President’s Message – September 2024

Date: September 1, 2024

Greetings and best wishes to all members

A lot has happened since my last address. Stock markets around the world were battered in early August because of sudden worries that the US economy might be headed for a hard landing or even a recession. The worry spread to this part of the world with the Straits Times Index plunging more than 4% on 5 August and the Nikkei 225 suffering its worst-ever crash of 12.4% on that day.

Fortunately, markets regained their poise over the following weeks after release of US economic data that showed a soft landing was still likely. The minutes of the July US Federal Open Markets Committee meeting showed that most Fed officials favoured an interest rate cut in September and later in the month, Fed chief Jerome Powell all but confirmed that rates would be lowered in Sep.

This suggests that markets are heading into Sep on an even keel with a renewed focus on earnings and valuations. There is plenty of optimism as far as the outlook for equities is concerned and I am excited to see what lies ahead for markets.

I am equally excited to share with you an event-packed calendar for September. We kick off the month with a 6^th Sep dialogue session with a key component of the Straits Times Index, namely Thai Beverage Ltd. SIAS encourages shareholders to attend this dialogue session for a better understanding of the Proposed Share Swap with TCC Assets Limited.

Representing Thai Beverage is Goup CFO Prapakon Thongtheppairot and the session will be moderated by SIAS Honorary Secretary Ang Hao Yao.

After our routine Market Review on 9 Sep, comes one of SIAS’s major events for the year – our Corporate Governance Week from 16-19 Sep. Helping us launch the week on 16 Sep is our Guest-of-Honour Mr Chee Hong Tat, Minister for Transport, Second Minister for Finance and Deputy Chairman, MAS.

The theme for this year is “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Corporate Governance and Sustainability on Key Stakeholders’’ a theme that combines two major buzzwords in today’s investing environment – AI and Sustainability. Those who attend will discover how cutting-edge AI advancements are reshaping the landscape and why robust ethical frameworks and clear governance structures are crucial for the future.

Sandwiched in between on 17 Sep is SIAS’s annual Investors’ Choice Award Dinner presentation where the Guest-of-Honour will be President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

These awards are aimed at recognising companies for their corporate governance practices and financial journalists for their excellence in areas such as investor education and impactful stories.

On 25 Sep we round off the month with our regular Ask SIAS session where Lead Technical Analyst, Capital Markets and Investor Education Sunny Soh and SIAS Speaker & Moderator, Investor Education Gerlad Wong will answer your investment-related questions.

I wish everyone the best in their investing journey and look forward to your continued support.

Thank you.

 

David Gerald
Founder, President & CEO, SIAS

1 September 2024