Be long-term overweight on Singapore equities and property as the US’ tailwind becomes a headwind

[SINGAPORE] Having lived and worked in Asia for much of my life, I am very grateful to the United States – the world’s pre-eminent superpower.

US intervention helped end World War II in Asia. The US was instrumental in rebuilding Japan post-war and in pushing back against the forces of communism. It championed multilateral organisations, such as the United Nations, and free trade. All this enabled a small nation with an open economy such as Singapore to prosper.

For much of my working life, which started in 1993, economic growth globally and in Asia was turbocharged by China’s rapid economic expansion. And the US was indispensable in China’s rise. The American consumer bought lots of goods from China, helping it to become the global manufacturing powerhouse and export its way to growing prosperity.