The Afternoon Update with Lynlee Foo

Despite Friday’s stock rebound, investors still have much to worry about. The rout in US bank shares has the S&P 500 financials index on the verge of falling back below its 2007 peak. So how much has banking shares plunged so far? Can we expect more pain?  On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Amber Choudhury, senior finance reporter at Bloomberg to find out more. 

Wall Street’s excitement about a potential pause in the Federal Reserve’s aggressive tightening campaign was not enough to keep the stock rally going, with chair Jerome Powell says it may be too soon to cut rates. So what does that mean? If the Fed does not cut rates by the end of this year, would that be enough to trigger a recession? Or perhaps even a stagflation?  On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Vishnu Varathan, Head of Economics & Strategy, Asia at Mizuho Bank, to dive deeper into this latest interest rate decision by the Fed.

On The Afternoon Update, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Geoff Howie, Market Strategist at the SGX, to get a wrap of markets for the past week. They discuss STI's performance; biggest movers on the STI; UOB and DBS's latest earnings and what to expect from OCBC; US Fed rate hike; Singapore's factory activity data; as well as the latest on earnings season. 

Central banks' focus has become more complicated, especially in light of the recent banking crisis.  The US Fed has raised its interest rate 25 basis points, its 10th hike in 14 months. And it has signalled that this rise may be its last one for now. Now all eyes are on the European Central Bank.  So how are equities faring at the moment - and more specifically, what are the latest multi-asset allocation strategies investors are looking at at the moment?  On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Thomas Poullaouec, head of Multi-Asset Solutions, APAC, and a portfolio manager in the Multi-Asset Division at T.Rowe Price to find out more.

The recent surprise in contraction in China's manufacturing index in April, coming after first quarter growth exceeded expectations, underlines the uneven nature of the recovery in the world's second-biggest economy. And this will likely be mirrored in China's imports of major commodities.  So how are commodity markets performing against this backdrop? And which commodities are seeing a boost since the slew of economic data out of China?  On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Priyanka Sachdeva, Market Analyst, Phillip Nova to find out more.

The Asian Development Bank has launched the Innovative Finance Facility for Climate in Asia and the Pacific or IF -CAP to tackle the impact of climate change.  This is believed to be the first time a leveraged guarantee mechanism for climate finance has been adopted by a multilateral development bank. Up to $15 billion in new loans for much-needed climate projects across Asia and the Pacific could be created under IF-CAP. Rachel Kelly takes a closer look in this episode of Eco Money.

While the US banking system steadied in April after the traumas of March, investor sentiment remained under a cloud, but still showed some recovery last month. So with the recent combination of declining markets and a recovering sentiment, was there a shift in investment strategies? On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Olivier d’Assier, Head of Applied Research, APAC, Qontigo to find out more.  Highlights: 00:59 - How did markets perform in the month of April? 01:27 - What was investor sentiment like in April?  03:14 - How has investor sentiment change over the past 180 days? 04:48 - What are some strategies investors look for when there's a combination of rising markets and falling sentiment? 05:30 - Is the dissonance between markets and sentiment widening?

Protecting wealth, boosting investment returns, and maintaining financial security are some of the top goals for investors. But with widespread volatility and global uncertainty, how should investors allocate their assets? How can investors well prepare their portfolios from constant fluctuations and volatility in markets? And what sectors should investors look at when investing in Singapore markets? What about US and Hong Kong markets?  On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Eric Oh, Financial Services Manager, Phillip Securities to find out more.  If you want to participate in Eric Oh's webinar on how to position your portfolio in an uncertain, volatile and confusing times,  Click below to register: 9 May 2023, Tuesday from 7-8pm  https://bit.ly/ericZoom Limited slots available for first come first serve.

On The Afternoon Update, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Gerald Wong, CEO of Beansprout (growbeansprout.com) for a wrap of markets for the week. They discuss how the STI performed the past week; how property developer counters were impacted by the ABSD hike; some of the REITS results we saw in the past week; UOB results and what to expect from other local banks in the coming weeks; as well as several economic data out of Singapore in the past week including inflation numbers as well as factory output activity. 

When you think of alternative meats - jackfruit may not be the first thing that comes to mind.  BUT this humble fruit has been used in vegetarian dishes for years. One Singapore based startup is betting big on this trend. KARANA has plans to take jackfruit global - starting from our little red dot.  Eco Money Host, Rachel Kelly speaks to BLAIR CRICHTON, Co-Founder, KARANA to find out more.