Daily Debrief: What Happened Today (May 5)
Stories you might have missed
Singapore retail sales rebound in March, up 1.1% after prior dip
[SINGAPORE] The Republic's retail sales rose 1.1 per cent in March, reversing February's 3.5 per cent decline, data from the Department of Statistics showed on Monday (May 5).
Far East Organization puts Tuas asset with big redevelopment potential on the market
[SINGAPORE] Far East Organization has put on the market a sizeable industrial property in Tuas with substantial redevelopment potential.
Singapore dollar surges against US dollar as Asia currencies rally on trade hopes
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
Asian currencies rallied on Monday on hopes of a thaw in the US-China trade war and regional tariff deals with the Trump administration.
As T-bill, SSB yields fall, here's where to invest for higher yields: analysts
[SINGAPORE] Yields are steadily declining, which is bad news for investors looking for a safe corner to park their cash.
Gates Foundation to open office in Singapore – its 12th worldwide
[SINGAPORE] The Gates Foundation – one of the world's largest private philanthropic organisations – will be opening an office in Singapore, said Bill Gates on Monday.
Grab appoints Alejandro Osorio as new managing director for Singapore
[SINGAPORE] Ride-hail and delivery giant Grab announced on Monday that Alejandro Osorio has been appointed as managing director of Grab Singapore.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Musk signals he's open to cooling off period in Trump feud
Just May 30, US President Donald Trump staged an event for Mr Elon Musk in the Oval Office, celebrating his tenure and thanking him. PHOTO: REUTERS Mr Elon Musk signalled he would move to cool tensions with US President Donald Trump, after differences between the two exploded June 5 into an all-out public feud. Earlier in the day, Mr Musk called for Mr Trump's impeachment and insinuated he was withholding the release of files related to disgraced New York financier Jeffrey Epstein because of his own presence in them. Mr Trump, in turn, proposed cutting off the billionaire's government contracts, following his onetime adviser's repeated exhortations for Republicans to vote against the president's signature tax legislation. Mr Musk's olive branch came after Tesla Inc shares tanked 14 per cent and his personal wealth dropped by US$34 billion (S$43.7 billion). That might not encompass the full hit since it doesn't reflect any damage to the value of his private enterprises such as Space Exploration Technologies Corp, popularly known as SpaceX. On June 5, hours after saying he would end use of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, Mr Musk reversed course and signalled there could be a cooling-off period between Mr Trump and the world's richest man. 'This is a shame this back and forth. You are both better than this. Cool off and take a step back for a couple days,' an X user who had just 200 followers on the platform wrote in reply to Mr Musk's post about Dragon. 'Good advice,' Mr Musk responded. 'Ok, we won't decommission Dragon.' In a separate reply to billionaire Bill Ackman, an ally of both Mr Trump and Mr Musk who said they should 'make peace for the benefit of our great country', Mr Musk responded: 'You're not wrong.' The acrimonious back-and-forth between Mr Musk and Mr Trump represented a remarkable falling out among two men who spent months working together to reshape the federal government. It also left Republican lawmakers in the awkward position of choosing sides between Mr Musk, who has quickly become a key financial backer for the party's political efforts, and Mr Trump, the singular political force who has reshaped the party in his image. At the same time, several people in the party with ties to both Mr Trump and Mr Musk tried to find a quick off-ramp for hostilities and clear a pathway to peace. House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that 'policy differences shouldn't be personal' and called Mr Musk a friend as he addressed reporters June 5. White House aides have scheduled a call with Mr Musk for June 6 in an effort to take down the temperature, Politico reported. The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment late June 5 night on a potential cooling-off. 'Make My Day' The dispute over the GOP tax legislation devolved into personal bickering when Mr Musk called Mr Trump an ingrate and suggested the president would have never won the election without his help. Mr Trump responded by threatening a main source of the billionaire's wealth. Mr Musk's Tesla Inc and SpaceX have benefited from federal contracts and subsidies. 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,' Mr Trump wrote to his social media site. Ending contracts with Mr Musk's companies could prove legally and practically unwieldy, given that they are deeply intertwined with US space and defense operations. The Dragon spacecraft carries crew and cargo to and from the International Space Station. Total revenue for SpaceX and Tesla from federal unclassified contracts since fiscal year 2000 is US$22.5 billion, according to Bloomberg Government data. 'Go ahead, make my day,' Mr Musk posted on X in response to Mr Trump's threat. Later, he responded 'yes' to a Twitter user's suggestion Mr Trump be impeached and replaced by Vice-President J.D. Vance and argued that the president's tariff regime would tip the country into a recession by the end of the year. Mr Musk also needled Mr Trump over his past relationship with Jeffery Epstein. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!' Mr Musk wrote. The White House declined to comment on the Epstein accusation. Mr Trump said Mr Musk's opposition to the Bill was rooted in a provision that would scale back electric vehicle tax credits that benefited Tesla. 'Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!,' Mr Trump posted. Mr Musk responded that Mr Trump's claim he was asked to leave was 'such an obvious lie' and 'so sad'. 'I'm very disappointed in Elon. I've helped Elon a lot,' Mr Trump said earlier during an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. 'He said the most beautiful things about me, and he hasn't said bad about me personally, but I'm sure that'll be next.' In a remarkable scene, Mr Musk rebuked Mr Trump in real time, firing off rebuttals on social media as the president spoke. 