Breaking down the latest trends and catalysts across Gold & Silver, the US, Singapore, and China markets.

🌟 Gold & Silver: A Wild Ride for the Record Books

Between January 24 and February 4, 2026, the precious metals market went on a historic roller coaster. After reaching “never-before-seen” highs, both gold and silver suffered a sudden “Flash Crash” before showing signs of a steady recovery.

📊 Performance at a Glance

Product	Jan 24 (Starting)	Jan 29 (Peak)	Feb 2 (Crash Low)	Feb 4 (Current)
Gold (Spot)	$4,988	$5,598 (+12.2%)	$4,402 (-11.7%)	$4,935
SGX: GSD	S$577.50	S$648.60 (+12.3%)	S$516.00 (-10.6%)	S$585.20

📉 Why the “Black Friday” Meltdown?

On Friday, January 30, the market hit a wall, wiping out over $15 trillion in paper value. Here’s why:

• The Fed Transition: President Trump nominated Kevin Warsh as the next Fed Chair. While initially seen as a “hawk,” Warsh has recently hinted that AI-driven growth could allow for lower rates—but the “surprise” of the nomination caused an immediate spike in the US Dollar, which temporarily crushed gold.
• The “Full House” Problem: Gold and Silver had grown so fast in January that they took up “too much room” in major investment funds. This triggered automatic selling programs to rebalance portfolios.
• The Panic Button: As prices fell, many leveraged traders were forced to sell their holdings to cover losses (margin calls), turning a small dip into a giant slide.

US Market: The Tech Divide

The US market is currently a “Show Me” phase: Hardware giants are thriving, while others are being asked to prove their AI profits.

📊 US Snapshot (Jan 24 – Feb 3)

• S&P 500: ↔️ Stable (Holding firm at ~6,917 despite the noise).
• Nasdaq 100: 📉 Down 2.1% (Tech investors are getting pickier).

🍎 Apple’s “Staggering” Rebound

Apple silenced skeptics on January 29. Its iPhone 17 is a massive hit, particularly in China, where revenue surged 38% to $25.5 billion. Apple now has over 2.5 billion active devices globally, turning its high-margin services (like Apple Music and iCloud) into a record $30 billion quarterly engine.

🤖 The AI Reality Check

• Meta (Facebook): Investors are cheering because Meta proved that its $135 billion AI bet is already working. AI tools are making ads so efficient that they are already covering the costs of the new “Superintelligence Labs.”
• Microsoft: Even though they are growing, the stock dipped because investors are worried about how much they are spending on data centers compared to the speed of immediate returns.

Singapore: The Regional “Safe Haven”

While global markets were shaky, Singapore remained a pillar of strength, with the STI breaching the 4,900 mark for the first time in history on January 27.

🏦 The Banking Powerhouse

Our “Big Three” (DBS, OCBC, UOB) hit record highs. DBS even touched the psychological S$60.00 mark. With dividend yields remaining strong at around 5%, global investors are treating Singapore like a high-growth “Safe Haven.”

🏗️ Industrial Growth

Micron’s $24 billion commitment to expand its Singapore facility has put a spotlight on our tech manufacturing. This decade-long expansion is a major win for local giants like Sembcorp and ST Engineering, which provide the vital power and infrastructure for these mega-projects.

China: The Policy “U-Turn”

China is currently in a tug-of-war between a slow economy and massive government support.

• The Property Pivot: In a major move, Beijing ended the strict debt rules for developers (the “Three Red Lines”). This sparked a relief rally in property stocks, pushing the Hang Seng Index to a 4-year high.
• Resilient Factories: While official data looks slow, private-sector manufacturing showed a surprise expansion (50.3), signaling that smaller businesses are ramping up ahead of the Lunar New Year.

💡 The Long Game: Why ETFs Win Over Time

This period of volatility serves as a powerful reminder of why long-term investing is your best edge. While picking individual “winner” stocks like Apple can be rewarding, it also carries the risk of sharp dips if a single company underperforms.

The ETF Advantage: Instead of trying to find a needle in a haystack, why not just buy the haystack? By investing in Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), you gain:

• Instant Diversification: One trade gives you a slice of hundreds of top companies (like the S&P 500 or the STI), shielding you from a crash in any single stock.
• Emotional Peace of Mind: ETFs smooth out the “peaks and troughs” of the market, making it much easier to stick to your plan without panicking during a “Flash Crash.”
• Consistency: When paired with a Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA) strategy, ETFs turn market volatility into your friend—allowing you to buy more when prices are low and less when they are high.

Final Takeaway: Stay disciplined, stay diversified, and stay focused on the years ahead, not the headlines of today.

Product code	Product name	1 year %*	3 year %*	5 year %*	10 year %*	10 year DCA + DRIP %*
AMEX: IVV	iShares Core S&P 500 ETF	16.01%	74.39%	91.93%	327.52%	123%
AMEX: DYNF	iShares U.S. Equity Factor Rotation Active ETF	18.30%	96.36%	106.95%	–	–
AMEX: BAI	iShares A.I Innovation and Tech Active ETF	23.23%	–	–	–	–
AMEX: IYH	iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF	5.42%	20.14%	35.60%	170.68%	86.94%
AMEX: IYF	iShares U.S Financials ETF	10.55%	64.83%	99.91%	280.37%	107%
AMEX: GLD	SPDR® Gold Shares	73.06%	161.90%	170.17%	310.86%	188%
SGX: GSD	SPDR® Gold Shares	62.84%	145.89%	–	–	–
SGX: O87	SPDR® Gold Shares	79.41%	154.33%	159.95%	287.82%	–
SGX: CLR	Lion-Phillip S-REIT ETF	16.88%	4.8%	1.55%	–	–
SGX: OVQ	Phillip SING Income ETF	34.68%	61.56%	79.51%	–	–
SGX: LSS	Phillip-Nova MSCI Singapore Daily (2x) Leveraged Product	24.36%	64.83%	–	–	–
SGX: SSS	Phillip-Nova MSCI Singapore Daily (-1X) Inverse Product	-28.10%	-49.49%	–	–	–
SGX: CYC	ICBC CSOP FTSE Chinese Government Bond Index ETF	5.19%	6.04%	-1.21%	–	–
SGX: SCY	CSOP CSI STAR and CHINEXT 50 Index ETF	61.77%	26.66%	–	–	–
SGX: SHD	CSOP Huatai-PineBridge SSE Dividend Index ETF	-1.58%	6.23%	–	–	–

*DCA = Dollar cost averaging
*Assume DRIP (Dividend Reinvesting) for all returns

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