BT Market Focus

Market news for October 20 2026: Asian stocks retreated and oil prices climbed as geopolitical tensions and rising energy costs rattled investor sentiment. Markets braced for crucial corporate earnings from AI bellwethers and tech giants, weighing massive capital expenditure plans against growing economic uncertainties. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business T...

Market news for October 19 2026: Asian equities slipped as soaring artificial intelligence funding needs and massive tech capital expenditure fueled investor caution. Despite upbeat Chinese economic data and falling oil prices, global markets remain defensive ahead of a crucial week packed with major corporate earnings. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times t...

TSMC posts a record US$23.5 billion profit — yet Asian tech hardware gets crushed. Memory chips plunge 11 per cent. Credit default swaps for AI investors like SoftBank and CoreWeave widen to record highs. Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz stays in limbo, oil markets juggle ceasefires and tanker attacks, and the Kospi suffers its sharpest drop in months. Are we watching the moment debt-fueled A...

Market news for October 15  2026: Tech stocks and Asian markets tumbled as rising interest rates collided with heavy AI infrastructure investments. Wall Street declined following hot US inflation data. Despite broader market routs, TSMC posted record quarterly profits while investors awaited key Federal Reserve insights. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business T...

Market news for October 14, 2026: Asian equities rebounded as bargain-hunting in AI tech stocks offset previous losses. However, persistent oil supply anxieties and cautious sentiment ahead of crucial US inflation data capped broader market gains. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements and news from Singapore and...

Market news for October 13  2026: A sharp selloff in Asian chipmakers sparked a broader AI trade rethink amid rising Chinese competition. Regional stocks plunged, bond yields slid, and crude holding near high levels kept markets cautious as earnings loom. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements and news...

Market news for October 12  2026: Tech valuations face a critical test as earnings season opens, while oil prices slide amid supply uncertainty. Asian equities showed mixed results, European currencies weakened, and gold edged higher as global bond markets remained under pressure. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks at the day’s...

The STI just suffered its sharpest two-session rout in months, led by a sudden sell-off in Singapore's banking giants. Profit-taking or something deeper? With US 10-year yields above 5 per cent competing directly with dividend equities, S-Reits squeezed by rising borrowing costs, and institutions quietly rotating into industrials and semiconductors — the question isn't whether growth exists,...

Market news for October 8 2026: Tech debt sales and Gulf shipping attacks sent Asian equities sliding, while oil prices jumped and Treasuries faced pressure. Soaring yields buoyed the dollar, the euro hit 17-month lows, and corporate borrowing added to global sovereign bond market stress. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks at the day&rsquo...

Market news for October 7 2026: European stocks and the euro fell as Brent crude surged past $100 on Middle East tensions and supply disruptions. US Treasury yields climbed to multi-decade highs ahead of key auctions. Gold slipped on dollar strength, while investors awaited Federal Reserve minutes for fresh rate clues. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times th...

Market news for October 6 2026: Asian stocks advanced after a tech-fuelled rally pushed the Nasdaq to a record close, boosted by soaring Nvidia shares. Concurrently, the euro touched 17-month lows amid French fiscal concerns, while US Treasury yields hit fresh 24-year highs today across markets. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day&rsqu...

Market news for October 5 2026: Asian stocks rallied as Fed rate hike expectations cooled, while the euro hit a 17-month low amid French fiscal concerns. US Treasury yields held steady, oil prices eased, and Foxconn posted robust third-quarter revenue driven by strong artificial intelligence demand. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day&...

Global bond yields hit multi-decade highs as oil prices surge, raising concerns over inflation and interest rates. Are markets underestimating the risks of higher-for-longer rates and the AI investment boom? Nicole Teo speaks with Vikas Pershad, portfolio manager, APAC Equities at M&G Investments, about AI valuations, China’s equity opportunities, US-China technology restrictions, and fi...

Market news for October 1 2026: US Treasury yields surged to multi-decade highs amid soaring energy costs and inflation fears, while Asian tech stocks rallied on strong AI demand. Although falling oil prices provided brief relief, investors remain cautious regarding potential Federal Reserve rate hikes. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks a...

Market news for September 30 2026: Global bonds face their worst month in years amid rising inflation and soaring energy costs from the prolonged US-Israeli conflict. Meanwhile, Asian stocks remain resilient and upbeat today, driven entirely by surging investor optimism and strong hopes in artificial intelligence. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times t...

Market news for September 29 2026:  Surging oil prices and rising US Treasury yields pressured stocks as markets braced for prolonged high interest rates. Australia raised rates to a 15-year high, while Anthropic’s $2 trillion valuation target highlighted high-stakes AI optimism amidst broader market headwinds. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business...

Market news for September 28 2026: Global markets slumped as surging oil prices and growing rate hike fears rattled investors. With the US rejecting Iran’s Strait of Hormuz truce proposal, Brent crude climbed past $107, pressing bonds and sinking Asian equities amid heavy economic headwinds. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks at the...

Treasury yields at 20-year highs. Oil swinging wildly above US$100. Gold sliding while copper soars. Are markets pricing in reality — or just riding the hype? Correspondent Howie Lim sits down with Desmond Fu, head of investment management Singapore at Western Asset Management, to discuss AI productivity puzzle, bond market tremors, US-China rare earth leverage, Fed hawkishness, and Asian cu...

Market news for September 24 2026: Japanese bond yields surged to thirty-year highs as global debt markets tumbled, while Asian equities traded mixed. Investors weighed persistent Middle East tensions and upcoming US and China trade talks against sticky inflation and hawkish central bank rate hike expectations. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that...

Market news for September 23 2026: Asian equities extended gains for a sixth straight session, driven by surging consumer enthusiasm for AI apps and tech hardware. Meanwhile, oil prices dropped on expanding Middle East supply, and markets anticipated high-stakes US-China trade and AI talks. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business Times that looks at the day&rsq...

Market news for September 22 2026: Technology stocks propelled Asian markets higher as stalling oil prices and strong demand for Meta’s Muse AI assistant boosted sentiment. Investors eagerly anticipated upcoming US-Iran talks while monitoring a strong dollar driven by expectations of further central bank rate hikes. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by  The Business...

Market news for September 21 2026: AI demand for chips buoyed Asian equities despite thin holiday trade, while crude oil slid on Middle East diplomatic hopes and recovering shipments. Meanwhile, surging Treasury yields and hawkish central bank tightening expectations kept broader global bond markets highly tense. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that loo...

Sticky inflation and rising rates are pulling global markets in different directions. In this episode of Market Focus Weekly, Nicole Teo speaks with State Street Investment Management’s Ninghui Liu about how higher energy prices and the AI boom are keeping inflation stubborn in many economies — while China remains stuck in deflation. He also unpacks the opportunities emerging from Japa...

Market news for September 17 2026: Asian shares edged up as the Federal Reserve delivered its first rate hike in over three years, calming a global bond selloff. A surging U.S. dollar weighed on commodities, while focus shifted to central bank decisions in London and Tokyo. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements a...

Market news for September 16, 2026: Asian stocks edged higher as a respite in the global bond selloff and falling oil prices steadied market nerves ahead of the pivotal Federal Reserve decision, with traders pricing an implied 93% probability of a 25-basis-point rate hike. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements an...