'Such ingratitude,' Mr Musk posted, citing his financial support for Republicans during the 2024 election. 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.' Mr Musk even floated the idea of creating a new political party 'that actually represents the 80 per cent in the middle'. Mr Musk denied that motivation in a post on X, saying he was fine with reducing the EV credits if lawmakers 'ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill'. The public display unleashed a new torrent of criticism from long-time Trump supporters who had greeted Mr Musk's appearance with weary suspicion. Former Trump aide Steve Bannon told the New York Times that the US should launch an investigation into the immigration status of Mr Musk, a naturalised citizen. 'I am of the strong belief that he is an illegal alien, and he should be deported from the country immediately,' Mr Bannon told the newspaper. Since leaving government, Mr Musk has criticised the Republican package – Mr Trump's 'one big, beautiful Bill,' as he calls it – because it is forecast to add to the US budget deficit. The legislation would eliminate a credit worth as much as US$7,500 for buyers of some Tesla models and other electric vehicles by the end of 2025, seven years ahead of schedule. That would cause a roughly US$1.2 billion hit to Tesla's full-year profit, according to JPMorgan analysts. 'I'm very disappointed because Elon knew the inner workings of this Bill better than almost anybody sitting here,' the president said. 'All of the sudden, he had a problem, and he only developed a problem when he found out we're going to have to the cut the EV mandate.' Mr Musk, in another retort, said he was not aware of the details. 'This Bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!' he said in a post on X. The pair have also clashed over Mr Trump's decision to withdraw the nomination of Mr Musk associate Jared Isaacman to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Mr Trump said he pulled back the choice after learning of Mr Isaacman's past support for Democrats. 'I didn't think it was appropriate,' Mr Trump said. 'He wanted that person, a certain person, and we said no.' The exchange is the latest in what has been a relatively swift break with Mr Musk, who served as a Special Government Employee overseeing cost-cutting efforts before leaving. Just May 30, Mr Trump staged an event for Mr Musk in the Oval Office, celebrating his tenure and thanking him. Mr Trump recalled that in the June 5 meeting with Mr Merz, poinring out that Mr Musk was sporting a black eye at the time. 'I said do you want a little make-up? We'll get you a little make-up, but he said 'no, I don't think so,' which is interesting and very nice,' Mr Trump said June 5. 'He wants to be who he is.' BLOOMBERG More on this Topic Black eye? That's just from my son, says Elon Musk Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
2 hours ago
- Business Times
Container shipping rates soar, impact on shippers outside China felt
[SINGAPORE] Sea cargo rates have surged, with those for the voyage from Shanghai to the US particularly steep, fuelled by pent-up demand and front-loading as shippers rush to beat the US-China trade truce expiry. However, the uncertainty on where the market heads from here has been flagged by analysts, given that new capacity has been added to the US-bound trade lanes and whether the volume surge will sustain after the 90-day window. The composite Drewry's World Container Index, which tracks weighted average spot rates on eight east-west routes, rose 41 per cent to US$3,527 per 40-foot container this week, based on its latest reading published on Thursday (Jun 5) night. The index showed that cargo rates have increased 70 per cent on average in the last four weeks. Cargo rates from Shanghai to Los Angeles had the biggest jump of 57 per cent to US$5,876 per 40-foot container in the past week and 117 per cent since May 8 – shortly before the world's top economy temporarily slashed tariffs against the Asian trade partner from 145 per cent to 30 per cent. Cargo rates from Shanghai to New York spiked 39 per cent in the past week and 96 per cent in the past four weeks. 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 Maritime and shipping research and consulting services provider Drewry attributed the surge in cargo rates to US President Donald Trump's 'pause' on import tariffs, which has led to a resumption of US-bound traffic after the initial collapse of transpacific volumes in April. The spikes might have been for the China-US trade lanes, but shippers outside China are feeling the spillover effect. Pelaris Cheng, managing director of Singapore-based freight forwarder Hermes Logistics, told The Business Times that not only have container rates from Singapore to the east and central of America doubled since end-May, space on board was also hard to come by. She has since changed from containership to roll-on roll-off ships – known as RoRo for short – for her used-vehicle shipments, as RoRo charges are less volatile and have risen by less than containership rates. In contrast, she was able to enjoy 40 to 50 per cent lower rates in March for container shipping as the demand from China – which competes for container space – had eased then. Commenting on the cargo rates, container industry analyst at data provider Linerlytica Tan Hua Joo said there is little clarity on where the market heads from here as new capacity injections to the US starts to dampen rate momentum, while uncertainty remains over the sustainability of the volume surge after the tariff truce ends. Drewry commented that the present sudden, short-term strengthening in supply-demand balance in global container shipping has reversed the trend of declining rates which started in January. However, it expects cargo demand to dip in the second half and cause spot rates to decline. 'The volatility and timing of rate changes will depend on the outcome of legal challenges to Trump's tariffs and on capacity changes related to the introduction of the US penalties on Chinese ships, which are uncertain,' wrote Drewry in its weekly update. The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index, which follows 13 export trades out of Shanghai, is expected to post higher rates on Friday as well. The index posted a 30.7 per cent rise last week over the preceding week.
