SINGAPORE – The Japanese yen surged against the US dollar and climbed to a one-year high against the euro, as a global flight to safety drove investors into traditional safe-haven assets.
The yen rose to 156.81 per US dollar on Oct 23. It also strengthened to approximately 122.71 per Singapore dollar.
Disappointing technology and artificial intelligence earnings, alongside escalating Middle East tensions that pushed oil prices higher, dented global equity markets and boosted demand for safe-haven assets like the yen.
The yen also strengthened to a one-year high against the euro, which touched 175.20 yen on Oct 23. The euro came under pressure as violent street protests over rising cost of living and declining public services in France and Italy triggered stock and bond sell-offs.
The euro traded at 1.43 per Singdollar on Oct 23.
Analysts said continued political uncertainty could weigh further on the euro, although its direction will also depend on interest rate expectations and broader economic conditions.
S-Reits commences Q3 earnings season
Shares of Singapore real estate investment trusts (S-REITS) gained over the week after they posted strong quarterly results and higher distribution per unit (DPU).
Keppel DC REIT shares climbed 2.86% to close at $2.13 after it reported that DPU rose 11.7% year on year to 8.57 cents for the nine months ended Sept 30, 2026.
DPU is the total amount of income a REIT pays out to unit holders for each unit they own.
Revenue increased 13.3% to $365.3 million, while distributable income climbed 16.7 per cent to $228 million. Growth was driven by positive rental reversions, higher rental income and contributions from acquisitions in Japan and Singapore, Keppel DC REIT said on Oct 23.
However, higher borrowing costs and an enlarged unit base following a private placement partly offset the gains.
Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT) on Oct 22 reported a record full-year DPU of 12.35 cents for FY2026, supported by a second-half DPU of 6.214 cents which is up 2.6% year on year.
Revenue and net property income also rose, driven by contributions from Northpoint City South Wing, which was acquired in May 2025, as well as higher passing rents in most malls.
Earlier in the week, FCT said it will repurpose the former cinema space at Causeway Point into a 32,000 square foot community reading destination as it moves to revamp the Woodlands mall.
The HomePage @ Causeway Point, developed with the National Library & Archives Board (NLB), is expected to open in 2028.
FCT shares gained 5.66% over the week to $2.18.
Suntec REIT, too, listed a strong third quarter, with distribution per unit (DPU) at 2.017 cents, 13.4% higher than 1.778 cents the year before.
Distributable income increased by 14.3% year on year to $59.9 million from $52.4 million. Gross revenue was up 5.2% to $123.6 million. Net property income records 6.2% growth to $83.4 million, attributable to strong portfolio performance in both office and retail markets.
Suntec REIT shares rose 3.64% to $1.40.
SGX CEO to step down, CapitaLand Investment announces board changes
Singapore Exchange (SGX) chief Loh Boon Chye will step down after his contract ends in mid-July 2027, and a search for his successor is underway.
Loh, who assumed the role in 2015, announced his decision at the company’s annual general meeting on Oct 23.
He noted that the bourse’s strong performance and solid foundation provided an opportunity to be “equally thoughtful and deliberate” in selecting the leadership that will guide SGX through its next phase of growth.
SGX Group CEO Loh Boon Chye assumed the role in 2015.
PHOTO: SGX
Shares of SGX closed 1.01% lower to end the week at $20.77.
CapitaLand Investment (CLI) on Oct 22 appointed banking veteran Hsieh Fu Hua as independent chairman and non-executive independent director from Jan 1. Hsieh will succeed Miguel Ko, who will retire as non-executive chairman and non-independent director upon completing his term on Dec 31.
Separately, CLI also announced that it was appointing Temasek Singapore president Png Chin Yee as a non-executive, non-independent director from Jan 1. He will replace Gabriel Lim, who will retire from the board upon completing his term on Dec 31.
Shares of CapitaLand Investment ended the week 0.84% higher at $2.40.
