In terms of daily performance, Korea-related ETFs moved higher across the board. The leveraged product $Direxion Daily MSCI South Korea Bull 3x Shares(KORU)$ posted the largest gain, rising 16.84%. Among broad-based ETFs, $iShares MSCI South Korea ETF(EWY)$ gained 5.65%, $Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF(FLKR)$ rose 5.56%, and $Matthews Korea Active ETF(MKOR)$ increased 5.51%, broadly tracking the index rebound. The defense-focused ETF $PLUS Korea Defense Industry Index ETF(KDEF)$ rose 2.65%, showing relatively smaller movement. Overall, leveraged products exhibited stronger upside, while broad ETFs followed more steadily.
Conflict in the Middle East and the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz severely disrupted the flow of oil and LNG through one of the world's most critical chokepoints. The result: Brent crude surged nearly 75% year-to-date, reaching $112 per barrel. Energy prices at that level don't just hurt consumers at the pump — they feed directly into CPI and PPI prints, reigniting inflation fears the market thought it had moved past.
This isn't empty reassurance. In his own historical frame of reference, Berkshire Hathaway's stock has gone through three separate drawdowns exceeding 50%. Measured against that, the current pullback barely registers.
This might be the most surprising dark horse on SGX this year. AEM is a semiconductor testing equipment company that has long been heavily tied to Intel. But the story has changed dramatically.
$XAU/USD(XAUUSD.FOREX)$ briefly touched $4,100, then reversed hard. Silver cratered 27% in a single session on January 30th. The assets you'd normally rotate into when equities wobble... wobbled right along with them.
Singapore stocks opened marginally higher on Tuesday, with the STI rising 0.18%. TJ DaRenTang and First Resources gained 3%, while YZJ Maritime, OCBC Bank and Sembcorp rose around 1%.
Business activity growth slowed in March, with S&P Global’s flash composite PMI falling to an 11-month low of 51.4. Inflationary pressures intensified, with input costs rising at the fastest pace in 10 months. Jobless claims remained stable, but consumer sentiment declined and inflation expectations rose.
Sectors: Middle East tensions and oil volatility led the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 to fall 2.12% and 3.23% respectively. High-valuation AI and tech sectors retracted, while traditional energy stocks strengthened alongside rising oil prices.