FKLI Related News

NEW YORK, March 6 (Reuters) - Wall Street mostly edged higher on Wednesday, with the Dow hitting another record, helped by a private payroll survey that bodes well for the monthly jobs report due at the week's end. Improved labor market data from the private sector sparked the positive tone and boosted confidence for the U.S. government's payroll report on Friday. The data from payrolls processor ADP followed similarly strong reads on housing and the services sector, reports that have contributed to lifting the Dow to historic levels and pushing up the S&P 500 to just 1.5 percent below its own record close.

Continued support from the Federal Reserve and equity valuations that are considered attractive compared with other asset classes have also pushed shares higher, and while some continue to call for a pullback at recent levels, those factors staying in place could keep the positive momentum intact. Energy and material shares led the advance. Both sectors are closely tied to growth expectations.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 42.47 points, or 0.30 percent, to 14,296.24, another record closing high. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index edged up 1.67 points, or 0.11 percent, to 1,541.46. The Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 1.77 points, or 0.05 percent, to close at 3,222.36. Shortly after Wednesday's trading began, the Dow punched through the previous session's intraday record, trading as high as 14,320.65. On Tuesday, the Dow ended at 14,253.77, breaking through October 2007's record close of 14,164.53. For the year, the Dow is up 9.1 percent.

The positive catalyst for Wednesday's advance came from signs of improvement on the jobs front. The slowly healing labor market has been one of the weaker spots of the recovery, but data on Wednesday showed private-sector hiring was surprisingly strong in February as companies added 198,000 employees. It was an early look at the labor market two days ahead of the U.S. government's closely watched non-farm payrolls report on Friday, which is expected to show the economy created 160,000 jobs last month while the unemployment rate held at 7.9 percent.

Stocks on Bursa Malaysia ended firmer yesterday on buying support, following Wall Street’s record close and firmer regional sentiment. FKLI spot month contract opened higher this morning at 1,657. Today’s Support and Resistance for March contract is located around 1,640 and 1,660 respectively.