This week’s top reads from The Straits Times, Aug 1, 2026

https://str.sg/ALdDN

Morning Briefing: Top stories from The Straits Times on Aug 2, 2026

https://str.sg/umwb

America's Closest Allies Are Building a Future Without It #JayMartin from The Jay Martin Show.

Last week the White House imposed 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods, invoking a 1930 law no president had ever used, and the Toronto Stock Exchange promptly had its best day in a month — and Jay argues the shrug is the story, not the tariff. In this episode, Jay traces that reaction back 2,500 years to a Greek alliance where every city had to choose between building its own warships or sending silver and letting Athens build the fleet, shows why almost all of them chose silver and what it cost them, and follows the same four-stage cycle through Europe's Russian gas trap to the studies now under way in European capitals asking whether their own weapons would work without America's permission. This is a look at what happens to a country that stops knowing how to build its own ships, and how to tell over the next year which allies are actually building and which ones are only announcing.

00:00 — A 50% Tariff, and the Market Shrugged
00:53 — The Meetings Nobody Was Supposed to See
01:19 — The Pattern Behind the Headline
01:40 — 478 BC: A Choice Between Ships and Silver
03:01 — Thucydides: They Forgot How to Fight
03:26 — Naxos Tries to Leave
04:17 — From Defense Budget to Decoration Budget
05:03 — The Cycle, Stage One: Efficiency
05:28 — Stage Two: Dependency
05:52 — Stage Three: Weaponization
06:34 — Stage Four: The Exit Has an Expiry Date
07:20 — Europe's Meeting Rooms
07:48 — The Midnight Session in Brussels
08:44 — What That Agenda Item Admits
09:08 — Why "Trump Did This" Misses It
10:02 — Europe Already Ran This Cycle: Russian Gas
11:01 — Forty Percent of Europe's Pipeline Gas
12:00 — The Bill Comes Due
12:24 — Escaped the Trap, or Changed Suppliers?
13:28 — Do Europe's Weapons Work Without Permission?
14:15 — Carney's Audit and the Davos Speech
15:39 — The Peace Dividend Comes Due
16:33 — What Building Actually Looks Like
17:04 — Europe's Own 290 Satellites
17:34 — Why Leverage Depreciates
18:45 — Back to the 50% Tariff
19:41 — What the Exemptions Admit
20:54 — Canada's Own Dependency
21:49 — Can We Still Afford to Build Ships?
22:34 — Announcements Are Not Steel in the Ground
23:49 — What This Means for Commodities

https://youtu.be/prcGaj5xUlY?is=PM7C6z6YWnVE1_7H

Smart Reads of the Week: Singapore Dividend Stocks, Retirement REITs, and Long-Term Investing Ideas
https://thesmartinvestor.com.sg/smart-reads-of-the-week-singapore-dividend-stocks-retirement-reits-and-long-term-investing-ideas/

Seatrium eyes growing LNG demand as Iran war reshapes global energy flows
https://www.straitstimes.com/business/companies-markets/seatrium-eyes-growing-lng-demand-as-iran-war-reshapes-global-energy-flows

BYD’s July sales rise on strong exports, but meeting its annual target remains a challenge
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/byds-july-sales-rise-strong-exports-meeting-its-annual-target-remains-challenge

With higher than usual FX volatility, how do investors manage currency risk in portfolios?
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/wealth/wealth-investing/higher-usual-fx-volatility-how-do-investors-manage-currency-risk-portfolios

Spider-Man: Brand New Day heads for US$875 million global opening, defying superhero slump
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/spider-man-brand-new-day-heads-us875-million-global-opening-defying-superhero-slump

Trump says US will hold off on Iran attack in hopes of quick deal on nuclear threat, Hormuz
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/global/trump-says-us-will-hold-iran-attack-hopes-quick-deal-nuclear-threat-hormuz

‘Buy Japanese Yen (JPY) $5-10 bil’: Bessent joins US-Japan bid to lift yen
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/global/buy-japanese-yen-jpy-5-10-bil-us-treasury-secretary-bessent-joins-us-japan-bid-lift-yen

Yen surges to lower 157 versus US dollar, Japan authorities step in
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/yen-surges-lower-157-versus-us-dollar-japan-authorities-step

Treasury sell-off signals need to bolster Fed’s inflation credibility: Musalem
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/treasury-sell-signals-need-bolster-feds-inflation-credibility-musalem

Oil prices settle more than 1% higher, log strongest month since March
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oil-prices-settle-more-1-higher-log-strongest-month-march

US Treasury yield curve 'twist' reflects view Fed may not hike again

SUMMARY
'Twist' suggests markets see lower odds of additional Fed hikesLong-end selloff points to inflation, credibility concernsJuly jobs report seen as next yield curve key test

NEW YORK, July 31 (Reuters) - A sharp shift towards a steeper U.S. Treasury bond curve following the Federal Reserve's decision to ​leave interest rates unchanged this week has raised concerns about the central bank's credibility and willingness to fully confront inflation.