Business Times
3 hours ago
- Business Times
Gold could test US$4,000 an ounce amid fiscal fears, escalating trade tensions: market watchers
[SINGAPORE] While gold has cemented itself above US$3,000 an ounce in 2025 amid trade uncertainty and US fiscal fears, a bullish forecast could see US$4,000 an ounce within a year's time, said market watchers. In Asian trading on Friday (Jun 6), spot gold was trading around US$3,371 an ounce as at 12.19 pm, up 29 per cent year to date. As the US' debt-to-GDP ratio has exceeded 120 per cent, a level unseen since World War II, investors are seeking a safe haven asset alternative to the greenback, noted Bank of Singapore's currency strategist Sim Moh Siong. He highlighted that the past glory of the US dollar as a safe currency has been eroded by the fiscal concerns, which will likely drive further decline in the greenback beyond the next six months. This is especially given the absence of any signal from Washington to address the fiscal deficit concern, on top of a sweeping budget bill that has now been presented to the US Senate. 'That 'big, beautiful bill' points to large fiscal deficits… that could continue to fuel concerns about fiscal sustainability, to the detriment of the US dollar,' said Sim, adding that gold's projection is tied to the US dollar's value in a historically inverse relationship. 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 Since last month, all three major credit ratings agencies have downgraded the US debt, which will pressure US dollar's value if foreign capital begins to question the reliability of US fiscal governance, wrote State Street Global Advisors in its gold mid-year outlook report released on Wednesday. 'The potential for trade wars has exacerbated these concerns,' the asset manager noted, adding that gold has stood out as a resilient store of value because it has no liability, does not depend on repayment, and does not require yield to justify its role in a portfolio. The asset manager added that the gold prices could test US$4,000 an ounce to US$5,000 an ounce over the next 12-24 months, while trading above US$3,000 an ounce for the rest of 2025. Uncertainty in the first half-year The early days of the US President Donal Trump administration in 2025 have corresponded with heightened US economic uncertainty, consumer anxiety and a weaker US dollar – which created a tailwind for gold, highlighted State Street Global Advisors. While gold prices have been climbing consistently, the market also experienced several dips during times of trade tension de-escalation and easing recession concerns, noted Bank of Singapore's Sim. These included a retreat from the all-time high US$3,500 an ounce in April. On the other hand, a worsening tariff situation would fuel the gold rush even more, pushing gold prices to touch US$4,000 within 2025, he added. This is despite a low likelihood after an amicable call between US President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping overnight that calmed investors' nerves. Firm gold prices in the second half-year Joshua Rotbart, managing director of Singapore-based bullion house J Rotbart & Co, expects gold to break its all-time high in the coming weeks, given the current geopolitical and fiscal uncertainties. 'However, we expect the pace of price appreciation to moderate, forecasting a 35 per cent year-over-year increase,' he noted. Such an increase represents a price trading around US$3,526 an ounce in 2025. State Street Global Advisors has increased the probability of a base case to 50 per cent, with gold to trade between US$3,100 and US$3,500 an ounce in 2025, on lingering risk sentiments on the back of greenback weakness and policy uncertainty, despite loosened tariffs. Bank of Singapore's Sim noted the bank's unchanged forecast on gold – which is to trade at US$3,500 per ounce in the coming six-month period and at US$3,900 within the next 12 months.
