average selling price ($1,650 psf) does appear to show that prices may have softened a little.
According to the URA data, 68 units were sold in the $1,000-$1,500 psf bracket with 16 units sold in the $1,500-$2,000 psf bracket. One unit was sold at between $2,000-$2,500 psf.
Jones Lang LaSalle head of research and consultancy Chua Yang Liang noted that launches declined significantly in the Core Central Region (CCR) by 43 per cent from the 166 in October to only 95 in November. 'The take-up or demand further reflects this softer market with 130 units absorbed - a marginal drop of 4 per cent month-on-month (MoM),' he said.
Similarly, demand in the Outside Central Region (OCR) also weakened with a 33 per cent MoM decline or only 173 units absorbed compared to 259 in October. Dr Chua pointed out that this was on the back of a larger supply of 221 units or a 28 per cent increase in the number of units launched.
'The decline in demand in OCR is a likely result of the removal of the DPS,' he explained.
In contrast, the demand in Rest of Central Region (RCR) remained strong. In November, the take-up increased by 57 per cent MoM.
Most of the transactions in the RCR were in District 15. 'Take-up in this segment is largely driven by foreign occupiers that has spilled over from the CCR,' Dr Chua added.
According to the URA data, there are over 4,000 units in 70 developments with pre-requisites for sale as at end-November. This includes mass-market offerings at Bedok Resevoir as well as high-end developments at Cairnhill.
While developers are not 'panicking' at the possibility of a slowdown in the economy, Cushman & Wakefield managing director Donald Han believes more will be 'repositioning' their launches and going directly to foreign buyers in the Middle East and North Asia.
Mr Han, who expects the total volume of transactions in Q4 2007 to be below 2,000 units, added: 'Some developers were already marketing their high-end products at the recent Mipim exhibition in Hong Kong to reach an international market.'
It is a strategy that appears to be working.
Savills Singapore director of marketing and business development Ku Swee Yong said he was pleasantly surprised at some of the benchmark prices reached in the high-end sector, with the highest price for the 40-unit Sui Generis at Balmoral Crescent increasing from $2,578 in October to $2,713 psf in November. Six units were transacted in November and the median price rose from $2,406 to $2,474 psf.
Saying that he believes that this end of the market would continue to be driven by international high net worth individuals, he revealed: 'We had a client who insisted on being first in queue for The Ritz Carlton Residence.' The client later set a new benchmark price of $4,515 psf for the Cairnhill area.

Labels: Trading Digest

Sunday, December 9, 2007

Trading Digest 12/9

STI : 3,557.95 ( +5.40 )

2nd day in a row where STI open high close low due to cautious about December 11 FOMC decision on rate. This is very typical pattern the week before rate decision.

China government annouced the increase of bank reserve rate by 1% over the weekend may have some impact on the S-Share early next week.

Finally re-installed the copy of Metastock onto my new notebook. Looking into Advance Get, Elwave and MTPredictor. Most likely going to get Elwave because it is the cheapest!

December 9 - 16 : Japan Vacation ( Tokyo, Hokkaido )

Labels: Trading Digest

Thursday, December 6, 2007

Trading Digest 12/6

STI : 3,552.55 ( -7.5 )

STI was up during the entire intra-day session but last minute heavy selling of bluechip pushed STI into the red. SGX, UOB & Singtel are amongst the bluchips spotted to have suffered last minute drop. I am, however, fond with STI ended with red because this is likely to be able to caushion off any adverse effect of Dow tonight.

