Optimism in investment 2023 as SG clients increased exposure to markets

The investor movement index went up to 3.97 in December.

The investor movement index (IMX) for Singaporean clients was at 3.97, which is a slight bump from 3.93 compared to November, global online broker, TD Ameritrade, reported.

In December, the total IMX for all clients globally stabilised at 4.17, unchanged from November.

“The beginning of the December IMX period was marked by a strong bounce in equities after comments from the US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell shifted marginally from the more hawkish tone of the central bank throughout the year of 2022,” read the TD Ameritrade statement.

According to Greg Baker, TD Ameritrade Singapore CEO, the clients in Singapore “diverged from the overall client population in net buying equities in December.”

Baker said Singapore investors increased exposure, which could show a “glimmer of optimism as 2023 begins.”

Both TD Ameritrade Singapore clients and the global client population were net buyers of Tesla, another EV company, Lucid Group. Singapore clients were net buyers of Salesforce (CRM).

Singapore clients reduced their exposure to Meta Platforms (META), the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, as the company's stock finished up over 8%. 

They were also net sellers of Unity Software (U) as the company's stock plunged nearly 20% during the period, and of Visa (V), which was slightly more resilient, finishing down just under 3%. 

Despite being net buyers of equities overall, TD Ameritrade Singapore clients were net sellers of three sectors of the S&P 500 index: energy, healthcare, and materials.