14 September 2023
Market View: Prudential shelves plan for separate wealth management unit in Singapore; Possibility of Grab, GoTo facing new rules in Singapore; European Commission launches investigation on subsidies for Chinese EV makers; Mixed US CPI report - Will PPI numbers change the narrative?
Singapore stocks rose at the open, even as global markets were mixed overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) climbed 0.3 per cent to 3,227.4 points after 30.8 million securities changed hands.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Prudential, after the insurer told The Business Times  yesterday that it has shelved plans for a separate wealth management unit in Singapore.
Meanwhile, from Grab and GoTo possibly facing new rules in Singapore to the European Commission launching an investigation on subsidies for Chinese electric vehicle makers, more corporate headlines are in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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7 September 2023
Market View: mm2 Asia to subscribe for HK$19m worth of bonds by Unipact Entertainment and Productions; Potential for ASEAN digital economy to grow to US$2t by 2030; China’s export slump; Possible investment by TSMC’s into Arm’s IPO; US ISM non-manufacturing PMI - resilient or cause for more interest rate hikes?
Singapore stocks dipped at the open after global markets finished lower overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.1 per cent to 3,220.65 points with 22 million securities changing hands then.
In terms of companies to watch, we have  mm2 Asia, after mainboard-listed media company said it agreed to subscribe for HK$19 million (S$3.3 million) worth of bonds issued by concert organiser Unipact Entertainment and Productions.
Elsewhere from TSMC’s mulling an investment in chip designer Arm Holdings to China’s export slump easing in August and the US service sector, more international news remains in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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31 August 2023
Market View: UBS to fully absorb Credit Suisse’s domestic bank, looking at cost savings of over US$10b; Million of dollars reportedly invested in publicly traded stocks of Adani Group via “opaque” Mauritius funds; US PCE Expectations
Singapore stocks began trading stronger today after global markets ended mixed overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) was up 0.2 per cent to 3,225.89 points after 45.5 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Olam Group, after it secured a US$1.75 billion multi-tranche sustainability-linked facility through its wholly-owned food ingredients unit OFI.
Meanwhile, from UBS set to absorb Credit Suisse’s domestic bank to news that millions of dollars were reportedly invested in some publicly traded stocks of India’s Adani Group via “opaque” Mauritius funds, and the expectations for the latest US PCE index, more international headlines remain in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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10 August 2023
Market View: CapitaLand Investment’s new business park development fund; CDL’s earnings; China ‘s consumer prices fell into deflation in July; Japan, South Korea’s tourism stocks on the rise on prospects of China allowing group tours to the countries; Expectations for US inflation; WeWork’s ability to stay in business, impact on markets such as New York City
Singapore shares dipped this morning, following a mixed showing in global markets overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) inched down 0.1 per cent to 3,312.16 points after 42.3 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have CapitaLand Investment. The company today announced the launch of a business park development fund to invest in Grade A business parks in prime locations across gateway cities in India, but how significant is this move?
Meanwhile, from China’s slip into deflation and Japan and South Korea’s tourism stocks on the rise, to WeWork’s struggle and the potential impact on markets such as New York City – more international headlines are in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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27 July 2023
Market View: Fed raises rates to highest level since 2001; S-Reits’ (Mapletree Industrial Trust, CapitaLand China Trust) distribution figures; UOB’s 2Q net profit up 27% yoy; Olam Group expects “materially lower” net profits
Singapore shares opened stronger today after global markets finished mixed overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.7 per cent to 3,328.99 points after 76.3 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have UOB. The bank’s net profit for the second quarter rose 27 per cent to S$1.4 billion on higher net interest income, and trading and investment income.
Meanwhile, from a quick look at the latest distribution numbers from S-Reits including Mapletree Industrial Trust and CapitaLand China Trust, to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to take interest rates to the highest level since 2001, more corporate and international headlines are in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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27 July 2023
Market View: Fed raises rates to highest level since 2001; S-Reits’ (Mapletree Industrial Trust, CapitaLand China Trust) distribution figures; UOB’s 2Q net profit up 27% yoy; Olam Group expects “materially lower” net profits
Singapore shares opened stronger today after global markets finished mixed overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.7 per cent to 3,328.99 points after 76.3 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have UOB. The bank’s net profit for the second quarter rose 27 per cent to S$1.4 billion on higher net interest income, and trading and investment income.
Meanwhile, from a quick look at the latest distribution numbers from S-Reits including Mapletree Industrial Trust and CapitaLand China Trust, to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to take interest rates to the highest level since 2001, more corporate and international headlines are in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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13 July 2023
Market View: Seatrium’s green trade finance facility worth S$1.1b; China’s June exports down 12.4% yoy; McDonald’s China owners planning US$4b exit; US June inflation lowest since March 2021 US Q2 earnings; PepsiCo and Delta Air Lines; S&P closing at highest level since April 2022
Singapore shares opened stronger today following overnight gains in the global market. This comes as the easing of US inflation data stoked optimism of the Federal Reserve ending its interest rate hiking cycle soon.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) was up 1 per cent to 3,207.5 points after 114.5 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Seatrium, after the offshore and marine engineering player obtained a green trade finance facility with a banker’s guarantee from OCBC worth 720 million euros (S$1.1 billion) to fund its sustainability efforts.
Meanwhile, from China’s trade figures to the latest US earnings expectations, more international and corporate headlines continue to be in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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6 July 2023