The drop in ‌front-end yields, even as those on longer tenors climbed, suggests growing skepticism the Fed will raise rates again, analysts said, despite Chair Kevin Warsh's insistence on Wednesday that policymakers "will not hesitate to act" if price pressures fail to ease.

https://www.reuters.com/business/us-treasury-yield-curve-twist-reflects-view-fed-may-not-hike-again-2026-07-31/

#FundFlow
U.S. equity funds attract first weekly inflow in three weeks

July 31 (Reuters) - U.S. equity funds drew inflows in the week to July 29, snapping a two-week streak of outflows, as investors added exposure to mega-cap technology funds during a recent selloff on bets ‌that the market rally could continue.

Investors bought a net $11.83 billion in U.S. equity funds, more than reversing the combined $10.68 billion in outflows recorded over the previous two weeks, according to LSEG Lipper data...

Investors bought a net $11.57 ‌billion ⁠in U.S. large-cap funds, marking their largest weekly net purchase since June 24. Mid-cap and small-cap funds, however, saw outflows of $2.29 billion and $196 million, respectively.

Technology-sector funds attracted $4.9 billion, their largest weekly inflow since July 8. Financials and consumer staples also ⁠recorded net purchases of $1.96 billion and $751 million, respectively...

https://www.reuters.com/business/us-equity-funds-attract-first-weekly-inflow-three-weeks-2026-07-31/

#FundFlow
Global equity fund inflows surge to three week highs

July 31 (Reuters) - Global equity fund inflows rose to their highest in three weeks during the week to July 29, as investors snapped up technology sector funds during a market downturn, anticipating that ‌the AI-driven advance has further to go.
Investors bought global equity funds worth a net $27.21 billion in their largest weekly net purchase since July 8, LSEG Lipper data showed.

Technology shares came under pressure after Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab and Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab ​reported negative cash flows last week.

However, global stocks rose ⁠about 1.5% on Thursday, after strong results from Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab and Amazon (AMZN.O), opens new tab eased investor ​concerns about heavy capital spending across the sector.

Investors poured $11.83 billion into ​U.S. equity funds during the week, reversing combined outflows of $10.68 billion over the previous two weeks.

European and Asian equity funds also attracted $7.79 billion and $5.37 billion, respectively in ​net inflows...

Investors poured $5.67 billion into technology-sector funds for their largest weekly net purchase since July 8. They also bought $2.1 billion in financial-sector funds and $766 ‌million ⁠in consumer staples funds...

Money market funds stayed out of favor ​for ⁠a third consecutive week, posting net outflows of $6.55 billion.

Gold and other precious-metals funds attracted net inflows of $281 million, extending their winning streak to three ⁠weeks.

https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/global-markets-flows-graphic-2026-07-31/

3 brilliant quotes on the challenge of valuing companies
https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/article/3-brilliant-quotes-on-the-challenge-of-valuing-companies-123224694.html

Leopold Aschenbrenner just learned Wall Street's oldest lesson

https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/article/leopold-aschenbrenner-just-learned-wall-streets-oldest-lesson-chart-of-the-day-120146045.html

The tech stock dumpster fire should remind you of this important investing lesson
https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/article/the-tech-stock-dumpster-fire-should-remind-you-of-this-important-investing-lesson-123000193.html

No B.S. Just Charts. Gareth Soloway breaks down the silver cycle and stacks the current chart against the 2010 to 2011 cycle to project where silver and gold head next.

Gareth walks through why gold and silver underperformed last week despite a sharp drop in the U.S. dollar, from 101.63 down to 99.78 on the DXY. He explains that this is a rate story, not a dollar story, and lays out a unique angle most analysts skip: rising yields are competing with gold for capital right now, but the reason yields are climbing matters more than the move itself. If the long end is signaling that the market no longer believes in U.S. fiscal responsibility, that the government will have to print to service its debt, then that is deeply bullish for gold and silver over the long term.

Gareth then splits the screen and lines up silver's current cycle against the 2010 to 2011 peak. He maps the matching structural beats, the blow-off top, the base plate, the flush and bounce sequence along the same zone, and the retrace back to the scene of the crime. The rhyme points to one more leg lower, with a potential move toward the $50 zone before a long-term bottom sets up. He puts the probability near 70%, stays honest about what invalidates it, and explains why cycles rhyme in the first place: emotion is the same in 2026 as it was in 2011, 1980, or 1500.

Gareth also shares how he is positioned, already holding long-term physical gold and silver, waiting on price to add heavily into that final flush.

Verify chapter timestamps against the final edited cut before publishing.

CHAPTERS:
0:00​ Gold and Silver: Where We Are in the Cycle
0:38​ Why Metals Lagged the Dollar Drop Last Week
2:35​ How Rising Yields Compete With Gold
3:39​ The Real Reason Yields Are Climbing
4:37​ Gold Chart: Breakout Attempt and the Retrace Setup
5:55​ Silver Chart: Still Signaling Weakness
6:11​ Splitting the Screen: The 2011 Cycle Overlay
8:59​ Where We Sit in the Cycle Right Now
9:52​ Cycles Rhyme, They Don't Repeat Tick for Tick
12:00​ The $255 Silver Question and the Long-Term Bull Case
13:30​ How Gareth Is Positioned

Join Gareth's Top Squad for members-only videos and premium analysis:

https://youtu.be/Jjz4jt9YWGQ?is=_qvdQd-01mpL44Et

Bond vigilantes are doing the Fed's dirty work:
#Chart of the Day

https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/article/bond-vigilantes-are-doing-the-feds-dirty-work-chart-of-the-day-114805136.html