🦎 IGGY MORNING BRIEF, 17 JULY 2026 ☕

Good morning, Iguanas! SGX opens at 9 AM SGT. Here’s your sharp, no-hype pre-bell briefing.

BREAKING THIS MORNING 

Singapore’s key exports jumped 20.7% YoY in June — solid headline, but it missed forecasts. AI-led electronics carried the load, yet even that engine is showing early signs of slowing momentum. Real growth, yes… but worth watching closely as we head into today’s session. Not panic time — just smart context.

OVERNIGHT US SUMMARY 

Wall Street had a rougher night. Nasdaq slid 1.48%, dragged by megacap AI and semiconductor names despite decent earnings. S&P fell 0.51%, Dow dipped 0.20%. VIX ticked higher and Brent eased to US$84.23. Combined with our export miss, the big question: Is the AI/semiconductor story cooling on both sides of the Pacific?

SGX PRE-OPEN PULSE 

STI closed at 5,539.4 yesterday. Pre-open is flat so far — no early signals.

WHAT I’M WATCHING TODAY 

AI-adjacent names like AEM, UMS, Frencken, and Venture (strong Thursday movers) face a real test at the open. US weakness + softer export data point the same way. Is this the start of a demand slowdown or just short-term noise?

IGGY’S GAME PLAN 

Pure watch-and-confirm mode today. Weak open in semis + continued export softening could signal a genuine rotation. If SGX decouples and shrugs it off, the market is still pricing in resilience. Let the numbers pile up before conclusions — that’s how we protect CPF/SRS portfolios.

Stay sharp, stay forensic. Trade safe!