The Business Times Podcasts

Headline news for June 26, 2026: The UN pauses its Strait of Hormuz evacuation operation after a cargo vessel is struck near Oman,  two U.S. officials say Iran fired the projectile, even as overall tanker traffic hits its highest daily flow since the war began. Five million people in southern Taiwan are off work as Tropical Storm Mekkhala brings torrential rain.  Synopsis: A round up of...

Market news for June 25, 2026: Asian equities soared as chipmakers, buoyed by strong forecasts from Micron and Qualcomm, added $400 billion in market cap, reigniting the AI rally. Concurrently, oil prices retreated following a US-Iran ceasefire, while gold fell below the $4,000 psychological threshold. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the d...

Headline news for June 25, 2026: Three International Criminal Court judges sue President Trump in Manhattan, calling his sanctions a financial death penalty. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake strikes northern Japan this morning with no casualties reported but Shinkansen services suspended. Oil falls to its lowest level since the Iran war began as more tankers prepare to exit the Strait of Hormuz.  S...

By many measures, Singapore continues to perform strongly economically. Yet some Singaporeans feel their personal aspirations are becoming more difficult to realise. In this episode of  Lens on Singapore , Claressa Monteiro speaks with Professor Wei-Jun Jean Yeung, director of Social Sciences at A*STAR Institute for Human Development and Potential (A*STAR IHDP), and Associate Professor Walter...

Market news for June 24, 2026: Asian markets remained directionless as crude oil hovered near four-month lows. Investors are currently weighing renewed volatility from stretched AI valuations against fragile progress in US-Iran peace talks, amid a broader risk-off sentiment sweeping across global equity markets. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that look...

Headline news for June 24, 2026: Both chambers of Congress have passed a war powers resolution directing President Trump to end the Iran war though it carries no binding legal force. The US and Iran offer conflicting accounts of what was agreed in Switzerland, casting doubt on the peace framework. Asian markets bounce back after Wall Street's tech-led selloff.  Synopsis: A round up of global...

Market news for June 23, 2026: Seoul’s benchmark plunged 10 per cent in a historic tech-led rout. Elsewhere, US sanctions waivers cooled oil prices, while Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s surprise resignation cast fresh shadows over global market sentiment. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements and news...

Headline news for June 23, 2026: The US formally waives Iran sanctions as tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz resumes but full oil flow recovery could take until December. SpaceX shares fall sixteen per cent in a single session, wiping out more than six hundred billion US dollars over three days. Malaysia's Conference of Rulers is cancelled at the last minute.  Synopsis: A round up of...

Market news for June 22, 2026: Asian markets rallied on US-Iran peace progress, easing crude prices. Japan’s Nikkei climbed 1.9 per cent, while South Korea’s market gained 2.6 per cent as SK Hynix surpassed Samsung as the nation’s most valuable listed company. Gold also rose amid the geopolitical shift. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times...

Headline news for June 22, 2026: As US-Iran peace talks enter a critical phase, investors remain wary of the risks to global energy supplies and economic stability. Closer to home, Singapore's currency outlook remains resilient, while AI firm Databricks signals continued confidence in the Republic with plans for a major expansion.  Synopsis: A round up of global headlines to start your day by...

You think investing is complicated? That's exactly the problem. What if you could start with $10 with no need to wait for the "right time"? Many entities are quietly embedding finance into everything you already do, and the best investment app feature isn't a chart — it's a well-placed "Are you sure?" Whether you're a first-timer or a seasoned portfolio juggler, this one will change how you...

Iran signs a peace deal, the Strait of Hormuz reopens, and markets rally — but is the relief built to last? This week on Market Focus Weekly, portfolio manager Pete Tan analyses what a "fully live" Fed means for your portfolio, why Japan's BOJ is walking a tightrope, how China's export boom masks a consumer crisis, and why energy security — not green ideology — is now the definin...

