DBS Group has become the first company listed on the Singapore Exchange to exceed $200 billion in market capitalisation, setting a new milestone for both Singapore’s largest bank and the local stock market. The record comes after a strong rally in bank shares, with DBS closing at $70.79 on 13 July after reaching an all-time intraday high of $70.80, extending its gains to about 26 per cent this year. Investors are now focused on the bank’s second-quarter results on 6 August, with expectations that resilient earnings and wealth management income will continue to support growth.
The rally has also lifted the broader market, with DBS, OCBC and UOB helping push the Straits Times Index (STI) to a fresh record as the three lenders account for more than half of the benchmark’s weighting. Analysts say improving earnings visibility, supportive interest-rate conditions, healthy credit growth and robust fee income continue to underpin confidence, although some caution that softer loan demand and funding dynamics could limit further gains. Attention now turns to the upcoming earnings season, when investors will assess banks’ guidance, capital returns and outlook to determine whether the sector’s record-breaking momentum can be sustained through the rest of 2026.
Generative artificial intelligence could reshape the jobs of nearly 80 million workers across ASEAN, but there is little evidence so far that it has caused widespread job losses, according to a new report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Singapore has the region’s highest share of AI-exposed jobs, with 42.2 per cent of its workforce employed in occupations that could be affected by generative AI, while also ranking first in AI preparedness because of its strong digital infrastructure, skilled workforce and coordinated national strategy. Across ASEAN, 22.9 per cent of workers are employed in occupations with some level of AI exposure, although only 3.3 per cent, or 11.7 million workers, fall into the highest-risk category.
The ILO said employment in AI-exposed occupations has continued to grow since 2017, suggesting the technology is reshaping work rather than replacing workers on a large scale, despite AI-related job cuts announced by companies such as Shopee and Meta. Analysts identified financial analysts, multimedia developers and financial brokers among the occupations most exposed to AI, while noting that productivity gains will depend on investments in skills, human capital and supportive public policies. The organisation urged governments to strengthen AI governance, expand upskilling and reskilling programmes, and help businesses and workers adapt, arguing that future labour market outcomes will be determined more by policy choices than by AI exposure alone.
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