Asean remains attractive amid global trade, supply chain disruptions: UOB CEO Wee Ee Cheong
[SINGAPORE] The Asean region remains an attractive market to do business with, even amid uncertainties due to geopolitical risks and the impact of the US tariffs, said UOB chief executive Wee Ee Cheong.
Wee, who is also UOB's deputy chairman, expects disruption and slower demand in the immediate future as a result of divides in global trade and supply chains.
But he noted that Asean – as well as UOB, which turns 90 this year – has weathered many crises before, and there are further opportunities for both to emerge stronger.
'In a multipolar world order, businesses and countries will face greater urgency to diversify the markets, integrate more closely regionally and innovate to create more value,' said Wee at UOB's annual general meeting (AGM) on Monday (Apr 21).
Wee believes there will be 'tremendous opportunities' to grow the lender's franchise, and that its Asean strategy is for the long term and will take patience, 'but it will be rewarding when executed well'.
A shareholder asked about UOB's view on the lower confidence in the US dollar and in US assets amid the current volatility.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business
Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies.
Sign Up
Sign Up
UOB group chief risk officer Chan Kok Seong expects the trend to de-dollarise to continue, but added that the decline in the prominence of the US dollar will likely be a slow process.
'As a bank that focuses on South-east Asia and positioned to benefit from trade flows, we are well-positioned to pivot to a more multipolar world, where trade in different currencies will gain more traction.'
Wee also emphasised that the lender focuses on South-east Asia, in response to shareholder questions about UOB's disposal of its retail banking franchise in China.
UOB in February 2025 announced that it will sell its retail banking business in China to Fubon Bank for an undisclosed amount. It retains its wholesale banking business in China.
'Greater China is a connectivity play for us, so our commitment continues to be in Asean,' Wee said.
'China is a big country. For us, we have only 15 branches; no matter what we do, it is not going to make a difference.'
UOB group chief financial officer Leong Yung Chee added that the size of the transaction was 'negligible', and that the focus of its China business remains on the connectivity of its Chinese clients and Chinese businesses with Asean markets.
Succession planning
Meanwhile, in response to a shareholder question on succession, UOB chairman Wong Kan Seng said that the topic is something that the board and nominating committee 'have been considering over a period of time'.
'The process is on, and I can assure you that is in place. Any time, when the decision is made, we will definitely inform our shareholders as well as the public,' he said.
Wee noted that renewal is 'an ongoing process', and that the lender has a 'robust' process in place. 'I personally spend much time and effort to grow our own people, ensuring that each growing tree is rooted in our values of honour, unity, commitment and enterprise.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
13 minutes ago
- Business Times
US: Stocks advance as China trade talks drag on
[NEW YORK] Wall Street stocks advanced on Tuesday as markets hoped for progress in US-China trade talks while digesting the World Bank's lowered economic growth forecast. A second day of high-level talks between the United States and China in London stretched into the evening on Tuesday without any concrete announcement. FHN Financial's Chris Low pointed to upbeat comments from Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, while also noting that 'there was a TikTok channel associated with Chinese television suggesting that there are still some significant differences between the two sides.' The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.3 per cent at 42,866.87. The broad-based S&P 500 climbed 0.6 per cent to 6,038.81, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also gained 0.6 per cent to 19,715.00. The negotiations aim to keep the world's biggest two economies on course for an accord after each side earlier this spring imposed draconian tariffs on each other. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Citing trade tensions and the resulting policy uncertainty, the World Bank lowered its 2025 projection for global GDP growth to 2.3 per cent in its latest economic prospects report, down from 2.7 per cent expected in January. Global growth and inflation prospects for this year and next have worsened because of 'high levels of policy uncertainty and this growing fragmentation of trade relations,' said World Bank Group chief economist Indermit Gill. 'Without a swift course correction, the harm to living standards could be deep,' Gill added. Investors will get a fresh reading on US inflation Wednesday with release of consumer price index data. Among individual companies, Disney rose 2.7 per cent after disclosing that it reached an agreement on the pricing of NBC Universal's 33 per cent stake in Hulu, resolving a years-long appraisal process. Disney will pay an additional US$438.7 million for the stake. The transaction is expected to close on or before July 24. Tesla shot up 5.7 per cent on anticipation of the company's upcoming launch of self-driving vehicles in Texas. The electric vehicle company teased the introduction on Musk's X social media platform. Chip giant Intel surged 8.0 per cent on optimism about the company's new technology. AFP
Business Times
an hour ago
- Business Times
The G7 is at a critical crossroads
