28 February 2025
Weekly Market View
Growth concerns return
US consumer confidence has begun to wilt amid rising policy uncertainty as US President Trump shakes up US trade, immigration, government employment and foreign policies.
The S&P500 index and the US 10-year government bond yield are both down since the day Trump was inaugurated on 20 January and US earnings expectations have come off their peak. These trends suggest investors are getting more worried about the growth, rather than the inflationary, impact of Trump’s policies.
Our base case is that central bank rate cuts and lower bond yields should help mitigate any downside risks. Likely modest fiscal easing in the US, China and Germany is another potential shock absorber against any trade war escalation. Also, Trump is likely to recalibrate his policies if they negatively impact stock and bond markets on a sustained basis.
In the near-term, we would rotate into China technology sector equities, as US peers potentially pull back another 3-4%, and fade the EUR rebound as safe-haven demand lifts the USD.
What is the outlook for China’s technology sector after the recent rally?
Given recent US data, how should investors allocate within Developed Market corporate bonds?
How does Germany’s election results affect your view on government bonds and EUR?
Charts of the week: Gap narrowing
The narrowing gap in earnings estimates between the US and Euro area has coincided with divergence in economic data
US, Europe, China 12m forward earnings growth estimates
US and Euro area economic surprise indices
Source: FactSet, Bloomberg, Standard Chartered
Editorial
Growth concerns return
US consumer confidence has begun to wilt amid rising policy uncertainty as US President Trump shakes up US trade, immigration, government employment and foreign policies. The S&P500 index and the US 10-year government bond yield are both down since the day Trump was inaugurated on 20th January and US earnings expectations have come off their peak. These trends suggest investors are getting more worried about the growth, rather than the inflationary, impact of Trump’s policies. Our base case is that central bank rate cuts and lower bond yields should help mitigate any downside risks. Likely modest fiscal easing in the US, China and Germany is another potential shock absorber against any trade war escalation. Also, Trump is likely to recalibrate his policies if they negatively impact stock and bond markets on a sustained basis. In the near-term, we would rotate into China technology sector equities as US peers potentially pull back another 3-4% and fade the EUR rebound as safe-haven demand lifts the USD.
US confidence cracking: US service sector PMI for February suggested contraction in activity for the first time in two years. Two widely followed measures of consumer sentiment have fallen sharply in the past two months, while inflation expectations have risen. This follows weak retail sales and a drop in aggregate payrolls (taking into account total payrolls, average hours worked and average hourly earnings). The consensus estimate for US 12-month forward earnings-per-share growth has also slipped to 12.5% from a peak of 14.8% in late January. The market has focussed on slowing growth metrics as Trump reiterated plans to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico from next week and raise China tariffs another 10%. The S&P500 has fallen from a record high hit a weak ago and has broken below its 100-day moving average, with the next key support at 5,764, followed by 5,697. The US 10-year government bond yield fell through a key support (4.4%) and is testing the 200-day moving average of 4.24%.
Central banks, fiscal policy to the rescue? Although Trump considers the stock market a good yardstick for the efficacy of
his policies over the medium term, we believe his immediate aim would be to lower bond yields. On that score, a moderate growth slowdown would not be a bad thing, especially if the resultant decline in bond yields helps Trump implement his tax cut proposals without significant challenge from the ‘bond vigilantes’. This week, Republicans narrowly pushed through the US House of Representatives a budget bill that will add USD 2.8tn to the deficit by 2034. The bill is likely to be amended by the Senate, but there is a good chance that the net impact will be modestly stimulative. Also, moderately softer growth is likely to encourage the Fed to resume rate cuts in Q2, in turn easing financial conditions. In fact, money markets are once again pricing two 25bps rate cuts by the end of the year, instead of just over one cut priced only a week ago. Besides, investor positioning is not stretched. These factors should limit the equity market downside and be ultimately positive for stocks.
