Bonds, oil, AI and copper - Decoding divergent signals in a shifting global economy

Treasury yields at 20-year highs. Oil swinging wildly above US$100. Gold sliding while copper soars. Are markets pricing in reality — or just riding the hype?

Correspondent Howie Lim sits down with Desmond Fu, head of investment management Singapore at Western Asset Management, to discuss AI productivity puzzle, bond market tremors, US-China rare earth leverage, Fed hawkishness, and Asian currency wars. In a higher-for-longer world, the difference between resilience and recklessness could be one rate hike.

Highlights:

01:19 AI hype vs reality: Is the productivity boom real?

03:15 Bond markets repricing in a higher-for-longer

04:34 Oil volatile…still

09:02 Fed hawkishness: Underestimating how long rates stay high

12:03 Gold vs copper, two different stories

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Send us your questions, thoughts, story ideas, and feedback to btpodcasts@sph.com.sg.

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Written and hosted by: Howie Lim (howielim@sph.com.sg)

With Desmond Fu, head of investment management, Singapore at Western Asset Management

Edited by: Howie Lim & Claressa Monteiro

Produced by: Howie Lim & Chai Pei Chieh

A podcast by BT Podcasts, The Business Times, SPH Media

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