More plantation firms respond to SGX queries over haze
TSH Resources said 274 hot spots were detected within its estate boundaries in Indonesia between Jan 1 and Oct 21, but maintained that none of the fires occurred within its planted or operational areas.
“The group’s field teams responded to and extinguished these fires, and police reports have been lodged in respect of these incidents,” the plantation group said in an Oct 22 filing with Bursa Malaysia and SGX.
TSH Resources, which has a primary listing on Bursa Malaysia and a secondary listing on SGX, was among eight companies that received queries from SGX regarding potential links to forest and peatland fires in Indonesia and the resulting transboundary haze.
TSH Resources shares closed flat at 36.5 cents on Oct 23.
Other Singapore-listed plantation firms have also responded to SGX queries over their links to the haze.
First Resources, which was named in a recent Greenpeace report for its link to the haze, said on Oct 20 that it welcomed a thorough examination. It said it was confident an objective review would show that it does not clear land using fire, either directly or indirectly.
It had on Oct 15 acknowledged that some massive fires had spread onto its concession areas, despite on-site firefighting efforts.
Shares of First Resources fell 3.21% to end the week at $3.68.
Olam Group on Oct 21 said it has “no direct plantation operational exposure” to the fires and that neither the group nor its former subsidiary Olam Agri owns or operates oil palm plantations or concessions in Indonesia.
Olam added it was not aware of any formal regulatory inquiries, notices or notifications relating to the recent fires.
Its shares closed the week 2.22% lower to 89 cents.
Shares of other agribusiness companies queried by SGX also fell.
Wilmar International lost 2.95% to $3.34, Golden Agri-Resources dropped 3.64% to 27 cents, Bumitama Agri slid 8.8% to $1.63 and Kencana Agri fell 7.27% to 53 cents.
Indofood Agri Resources, meanwhile, gained 4.51% to 34 cents.
Other market movers
Singtel was fined $1 million by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) over a three-day mobile outage in March that affected 720,000 customers.
In a statement on Oct 20, IMDA said its investigations found that the outages on March 16, 18 and 19 had been preventable and within the telco’s control.
The first disruption on March 16 was due to a chiller system breakdown at a Singtel exchange, which caused mobile network equipment to overheat and shut down.
The subsequent outages on March 18 and 19 occurred after 5G mobile traffic was redirected to another Singtel exchange following the initial disruption.
Shares of the telco were down 1.45% over the week to $4.12.
Singapore-based semiconductor materials spin-off Mi Material is looking to raise $215 million through its mainboard share offering, including $139.5 million from its initial public offering launched on Oct 19 and $75.5 million from placements to cornerstone investors.
The offer of 77.5 million shares at $1.80 per share comprises a public offer of 6.2 million shares here and 71.3 million shares offered to institutional and overseas investors.
Mi Material, whose parent is Bursa-listed Mi Technovation, will use the net proceeds to establish an R&D and demonstration centre in the US, to refurbish its production facilities in Taiwan and upgrade equipment, expand its production facilities in Malaysia, and establish its R&D laboratory in Singapore.
What to look out for next week
Investors will be watching developments in the Middle East and for clues on whether the yen can extend its gains and the euro can recover.
The US Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Oct 27-28 will also be in focus, with investors looking for clues on the outlook for interest rates.
Economists expect the Fed to leave interest rates unchanged in October, while anticipating a rate hike in December.
Any changes in rate expectations could affect US Treasury yields, with potential spillovers to Singapore bank stocks and REIT valuations.
Singapore’s REIT earnings season will also gather pace, with Mapletree Industrial Trust reporting on Oct 27, followed by Mapletree Logistics Trust and Keppel REIT on Oct 28.
CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust and CapitaLand Ascendas REIT are scheduled to release updates on Oct 29, while Mapletree Pan Asia Commercial Trust reports on Oct 30.
Investors will be paying close attention to borrowing costs, refinancing plans and distribution per unit (DPU) growth for clues on which trusts are best positioned to weather market volatility.
Besides the REITs, Wilmar International is also scheduled to report earnings on Oct 28.
