The Afternoon Update with Lynlee Foo

To close the year, Singapore’s market closed flat in 2023, outperforming some of its regional rivals. But it failed to outperform markets in North Asia and North America. So what lessons can we learn from last year to mitigate the risks of the market this year? For investors navigating markets in 2024, what are some key themes they should look out for? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Thilan Wickramasinghe, Head of Equity Research, Maybank Securities, to find out more. 

On The Afternoon Update, Hongbin Jeong is joined by Geoff Howie, Market Strategist at the SGX, for a market wrap of the week. They discuss how the STI fared in the past week, the biggest movers on the STI, SG NODX numbers, the performance of iEdge Sg Advanced Manufacturing Index, as well as when US rate cuts are expected to roll in.

After defying recession fears last year, the US economy has maintained stronger growth than widely expected. With several possible rate cuts planned for this year by the US Fed, what's now expected from the US economy? What asset classes are set to benefit from the better US economic outlook? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Nikolaj Schmidt, Chief International Economist in the Fixed Income Division of T. Rowe Price, to find out more. 

A resilient US economy and cooling inflation had triggered an intense year-end bond rally. But some market watchers suspect investors are too optimistic about the months ahead. In fact, fears of a prolonged stretch of higher interest rates have repeatedly driven the yield to decade-plus highs, only for the stress on the banking system and a Federal Reserve pivot to drag it down again. So what can we expect from the bond market in the year ahead? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Carol Lye, Portfolio Manager & Senior Research Analyst, Brandywine Global Investment Management, to find out more.

According to the World Health Organisation, 'Disease X' is a hypothetical future international epidemic caused by a pathogen as yet unknown to cause human disease. But despite it being a hypothetical disease, 'Disease X' could be 20 times more deadly than the COVID-19 virus. The topic has also made it into the agenda of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week. So what exactly is Disease X? And how can we prepare for its potential outbreak? On What's Trending, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Professor Dale Fisher, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Senior Consultant, National University Hospital, about this looming disease. Highlights: 1. What exactly is Disease X? - 1:39 2. Should we be concerned? - 3:24 3. How can countries enhance their preparedness and create robust systems to effectively manage any potential breakouts? - 4:26 4. What critical areas do you believe should be added to improve global readiness for future pandemics? - 9:38 5. Looking ahead, what kind of preparations would be required for an effective response to possible infectious threats, and how can countries like Singapore proactively prepare for such? - 11:25

Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has issued a statement on former transport minister S. Iswaran - who is facing 27 charges including corruption. Speaking to reporters, DPM Wong said he is ‘disappointed and saddened’ - but reiterated that the People’s Action Party’s stance on corruption is non-negotiable. READ MORE: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/pap-s-stance-on-corruption-is-non-negotiable-part-of-its-dna-dpm-lawrence-wong-on-iswaran-s-case

Major banks have already kicked off reporting their earnings results - with the latest being Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs group. While the results so far have been mixed, analysts remain optimistic on earnings despite economic growth weakening, inflation remaining elevated, and liquidity declining. Some say this earnings season will be critical for stocks after a rough start to the year. What could a disappointing season look like for markets? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Rajat Bhattacharya, Senior Investment Strategist, Standard Chartered, to find out what key sectors investors should look out for this earnings season.

2023 may have seen a spotlight cast on controversy around ESG investing. Greenwashing and confusing terminology may have punched a dent in ESG’s credibility. Could this give way to greater clarity around language, goals and intentions in the year ahead? MSCI ESG Research’s Sustainability and Climate Trends for 2024 is hot off the press.  Rachel Kelly speaks to Yu Ishihara, Executive Director, MSCI ESG & Climate Research to get the details. 

The final quarter of 2023 saw a rally in seemingly everything, which caught most investors off-guard, especially in fixed income markets. The US 10 year Treasury yield had peaked near 5% back in October, before falling to around 3.9% by the end of 2023. Some investors hope that the momentum from the fourth quarter of 2023 will accelerate in the new year. So is the bond market poised to skyrocket in 2024? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Omar Slim, Co-Head of Asia ex-Japan of Fixed Income at PineBridge Investments, to find out more about the outlook of fixed income markets in 2024.

Since last week, the first US ETFs that invest directly in Bitcoin have begun trading. Billions of dollars changed hands, with the token briefly surging past $49,000 following the US SEC approval of such ETFs. But now, Bitcoin has posted its worst streak in about a month, dropping for four straight days - the worst such run since mid-December. So has the ETF optimism now evaporated? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Suvashree Ghosh, Crypto Currency Reporter for APAC at Bloomberg to find out how Bitcoin has since responded to the latest development, and how the new spot Bitcoin ETFs fared in the past first few trading days.