German election result defuses early stimulus expectations; fade the EUR rally. Based on Germany’s election results, the conservatives and the socialists together have enough seats to form a coalition with majority support in parliament. However, they will need other partners for the two-thirds majority required to ease Germany’s strict fiscal policy rules. While the parties bargain with the left to form a “Grand coalition”, European government bonds are likely to benefit from ECB rate cuts aimed at stabilising growth (including a 25bps cut next week). The rate cuts are likely to accelerate if Trump follows through with his tariff plans against Europe by April. Against this backdrop, the EUR/USD rally is likely to fade, with first technical support at 1.0330 (see page 6).
Remain bullish on Hang Seng technology index. We believe the emergence of China’s low-cost AI-powered chatbot, DeepSeek, provides a fresh impetus to China’s technology sector. We expect DeepSeek to expand demand, speed and performance of a host of technology infrastructure, equipment and service providers, helping narrow China’s valuation discount with US peers. Fiscal stimulus from the upcoming National People’s Congress would be a bonus (see page 4).
The weekly macro balance sheet
Our weekly net assessment: On balance, we see the past week’s data and policy as negative for risk assets in the near-term
(+) factors: Improving Euro area manufacturing data, potential Ukraine-Russia ceasefire
(-) factors: Weak US consumer confidence, new home sales, rising initial jobless claims; weaker US, Euro area services; Trump’s tariff threats
US service sector activity marginally contracted in February for the first time in two years
US manufacturing and service sector PMIs
Euro area manufacturing activity improved in February, but remained contractionary, while service sector weakened
Euro area manufacturing and service sector PMIs
Germany’s consumer and business confidence remain lacklustre; a “grand coalition” delivering fiscal stimulus would be a positive catalyst
Germany’s IFO business expectations and GfK consumer confidence indices
Top client questions
What is the outlook for China’s equities, especially the technology sector?
We continue to have an Opportunistic Buy on the Hang Seng Technology Index, which has been leading the current Hang Seng index rally. It is worth highlighting that, despite gains thus far, the Hang Seng Index is still trading at a 42% discount relative to global equities – about a whole standard deviation cheaper than the 10-year average.
There have been concerns that the rally could be set for a pause or reversal, especially due to the additional tariff that Trump has just announced on Chinese goods, and if further US trade restrictions on chips are announced. We believe that while a mild pullback in Chinese equities is possible in the near-term, the support for the Hang Seng Index has moved higher, to the 21,600 level. DeepSeek has been a wake-up moment for global investors – it puts China on the AI technology race map and opens a “non-zero probability” that the China technology sector can catch-up with the US.
In our view, chip restriction segregates the AI-value chain, effectively protecting US companies at the high end, but they are unlikely to prevent Chinese companies continuing to make inroads at the lower-end of AI. This means the Chinese technology sector can narrow its discount in the market relative to the US technology sector. It is now critical to observe how earnings evolve – strong upward earnings revision will likely help build a more robust case for further gains in China technology sector equities.
DeepSeek is likely to remain a key focus of Chinese equity market investors in the near-term – trumping the importance of the looming National People’s Congress (NPC), which we expect will leave room for fiscal expansion. There is potential for a widening of the official budget deficit to 4% of GDP (from 3% currently).
We believe DeepSeek provides a fresh fundamental impetus for growth in Chinese equities, one that is perhaps even more direct than fiscal stimulus, via the following channels: 1) Volume – rising usage from consumers and businesses helps companies in Large-Language Models (LLM) or Cloud Services, as well as Telecommunications, with increasing internet data centre revenue, 2) Speed – helps autonomous driving models to improve their mean time between failures (MTBF) (i.e. measure of reliability of a system) and slashing training time by as much as 50%, 3) Performance – AI-PC and AI-smartphone should benefit from a faster customer replacement cycle driven by AI-enabled functions. Software companies are set to benefit from increased efficiency and reduced error rates.
— Daniel Lam, Head, Equity Strategy
The Hang Seng Index is still trading at a deep discount vs. global equities despite recent rally
12-month forward P/E valuation gap: Hang Seng index vs. MSCI All-Country World index
Source: Bloomberg, Standard Chartered
The support for the Hang Seng Index has moved higher to the 21,600 level
Hang Seng Index
Source: Bloomberg, Standard Chartered
Top client questions (cont’d)
What is your view on the US technology sector?
The US earnings season is now largely behind us. Q4 ’24 earnings were robust, with the technology sector delivering 19.3% earnings growth in the S&P 500 index as of 27 Feb, based on LSEG I/B/E/S.
