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Key Drivers

1. Wall Street's sharp Friday rally
US stocks ended sharply higher on Friday, led by [stock Microsoft]'s record-breaking near US$450 billion single-day gain in market value after strong earnings. [stock Amazon] also beat cloud sales growth estimates, soothing AI investment jitters. This positive overnight tone is carrying into Asian markets today. [citation 1][citation 2]

2. Chip & tech surge returns to Singapore
After last week's brutal selloff that saw [stock Frencken] drop 8.9% and UMSIntegration fall 8.5%, AI trade confidence is returning. AEM Holdings and UMS are leading a chip and tech rebound in Singapore as the market digests the earlier rout. [citation 1]

3. Easing Middle East geopolitical tensions
Trump signaled he will hold off on fresh Iran attacks in hopes of reaching a quick deal on nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz. This eases one of the biggest risk overhangs — oil prices had surged ~20% in July on Iran war disruptions. [citation 1][citation 2]

4. BOJ stands pat, Japan-US joint yen support
The Bank of Japan kept rates steady with a hawkish signal, while Tokyo and Washington announced their first joint currency intervention since 2011 to support the yen. This stabilized FX markets and supported regional sentiment. [citation 1][citation 2]

5. Strong Singapore corporate earnings

• GreatEastern Q2 profit doubled to S$503.2 million on stronger insurance returns
• [stock Seatrium] more than doubled H1 net profit, citing Iran war-driven demand for floating LNG solutions
• Singapore office REITs delivered robust H1 performance on strong occupancy and higher rents [citation 1]

6. Positive domestic economic backdrop
Singapore manufacturers and services firms remain upbeat on the six-month outlook. Consumer sentiment jumped 9 points to 56 in the UOB ASEAN index — the largest regional gain — driven by AI-related trade activity and government cost-of-living transfers. [citation 1][citation 3]

The rally is essentially a relief bounce: strong US tech earnings + fading geopolitical fears + stable FX are reversing last week's risk-off mood. The STI had hit a new record high just last week before pulling back, so today's move also reflects buyers stepping back in at slightly lower levels.