Market View: SingPost hits 7-week high; Chinese investors rush to make dollar deposits, buy Hong Kong insurance; Top Asia IPO gainers in Japan; Fed minutes; US stock market performance for 1H2023
Singapore stocks opened weaker today following overnight losses on Wall Street.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.2 per cent to 3,179.3 points after 47.1 million securities changed hands.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Singapore Post. That’s after the Singapore government said it will consider allowing SingPost to introduce postage rate adjustments to “better reflect the cost of letter mail business”.
Elsewhere, from the latest Federal Reserve’s policy meeting minutes to Chinese investors rushing to make dollar deposits and buy Hong Kong insurance – we’ve got more international headlines in focus.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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15 June 2023
Market View: Fed holds rates steady, signals 2 more hikes this year; Jerome Powell on balance sheet drawdown; Wall Street’s reaction; OCBC raises SIA’s fair value; PBOC lowers medium-term lending facility rates; TikTok to boost e-commerce business in Southeast Asia
Singapore shares opened higher today following the decision to pause the interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index was up 0.1 per cent to 3,222.24 points after 129.8 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Keppel. That’s as the company obtained two contracts to provide what it dubs “energy-as-a-service” in Bangkok’s Sam Yan Smart City, through its joint venture with Decarb.
Meanwhile, a slew of central bank decisions continue to take the centre stage with the US Federal Reserve holding rates steady at the 5 to 5.25 per cent range, while China lowered its medium-term lending facility rate by 10 basis points to 2.65 per cent.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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11 May 2023
Market View: - SIA’s redemption of MCBs; The Place Holdings to sell 11% of New Vision Holding; SingPost’s 25% drop in 2H net profits; Banks’ net interest margins could be past their peak
Singapore shares opened slightly higher today after international markets ended mixed on news of US inflation cooling.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index increased by 0.03 per cent to 3,423.11 points, after 71.6 million shares were traded.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Singapore Airlines. The national flag carrier announced that it intends to redeem half of the mandatory convertible bonds (MCBs) it issued in June 2021.
Meanwhile, shares of The Place Holdings were heavily traded after the group said it is in talks to sell up to 11 per cent of New Vision Holding. Investors are also keeping tabs on a number of companies seeing developments today ranging from SingPost to CapitaLand Investment.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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27 April 2023
Market View: Singapore hikes ABSD for residential properties; UOB’s net profit up 67% yoy; CDL, UOL Group, GuocoLand and Oxley Holdings stocks tumble; NASDAQ gained on Meta’s earnings beat
Singapore shares fell this morning, following hikes in Additional Buyer Stamp Duty (ABSD) rates for residential properties.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.5 per cent to 3,276.95 points after 101.5 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have UOB, after the bank reported net profit of S$1.5 billion for the first quarter ended March, up 67 per cent from Q1 2022.
Meanwhile, investors in Singapore are also tracking property counters, which were largely in the red after authorities raised the ABSD rate for foreigners buying any residential property from 30 per cent to 60 per cent – the highest increase.
The rate will be raised from 17 per cent to 20 per cent for Singapore citizens buying their second residential property, and from 25 per cent to 30 per cent for those buying their third and subsequent property.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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20 April 2023
Market View: US economy stalled in recent weeks; Mixed earnings from IBM, Morgan Stanley and Tesla; Alibaba’s Freshippo and a possible Hong Kong IPO; Keppel Reit’s distributable income down 6.7% yoy
Singapore shares fell this morning after global markets closed mostly flat or lower overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.2 per cent to 3,318.56 points, after 19.2 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, Nanofilm Technologies fell 9.1 per cent after the company announced a 40 per cent fall in revenue for the first fiscal quarter yesterday.
Keppel Reit is also in focus after posting a 6.7 per cent on-year drop in distributable income from operations for the first quarter ended March.
Elsewhere, investors continue to fret over the inflation outlook in the US, while mixed US corporate earnings also provided little cheer for market participants.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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6 April 2023
Market View: US non-farm payrolls; Asean+3 region to grow 4.6% in 2023; Vietnam government to probe TikTok’s operations; Singtel to integrate IndiHome into Telkomsel
Singapore stocks fell this morning, tracking the slowdown in global markets overnight.
In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) dropped 0.4 per cent to 3,305.04 points, after 34.9 million securities changed hands in the broader market.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Singtel, after the company announced that its Indonesian associate Telekomunikasi Selular (Telkomsel) has entered into a conditional spin-off agreement with the parent company of Indonesian telco IndiHome, to integrate IndiHome’s services into Telkomsel.
Meanwhile, global investors continue to set their sights on Friday’s US non-farm payroll figures for a snapshot of the world’s largest economy.
On Market View, the Drive Time team took a closer look at these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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23 March 2023
Market View: Fed Chair Jerome Powell raises rates by 25bps; Contradicting messages by Powell and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen; UBS to shrink Credit Suisse’s US$10b shipping portfolio; Singapore’s headline inflation at 6.3%; Sembcorp Industries reportedly considering sale of its waste management unit; Boustead Projects to restore free float or be directed to delist
Singapore stocks opened lower today, following the US Federal Reserve’s move to hike interest rates by 0.25 per cent, the ninth increase in a year.
The Straits Times Index fell 0.6 per cent to 3,200.88 points after 74.4 million securities changed hands.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Sembcorp Industries, after a Bloomberg report suggested that the firm may be considering selling its waste management unit.
Meanwhile, investors continue to digest the latest quarter point rate increase by the US Federal Reserve overnight, as well as contradictory message
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked the key developments of the day with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