Overall, we remain bullish on the sector and see secular growth trends in Artificial Intelligence (AI) continuing. This should be supported by intensifying AI adoption by corporations and ongoing technological breakthroughs on chip designs and AI interface. While DeepSeek’s platform has resulted in a rotation to non-US regions, narrowing the valuation gap between US and China technology sectors, we believe the US tech sector should maintain an edge in “higher-end” areas, such as agentic and physical AI.
We see further opportunities to buy on dips. Within the technology sector, we see the software sub-sector benefiting from a lower vulnerability to tariff threats and rising M&A activity. Usage of lower-cost AI models should accelerate cybersecurity software demand.
— Michelle Kam, Investment Strategistt
2025 earnings projection for the US technology sector index is higher than that for 2024 and are now ahead of the broader market benchmark
Projected earnings growth of MSCI US and MSCI US Technology indices in 2024-25
Given recent US data, how should investors consider allocations between DM IG and DM HY bonds and average maturities of bond portfolios?
The trend in US bond yields has been relatively benign since January, with the US 10yr yield retreating from nearly 4.8% to the current range of 4.2-4.3%, towards our own forecast range of 4.00-4.25% over 6-12 months. Markets now expect 2-3 Fed rate cuts by year-end, largely in-line with our own expectations.
While one interpretation is that still-elevated inflation expectations are driving a higher-for-longer view on rates and yields, it could also indicate that the US economy has remained resilient, which allows further tightening in credit spreads. We believe this supports the case to stay the course with Developed Market Investment Grade (DMIG) bonds. While asset class returns were under some pressure when US government bond yields rose towards 4.8%, this is now reversing, a move we expect has a little further to run. DMIG yields are also still attractive relative to historical lows from an income point of view. Additionally, we also favour remaining overweight DM High Yield (DMHY) bonds. As the economy remains robust enough to justify delaying rate cuts, DMHY bonds are likely to stay well-supported as default risks remain contained in a resilient economy.
For USD bonds, we believe a 5-7-year average maturity profile offers an attractive trade-off between potential exposure to a repricing of more Fed rate cuts and the limited yield pickup in longer maturities.
— Ray Heung, Senior Investment Strategist
US investment grade bond returns have picked up in recent weeks as markets expect the Fed to deliver 2-3 25bps rate cuts by the end of 2025
DM HY and IG bonds returns over the past year
Top client questions (cont’d)
How does Germany’s recent election affect your view on European bonds and the currency?
The German election outcome largely met market expectations, with the conservatives led by the CDU/CSU now expected to form a coalition government. It is likely the new government boosts infrastructure investments to support growth, but the debt brake is likely to ultimately act as a constraint. Nonetheless, long bond yields in Germany and even in France have been relatively stable post the election outcome. We continue to expect 3 cuts by the ECB this year, bringing the ECB policy rate to 2%, and thus reiterate our preference to opportunistically buy European government bonds (fx-hedged).
On the macro front, Germany consumer confidence softened while Euro area inflation stayed flat. The focus now shifts to Euro area inflation data and ECB policy meeting next week. Additionally, the Euro area negotiated wage rate softened, which is likely to boost ECB rate cut expectations. Therefore, we see moderate downside pressure on EUR/USD in the coming weeks. Technically, immediate resistance is at 1.0760, with first support at 1.0330, followed by 1.0140.
— Ray Heung, Senior Investment Strategist
— Iris Yuen, Investment Strategist
Europe’s long-term bond yields have remained stable after Germany’s election
10-year German and French government bond yields
Source: Bloomberg, Standard Chartered
What is your near-term outlook for the USD/CAD exchange rate? How big a threat are proposed US tariffs?
There is likely to be a lot of focus on Canadian economic growth data. The market expects an improvement in this week’s data as spending accelerated into year-end on the back of a temporary tax holiday in 2024. However, we believe the CAD is likely to remain under pressure in the near term, with key factors including (i) US-Canada tariff tensions that remain on the boil, (ii) Canada’s trade deficit is likely to widen once again if tariffs are imposed, and (iii) crude oil prices fell to a two-month low amid raising supply concerns as prospects for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine improved.
