TOTAL value for my portfolio increased 0.21% on Monday to RM98,148.10, following the gain on disposal of HIL Industries. By comparison, the FBM KLCI fell 0.43% to 1,795.85. Market breadth was negative with decliners outpacing gainers by a ratio of 1.2 to 1.

Regional markets mostly traded higher, following gains on Wall Street last Friday. The Dow and the S&P 500 indices rose 0.94% and 0.90% respectively.

The Shanghai Composite Index led the gainers in Asian markets, closing 1.95% higher at 3,687.73. Elsewhere, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose 0.99%, Hang Seng index inched up 0.49% while India’s Sensex 30 index declined 0.24%.

Crude oil markets remained weak with crude oil futures declining 2.4% to US$45.44 per barrel at the time of writing. Saudi Arabia’s Oil Minister announced the world’s biggest oil exporter is currently producing 10 million barrels of oil a day, near its record production level in 2013.

Meanwhile, the ringgit strengthened against the greenback to RM3.69, following speculation the Federal Reserve will delay raising interest rates until the second half of the year.

My portfolio is down 1.9% since inception. Despite the loss, I am still outperforming the FBM KLCI, which is down by 5.1% over the same period.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on March 24, 2015.