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16 March 2023
Market View: Prudential’s profits down 54% yoy due to its Indonesia segment; CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust’s subsidiary issuing HK$755m fixed rate notes; First year ‘anniversary’ of US Fed hikes; Credit Suisse to borrow 50 billion francs from Swiss National Bank; Saudi National Bank will not up stake in Credit Suisse; Launch of Baidu’s Ernie Bot to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT
Singapore shares started the day lower after US and European markets ended mostly in the red overnight, as a liquidity crisis faced by Credit Suisse sparked fears across trading floors.
The Straits Times Index shed 0.9 per cent in early trade to 3,143.43 points as 48.2 million securities changed hands.
In terms of companies to watch, we have Prudential. The insurer yesterday posted profit from continuing operations of US$998 million for FY2022. That’s down 54 per cent from the previous year due to a decline in profit from its Indonesia segment.
Meanwhile, the global financial sector continues to be in focus after signs of trouble at Swiss lender Credit Suisse sent traders running for the hills.
On Market View, the Drive Time team closer look at these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital. They also discussed Credit Suisse’s move to borrow from the Swiss National Bank and the launch of Baidu’s Ernie Bot shortly after OpenAI’s unveiling of GPT-4.

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2 March 2023
Market View: EV maker NIO’s 4Q net loss widens to over RMB$5.8b; OUE’s net profits doubled yoy to S$101.2m; South Korea’s semiconductor inventory rose at fastest pace in 27 years; details from Tesla’s investor day
Singapore stocks fell in early trade today following losses in US and Europe markets.
The Straits Times Index fell 0.3 per cent in early trade to 3,246.54 points after 331.5 million securities changed hands.
In terms of companies to watch, Chinese EV maker NIO announced that its net loss for the fourth quarter of 2022 had widened to just over 5.8 billion yuan (S$1.1 billion), despite a 62.2 per cent on-year increase in total revenue.
Meanwhile, we have more news from property developers including OUE. Its net profits doubled year-on-year in the second half of 2022 to S$101.2 million, on higher revenue.
On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director, Azure Capital.

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27 December 2021
Market View: Sectors to watch in 2022.
Coming up in the best of Prime Time, Finance Presenter, JP Ong, speaks to David Chow, Director, Azure Capital to review 2021 market highlights, from oil prices to SPACs, and which sectors he is watching out for in 2022.

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9 July 2021
Money and Me: OPEC+ stalemate, China's probe into Didi Global, Gold and old fashioned US stocks
Shehzad Haque sitting in for Michelle Martin and David Chow, Director at Azure Capital discuss the OPEC+ stalemate, China's regulation probe into Didi Global, gold and old fashioned US stocks.

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19 April 2021
Money and Me: Alibaba, Singtel, Geely, small cap S-REITS and FAVE
Michelle Martin and David Chow, Director at Azure Capital discuss what the fine for Alibaba means for the company and other Chinese tech stocks, Singtel as a dividend stock, Geely exploring a SPAC deal, 11 smaller cap REITS in the iEdge S-REIT index with market cap of under 1 billion SGD have generated positive returns and FAVE's sale to pine labs.

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15 March 2021 
Aztech Global, Jardine Matheson and Jardine Strategic and the global semiconductor chip shortage
Michelle Martin and David Chow, Director of Azure Capital discuss what will define investor interest this week, Aztech Global as a stock to watch, Jardine Matheson's buyout of Jardine Strategic and the global semiconductor chip shortage.

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23 February 2021
Market View: Of Rising Yields and Opportunities In Singapore Equities
The continued steepening of the US yield curve seems to have equity markets questioning hefty gains. David Chow, Vice President at Azure Capital, joined us on Prime Time to discuss how they're viewing the recent rise in yields, and also shared with us why they're upbeat on the prospects of Singaporean manufacturers as a sector worth watching.

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