Headline news for June 19, 2026: Oil tankers transit the Strait of Hormuz as the US. blockade is lifted but five hundred vessels are waiting and full normalisation could take weeks. The US-Iran deal faces sharp Republican criticism, with senators calling it the worst foreign policy blunder in decades. SpaceX ends its first trading week thirty-seven per cent above its IPO price.  Synopsis: A r...

Market news for June 18, 2026: Major Asian stock markets hit record highs today, as the Nikkei 225 broke past 71,000, and the Kospi index crossed 9000. This comes on the back of the temporary ceasefire deal between the US and Iran that was signed into effect today. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements and news f...

Headline news for June 18, 2026: President Trump signs the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding at the Palace of Versailles and the Strait of Hormuz reopens instantly, all sanctions are lifted and the war that began February twenty-eighth is formally over. The Federal Reserve holds rates under new chair Kevin Warsh but nearly half of policymakers now expect a hike by year end.  Synopsis: A r...

Market news for June 17, 2026: Asian stocks traded sideways today, as investors await the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting and for the reveal of more details on the US-Iran deal. Oil prices plunged amid growing optimism on rising oil supply. 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...

Headline news for June 17, 2026: Singapore's exports surge thirty-eight-point-four per cent in May on AI-driven demand. Reuters reveals a three-hundred-billion-dollar private reconstruction fund is embedded in the US-Iran framework with over half already committed from companies across four continents. President Trump meets President Zelenskyy at the G7 and says Russia should make peace with Ukrai...

Market news for June 16, 2026: Asian stocks rose as Japan’s Nikkei hit a record 70,000 following the Bank of Japan’s historic 1 per cent rate hike. Markets are now monitoring whether the US-Iran peace deal will curb global inflationary pressures and influence future central bank policy trajectories. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks...

Headline news for June 16, 2026: The Bank of Japan is set to raise rates to one per cent today — the highest in nearly thirty years. The U.S. and Iran have signed a preliminary agreement extending the ceasefire by sixty days and reopening the Strait of Hormuz but a permanent deal remains to be negotiated.  Synopsis: A round up of global headlines to start your day by The Business Times....

Market news for June 15, 2026: A preliminary agreement to end the war between US and Iran reduced geopolitical fears, resulting in an easing of oil prices and a rally in Asian markets. Major central banks, including the US and Japan are set to announce their policy decisions this week. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market...

Headline news for June 15, 2026: The U.S. and Iran announce a peace deal to end their war. President Trump says it is "complete," ordering the naval blockade lifted and the Strait of Hormuz reopened, with signing set for June 19, in Switzerland. Oil falls to its lowest since March, gold rises two per cent, and Asian markets surge.  Synopsis: A round up of global headlines to start your day by...

Your "ETF and chill" strategy just got a reality check. Halfway through 2026, the S&P 500 is no longer the only game in town — and the smartest investors are quietly restructuring. Chips, crypto, Singapore blue chips, UCITS ETFs — what's hype and what's genuinely worth owning? Oriano Lizza from CMC Markets and Ritesh Ganeriwal from Syfe cut through the noise. Less FOMO, more discip...

Peace talks lift markets, but the real story runs deeper. HSBC's senior ASEAN economist Yun Liu unpacks why Southeast Asia sits at the eye of the storm — navigating energy shocks, a hawkish Fed, dollar pressure, and an AI revolution that's reshaping trade. From Malaysia's fuel subsidies to Singapore's inflation risk and Vietnam defying tariff odds, this is the macro picture most investors ar...

Headline news for June 12, 2026: President Trump says a "great settlement" with Iran could see the Strait of Hormuz reopen this weekend, though Tehran has not confirmed. SpaceX prices the largest IPO in history, putting Elon Musk on the verge of becoming the world's first trillionaire. Asian markets rally and oil falls to two-month lows.  Synopsis: A round up of global headlines to start your...

Market news for June 11, 2026: Asian markets slumped, as a hot U.S. inflation report fuelled Wall Street selloffs. Simultaneously, renewed US strikes on Iran forced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, driving Brent crude prices higher and deepening geopolitical and economic instability. Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s mark...