Singapore Hot Stocks-Creative Technology, financials in focus

SINGAPORE, March 16 (Reuters) - Singapore's Creative
Technology (CREA.SI) will be in focus after the company said
late on Friday it will reduce its workforce by 300.

Banking shares such as DBS (DBSM.SI) will also be in focus
after the U.S. bank stocks index .BKX rose 37 percent last
week on hopes of a stabilising economy.

U.S. stocks scored their best week since November on Friday
as a broker upgraded Merck & Co (MRK.N), saying its deal to buy
a rival was shrewd, and Citigroup (C.N) said it did not need
any more government aid. ----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT
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INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG
S&P 500 .SPX 756.55 0.77% 5.810
USD/JPY JPY= 98.15 0.11% 0.110
10-YR US TSY YLD US10YT=RR 2.8737 -- -0.022
SPOT GOLD XAU= 924.75 -0.26% -2.450
US CRUDE CLc1 44.45 -3.89% -1.800
DOW JONES .DJI 7223.98 0.75% 53.92
ASIA ADRS .BKAS 82.07 1.33% 1.08
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> Fear still in focus after strong rally [.N] >
Dollar edges down vs euro as US stocks rise [USD/] >
Long bonds fall as stocks win-streak lives on [US/] >
Gold firm on currency fears, rising demand [GOL/] >
Oil drops over 4 pct after OPEC keeps output steady [O/R]

Stocks and factors to watch:

-- CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY (CREA.SI)

- Singapore's Creative Technology Ltd, which makes digital
music players, said the company will reduce its workforce by
300 worlwide, mostly from Europe and the U.S., as part of the
company's plan to cut costs and will take restructuring charges
of $10 million for the third quarter.

-- TAT HONG (TAT.SI)

- Singapore-listed Crane firm, Tat Hong Holdings, told the
Business Times that the company's strategy is to strengthen its
presence in China to overcome the downturn.

-- POPULAR HOLDINGS (POPU.SI)

- Popular Holdings, a book retailer with branches in
Singapore and Malaysia, said its third quarter profit fell 40.3
percent from a year earlier. [ID:nSN3D41051]

- Singapore's benchmark Straits Times Index .FTSTI rose
5.62 percent to 1,577.52 points on Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI gained 0.75 percent
to 7,223.98 points and The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was
up by 0.38 percent to 1,431.50 points.
(Reporting by Laurence Tan; Editing by Kim Coghill)