This week, our guest host, Jarick Seet, will take us through what we can expect from the Telco and SMIDs sector as we head off to the end of the year. He is first joined by Telco Analyst, Hussaini Saifee who has just reiterated his BUY call on Singtel (ST SP) explaining how its subsidiary, Simba, may the key to success. Additionally we will get to hear how its peer, Starhub (STH SP) might be affected within this Telco sphere as a result.

Next, Jarick will take us through the key picks to look out for within the SMIDs sector in this coming 3Q. Having just returned from roadshow in KL with Marco Polo Marine's (MPM SP) management, he believes that there are more bullish prospects than ever before. So don't miss out and tune in to this week's ASEAN speaks!

- Edited by Xuan Hao/Leslie

In this weeks ASEAN Speaks, our guest host with the golden voice, Seng Yeow, bring along our resident Credit Analyst, Winson Phoon to shed light on the US rate curve as we head off into the penultimate week of the Trump Vs. Harris election. Tune in as he gives us his take on what the outcomes might be should either of the presidential hopefuls win.

Next, Hussaini Saifee joins us to give a sneak peek into upcoming earnings season of the ASEAN Internet Sector. He is expecting both Sea Ltd (SE US) and GoTo (GOTO IJ) to sustain its strong momentum across their business segments into the third quarter. While, Grab (GRAB US), despite on-track growth, might face some top-line momentum challenges ahead. Don't miss out on his insightful takes!

- Edited by Xuan Hao/Leslie

Third quarter results season kicks off this week, and all eyes are on S-REITs. With the current interest rate and FX environment, how might they impact these key players in the market? Krishna Guha comes in to provide us with the latest insights on the sector. Will we see the first signs of stabilisation, or will the volatility continue? Join us as we find out which REITs are worth watching closely and what to expect for in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, over in the Philippines, we have another exciting addition to our Opportunity+ portfolio—Marco Asia Corp. (MAC PM) But why now? Ronalyn La-limo joins us to break down why this aviation support services provider stands out in today’s market. With strong growth potential and a solid market position, Marco Asia seems poised for a major breakout. She teases the key drivers behind her bullish outlook and why this stock could be a game-changer. Don't miss out on these market-moving insights!

Over the weekend, China's Ministry of Finance laid out fiscal measures to support the economy. However, no new fiscal stimulus quantum was given during the announcement. Despite the teaser, our economist, Erica Tay believes that these repeated hints that a large injection was undergoing approval would unlock existing fiscal resources that have a real impact. This would give a much needed assurance that increased special government spending on top of the current 2024 quota.

Dialling it back to Singapore, our Host, Thilan Wickramasinghe, has raised the banking sector outlook, placing a BUY call on DBS, OCBC and UOB. Looking back into past Chinese stimulus in 2009 and 2015, he believes that the current incoming Chinese stimulus measure might have a similar positive impact. With the sector poised to benefit from rising regional credit demand and a host of other recent developments within the region. Don't miss out on these key takeaways and tune in to this week's ASEAN Speaks!

This week in ASEAN speaks, we are joined by Kervin Sisayan following a 52-week high in the Philippine Market, with its central bank (BSP) hinting at a potential 50bps rate cut and a 250bps reserve requirement ratio (RRR) cut by the end of the month. BSP expects inflation to settle within the 2.0-2.8% range in Sep attributed to lower food prices and peso appreciation. Kervin believes that this should positively impact the banking sector by supporting loan growth and keeping net interest margins (NIM) elevated, as the offsetting effects of the policy rate and RRR cuts suggest NIMs will remain strong despite falling interest rates. Tune in to find out what his "Magic 8" top picks are!

Flying over to Thailand, we are joined by Boonyakorn Amornsak, who will take us through his BUY call on Airports of Thailand (AOT), citing his elevation in target price to be driven by a solid recovery in inbound tourists. Along with a potential upside driven by transit-transfer passengers and higher concession revenue from the addition of a new ground and cargo service provider. Don't miss out on this opportune stock, for AOT is currently traded on the SGX as a SDR!

In the ever growing field of the data center industry, we speak with Maybank’s TMT specialist Hussaini Saifee, who expects data centre demand in ASEAN to increase at 20% CAGR till 2028 with the total addressable market estimated at USD11b/yr. Structural drivers include: 1) Under penetration: ASEAN supply is 55-70% below that of US, CN, KR & JP; 2) AI: helps ASEAN companies in the global supply chain; 3) ASEAN as a global DC hub: geopolitics, conducive upstream supply & favourable unit economics. Additionally, Hussaini believes the risk of over-supply is overhyped: build commitment is just 40% of announcements. This podcast also highlights key opportunities & stock picks across entire DC value chain.

#Read the full report here

Timestamps for the podcast:

01:33 - Maturity of data center markets in developed countries vs ASEAN

03:43 - Data center capacity supply/demand dynamics

09:30 - Tiering ASEAN data center market segments

14:27 - Geopolitics and the relevance of ASEAN's positioning as data center hub

18:40 - Moore's Law and data center economics

30:32 - Renewable energy infrastructure

31:57 - Picking winners in ASEAN

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