Technically, the MACD indicates near-term upside pressure, and a firm break above 1.4470 could pave the way for the pair to test 1.4790. We prefer to express our bearish short-term view on CAD against SGD which we believe offers a more attractive opportunity (i.e. we are bearish CAD/SGD). The pair has formed lower highs and lower lows since mid-November 2024. A break below its first support at 0.9250 should pave the way to test 0.9050.
— Iris Yuen, Investment Strategist
CAD under pressure amid tariff threats and soft oil prices
CAD/SGD with technical levels
Source: Bloomberg, Standard Chartered
Market performance summary*
Sources: MSCI, JP Morgan, Barclays Capital, Citigroup, Dow Jones, HFRX, FTSE, Bloomberg, Standard Chartered. *Performance in USD terms unless otherwise stated, 2025 YTD performance from 31 Dec 2024 – 27 Feb 2025; 1-week period: 20-27 Feb 2025
Our 12-month asset class views at a glance
Economic and market calendar
The S&P500 has next interim resistance at 5,764
Technical indicators for key markets as of 27 February close
Investor diversity has normalised across asset classes
Our proprietary market diversity indicators as of 27 Feb close
Disclosure
This document is confidential and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and notify the sender immediately. This document is being distributed for general information only and is subject to the relevant disclaimers available at our Standard Chartered website under Regulatory disclosures. It is not and does not constitute research material, independent research, an offer, recommendation or solicitation to enter into any transaction or adopt any hedging, trading or investment strategy, in relation to any securities or other financial instruments. This document is for general evaluation only. It does not take into account the specific investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs of any particular person or class of persons and it has not been prepared for any particular person or class of persons. You should not rely on any contents of this document in making any investment decisions. Before making any investment, you should carefully read the relevant offering documents and seek independent legal, tax and regulatory advice. In particular, we recommend you to seek advice regarding the suitability of the investment product, taking into account your specific investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs, before you make a commitment to purchase the investment product. Opinions, projections and estimates are solely those of SC at the date of this document and subject to change without notice. Past performance is not indicative of future results and no representation or warranty is made regarding future performance. The value of investments, and the income from them, can go down as well as up, and you may not recover the amount of your original investment. You are not certain to make a profit and may lose money. Any forecast contained herein as to likely future movements in rates or prices or likely future events or occurrences constitutes an opinion only and is not indicative of actual future movements in rates or prices or actual future events or occurrences (as the case may be). This document must not be forwarded or otherwise made available to any other person without the express written consent of the Standard Chartered Group (as defined below). Standard Chartered Bank is incorporated in England with limited liability by Royal Charter 1853 Reference Number ZC18. The Principal Office of the Company is situated in England at 1 Basinghall Avenue, London, EC2V 5DD. Standard Chartered Bank is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority. Standard Chartered PLC, the ultimate parent company of Standard Chartered Bank, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates (including each branch or representative office), form the Standard Chartered Group. Standard Chartered Private Bank is the private banking division of Standard Chartered. Private banking activities may be carried out internationally by different legal entities and affiliates within the Standard Chartered Group (each an “SC Group Entity”) according to local regulatory requirements. Not all products and services are provided by all branches, subsidiaries and affiliates within the Standard Chartered Group. Some of the SC Group Entities only act as representatives of Standard Chartered Private Bank and may not be able to offer products and services or offer advice to clients.
