The Afternoon Update with Lynlee Foo

Markets seem to be shifting their focus away from inflation towards growth. And according to a recent report by Europe’s leading asset manager Amundi, it believes that there are opportunities to play some rotations with a selective approach. So where do these opportunities currently lie? And how should investors play these market rotations? On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Vincent Mortier, Group Chief Investment Officer at Amundi to find out how market players should allocate their investments this year. 

S-REITs have gotten off to a strong start this year, and many expect Reits to continue 'hopping' higher for the rest of the year. On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong spoke to Kum Soek Ching, Head of APAC Research at Credit Suisse, to find out whether this year offers a more benign yield background for Singapore REITs. Highlights: 00:57 - What factors have contributed the surge in S-Reits? 01:50 - Will this positive momentum continue for the rest of the year? 02:53 - How would the dimmer economic outlook for Singapore impact S-Reits? 06:07 - Can China’s reopening help recharge S-Reits? 07:10 - Which sectors are likely to outperform for S-Reits?

With the growing interest in private markets amidst market volatility and portfolio diversification, more than two thirds of institutional investors are continuing to grow their allocation to private markets in line with current targets. That’s according to the latest survey on private markets by State Street. On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Eric Chng, Senior Managing Director, Head of Alternatives & Insurance Segments Asia Pacific, State Street to find out more on the key findings of the survey. 

For market wrap of the week, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Emelia Tan, research analysts at the SGX to find out how the STI performed in the past week; the biggest movers on the STI; what to expect from local banks as they report earnings in the following weeks; a look at US initial jobless claims and what it signals; whether there has been a shift in market optimism that rate hikes are going to end by this year; and what to look out for in the following week. 

Investor sentiments seem to be improving despite the slowing down of the global economy, especially in Asia. But what’s driving this positive sentiment? And will this bullish tone of markets continue?  On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Olivier d’Assier, Head of Applied Research, APAC at Qontigo to find out more.

We’re only in the second month of the year, and we’ve already seen an impressive year-to-date rally in the stock market to kick off the year. But will this momentum continue? Will 2023 be a repeat of 2022 or something different? On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Samuel Rhee, Chairman & Chief Investment Officer, Endowus to find out whether or not right now is the best time to buy equities and how investors should be better positioned this year. 01:40 - Will the stock market rally continue throughout the rest of the year?  03:31 - Is now the time to buy equities? Or should we wait?  06:11 - What sectors will outperform this year? 13:36 - Does a 60/40 portfolio still work in the current market condition?  15:20 - How can investors well position themselves this year?

While the dollar has eased after Jerome Powell’s latest speech failed to offer fresh signs of a hawkish pushback against a resilient labour market in the United States, the dollar had seen a rally prior following Friday's blockbuster jobs report- which sent the U.S. dollar index to a one-month high. But was this a short-lived rally? Or is it signally more gains for the dollar are to come? On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Lim Jun Kit, Strategist at Phillip Nova to find out more. 

It’s been a long, hard struggle for emerging-market equities. Since peaking in late 2010, emerging markets have underperformed global developed equities amid a confluence of macroeconomic and market headwinds. But, in the beginning of this year -  emerging market equities have rallied more than a fifth from their October trough. So could this emerging-market equities’ rebound rally extend throughout the rest of the year? On Money in the Market, The Afternoon Update’s Hongbin Jeong speaks to Dr Sailesh Jha, Group Chief Economist and Head of Market Research at RHB to find out more. 

The stock rout in Gautam Adani’s indebted conglomerate has entered a third week. And the continued selloff is indicating growing concerns about the conglomerate’s access to funding after Adani Enterprises shelved a key bond sale plan, less than a week after it abruptly abandoned a record domestic stock offering. On Money in the Market, Hongbin Jeong spoke to Suvashree Ghosh, Finance Reporter for APAC and Abhishek Vishnoi, Senior Reporter for Equities from Bloomberg to find out what’s happening in the Adani saga and how much the turmoil has impacted markets.

On The Afternoon Update, Geoff Howie, Market Strategist at the SGX, joins Hongbin Jeong for a wrap of markets for the week; including how the STI performed; the biggest movers of the week; financial results from several REITs; Keppel Corp shares following its earnings; how the latest US Fed rate hike affects local bank shares; as well as what to look out for in the week ahead.