THE Group of Seven (G7) could well face an existential crisis at the Kananaskis summit because of US President Donald Trump. Whither the G7? In the 1980s and 1990s, the G7 – led by the US – steered the global economy. But with the rise of emerging market powerhouses, the G7's relative heft declined. The Group of 20's (G20) Pittsburgh summit in September 2009 declared the newer, bigger, broader G20 the premier forum for its leaders' international cooperation, assigning the G7 an informal role. Then, over the following 15 years, the G20 floundered. Economic performance in Russia and Brazil weakened, as did China's subsequently. Russia invaded Crimea and Donbas in 2014 and launched its horrific full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. US-China tensions mounted amid Chinese President Xi Jinping's increased authoritarianism and America's heightened focus on economic statecraft, including the first Trump administration's pursuit of a more protectionist and isolationist course. A reinvigorated role for the G7 As the G20 stumbled, the G7 gathered renewed momentum. It was not a smooth ride, as epitomised by the strained US relations with the rest of the G7 at the 2018 Charlevoix summit, when Trump shamefully disavowed the communique to which all had just agreed and launched verbal attacks on the summit's host, Canada's then-prime minister Justin Trudeau. The administration of former US president Joe Biden, however, helped revive the G7 as a cohesive, democratically aligned forum. The G7 rolled out sanctions on Russia, including blocking US$300 billion in Russian central bank and oligarch assets. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up It helped raise support for Ukraine, including by transferring proceeds from Russia's immobilised assets, although unfortunately failing to seize and send all those Russian holdings to Ukraine. The G7 limited Russian energy revenues, including imposing a price cap on Russia's oil exports. Members worked together on tackling cybersecurity, which would not have been feasible by the G20 given the presence of Russia and China. The G7 adopted a hardened line against China's challenge to Western security. All this cohesion, trust and unity are unravelling as the Jun 15-17 Kananaskis summit approaches. US relations with its longtime allies in Europe have become highly strained. Trump is tearing apart the glue that holds the G7 together, and it now faces the question of whether it can even continue, or function properly, at least, over the next four years while Trump is president. It is hard to reach a positive answer for several reasons. Trump's attacks on the European Union (EU), claiming that the bloc was formed to 'screw' America, fly in the face of transatlantic unity and basic comity, and America's longstanding support for the EU. His tariff threats undermine the liberal trade policies that promoted decades of transatlantic prosperity. He is right in arguing that Europe must do more for itself, especially on defence. But shunning America's closest democratic allies while embracing Russian President Vladimir Putin and other authoritarian leaders undermines the cohesion underpinning the G7's revival. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, always an ardent pro-Atlanticist, shockingly said that his absolute priority will be to strengthen Europe as quickly as possible in order to achieve independence from the US, because Americans under this administration are clearly indifferent to the fate of Europe. Other European leaders have echoed his startling remarks. Avoiding a fragmented future Trump seemingly wishes to abandon the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato), or disregard its responsibilities. He appears to see little value or have any interest in the G7 as a 'democracy' club, given his support for authoritarians. Indeed, he has again called for Russia to be readmitted to the G7, despite its barbaric war against Ukraine and Putin's dictatorship. Other G7 leaders have rejected Trump's call. Trump has shown utter disregard for Ukraine, even denying that Russia was the aggressor, notwithstanding the rest of the G7's steadfast strong support. His berating of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, supported by Vice-President JD Vance, sent chills up the backs of European leaders and was quickly rebuffed by them. Trump has turned America's policies on climate change on their head, while Europe continues to do its best to forge ahead. European officials have reservations about trusting and working with Trump's intelligence team. Moreover, Trump's deprecations and disdain for Canadian sovereignty will only exacerbate the underlying tensions surrounding the Kananaskis summit. The foundations supporting the Western alliance, Nato, liberal trade and the G7 – and, frankly, American global leadership – are being torn asunder by the current US administration. Whatever the status of these issues at Kananaskis, enormous damage has been done. The G7 Kananaskis summit may be a frigid affair, even if it is warm and sunny outside. OMFIF The writer is US chair of the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Singapore's exports likely to slow as front-loading to pre-empt Trump's tariffs is set to fade
Analysts said re-exports have surged in transshipment hubs such as Singapore, which is subject to a 10 per cent baseline tariff by the US. PHOTO: ST FILE SINGAPORE – An unusual spike in exports from Singapore and other Asean countries, prompted by fears of higher tariffs threatened by US President Donald Trump, may have run its course. Analysts believe the record plunge in US imports in April is a telltale sign of what is in store for export-driven economies like Singapore. Japanese investment bank Nomura expects a double-digit decline in export growth across Asia in the second half of 2025. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