-
Sold 5 lots of China XLX at $1.2
Bought 3 lots of Synear at $1.78.
-

Recession looms for US: research report (938Live)

A recession looms for the U.S. economy in the first half of 2008 due to faltering consumer spending and nonresidential construction.
A forecast report from Chapman University's Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research anticipates that real GDP will shrink 1 percent in the first quarter and 1.9 percent in the second quarter.
The centre's director Esmael Adibi said the U.S. economy will recover in the second half, but its growth will be slow and full-year growth will only be 0.9 percent.
This as non residential construction will no longer offset the home-building downturn.
Mr Adibi expects total private construction spending to shrink by 125 billion U-S dollar next year, compared with an expected 91 billion U-S dollar drop this year.
At the same time, home prices will fall further, reducing the paper wealth of home owners and limiting their ability to use home equity gains to support their spending.
Mr Adibi added that interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve may do little to reverse the drag that will follow reduced consumer spending as long as banks hold back on credit.

Labels: Trading Digest

Monday, December 3, 2007

Trading Digest 12/3

STI : 3,521.56 ( +0.29 )
-

Labels: Trading Digest

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Trader Found Guilty Of False Net Postings

Nov 29, 2007
Trader found guilty of false Net postings
By Gabriel Chen
THE High Court has found a former stock trader guilty of posting false, price sensitive information on the Internet about listed company Datacraft Asia.
Able Wang Ziyi, 42, now faces a possible jail term of up to seven years and a fine of $250,000 when his sentence is passed in January.
The High Court overturned last year's acquittal of Wang, who had posted a claim that Datacraft's office was raided by police in 2004.
In his ruling on Thursday, Judge VK Rajah said stock traders should be responsible for what they post on the Internet because if the rumour turns out to be false or unsubstantiated, they could face prosecution.
The judge said that it is important for traders to know the limits of information they spread in the market.
Wang was acquitted in the District Court last year on the narrow point that the prosecution had failed to prove one element of the offence: that Wang did not care if the information was true or false.
The prosecution's appeal against Wang's acquittal was the first of its kind under Section 199 of the Securities and Futures Act.
Wang short-sold 111,000 Datacraft shares on Feb 16, 2004, which means he sold shares he did not own. Minutes later, the father of two bought back 61,000 shares immediately to cover his short position.
In between the two transactions, he posted a rumour on investment portal shareinvestor.com that the IT firm's offices had been raided by the Commercial Affairs Department.
The crux of what he posted was based on an earlier SMS from an OCBC Bank institutional dealer, Mr Samuel Wong.
On Thursday, the judge said he was 'deeply troubled' by Wang's conduct and blatant attempts to 'short' the market.
The judge said that Wang had been 'inexplicably coy' about his interest arising from his 'shorting' the market just a few minutes before he made the postings on the portal.
Wang had claimed that he made the postings out of altruism, intending to share the information with others who might not have been as fortunate to get such timely news.
'It appears to me that there was, in reality, a more disturbing hue to the picture of the Good Samaritan that the respondent attempted to paint of himself,' said Justice Rajah.
The judge added that Wang did not have 'any honest belief' in the contents of the postings when he lodged those entries.
Mr Philip Fong of law firm Harry Elias, who represented Wang said: 'No one can criticise this particular decision because there's no further avenue. I suppose my client has to take it in his stride... This is just a little bump on the road, and he can get on with his life.'
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved. Privacy Statement & Condition of Access

Labels: Market News

Mimosa Trading Diary

Monday, December 31, 2007

Sunday, December 30, 2007

Stock Watch - FerroChina ($1.79)

Friday, December 28, 2007

Stock Review - Synear ($1.70)

Mixed Outlook For S-Share Next Year

Office & Retail Outlook

Trading Digest 12/28

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Trading Digest 12/27

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Tricky Year For Singapore Stocks In 2008

Trading Digest 12/26

Friday, December 21, 2007

STI Technical Analysis - Kim Eng

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Mid-tier, mass market homes may lead gains

STI Direction

Revised Bid Size ( 12/24/2007 )

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Trading Digest 12/19

Sunday, December 9, 2007

Trading Digest 12/9

Thursday, December 6, 2007

Trading Digest 12/6

Monday, December 3, 2007

Trading Digest 12/3

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Trader Found Guilty Of False Net Postings

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