Copyright © 2025, Accounting Research & Analytics, LLC d/b/a CFRA (and its affiliates, as applicable). Reproduction of content provided by CFRA in any form is prohibited except with the prior written permission of CFRA. CFRA content is not investment advice and a reference to or observation concerning a security or investment provided in the CFRA SERVICES is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold such investment or security or make any other investment decisions. The CFRA content contains opinions of CFRA based upon publicly-available information that CFRA believes to be reliable and the opinions are subject to change without notice. This analysis has not been submitted to, nor received approval from, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission or any other regulatory body. While CFRA exercised due care in compiling this analysis, CFRA, ITS THIRD-PARTY SUPPLIERS, AND ALL RELATED ENTITIES SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE, to the full extent permitted by law, regarding the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of this information and assumes no liability with respect to the consequences of relying on this information for investment or other purposes. No content provided by CFRA (including ratings, credit-related analyses and data, valuations, model, software or other application or output therefrom) or any part thereof may be modified, reverse engineered, reproduced or distributed in any form by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of CFRA, and such content shall not be used for any unlawful or unauthorized purposes. CFRA and any third-party providers, as well as their directors, officers, shareholders, employees or agents do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, timeliness or availability of such content. In no event shall CFRA, its affiliates, or their third-party suppliers be liable for any direct, indirect, special, or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees, or losses (including lost income or lost profit and opportunity costs) in connection with a subscriber’s, subscriber’s customer’s, or other’s use of CFRA’s content.
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclaimer
Banking activities may be carried out internationally by different branches, subsidiaries and affiliates within the Standard Chartered Group according to local regulatory requirements. Opinions may contain outright “buy”, “sell”, “hold” or other opinions. The time horizon of this opinion is dependent on prevailing market conditions and there is no planned frequency for updates to the opinion. This opinion is not independent of Standard Chartered Group’s trading strategies or positions. Standard Chartered Group and/or its affiliates or its respective officers, directors, employee benefit programmes or employees, including persons involved in the preparation or issuance of this document may at any time, to the extent permitted by applicable law and/or regulation, be long or short any securities or financial instruments referred to in this document or have material interest in any such securities or related investments. Therefore, it is possible, and you should assume, that Standard Chartered Group has a material interest in one or more of the financial instruments mentioned herein. Please refer to our Standard Chartered website under Regulatory disclosures for more detailed disclosures, including past opinions/ recommendations in the last 12 months and conflict of interests, as well as disclaimers. A covering strategist may have a financial interest in the debt or equity securities of this company/issuer. All covering strategist are licensed to provide investment recommendations under Monetary Authority of Singapore or Hong Kong Monetary Authority. This document must not be forwarded or otherwise made available to any other person without the express written consent of Standard Chartered Group.
Sustainable Investments
Any ESG data used or referred to has been provided by Morningstar, Sustainalytics, MSCI or Bloomberg. Refer to 1) Morningstar website under Sustainable Investing, 2) Sustainalytics website under ESG Risk Ratings, 3) MCSI website under ESG Business Involvement Screening Research and 4) Bloomberg green, social & sustainability bonds guide for more information. The ESG data is as at the date of publication based on data provided, is for informational purpose only and is not warranted to be complete, timely, accurate or suitable for a particular purpose, and it may be subject to change. Sustainable Investments (SI): This refers to funds that have been classified as ‘Sustainable Investments’ by Morningstar. SI funds have explicitly stated in their prospectus and regulatory filings that they either incorporate ESG factors into the investment process or have a thematic focus on the environment, gender diversity, low carbon, renewable energy, water or community development. For equity, it refers to shares/stocks issued by companies with Sustainalytics ESG Risk Rating of Low/Negligible. For bonds, it refers to debt instruments issued by issuers with Sustainalytics ESG Risk Rating of Low/Negligible, and/or those being certified green, social, sustainable bonds by Bloomberg. For structured products, it refers to products that are issued by any issuer who has a Sustainable Finance framework that aligns with Standard Chartered’s Green and Sustainable Product Framework, with underlying assets that are part of the Sustainable Investment universe or separately approved by Standard Chartered’s Sustainable Finance Governance Committee. Sustainalytics ESG risk ratings shown are factual and are not an indicator that the product is classified or marketed as “green”, “sustainable” or similar under any particular classification system or framework.
Country/Market Specific Disclosures
Botswana: This document is being distributed in Botswana by, and is attributable to, Standard Chartered Bank Botswana Limited which is a financial institution licensed under the Section 6 of the Banking Act CAP 46.04 and is listed in the Botswana Stock Exchange. Brunei Darussalam: This document is being distributed in Brunei Darussalam by, and is attributable to, Standard Chartered Bank (Brunei Branch) | Registration Number RFC/61 and Standard Chartered Securities (B) Sdn Bhd | Registration Number RC20001003. Standard Chartered Bank is incorporated in England with limited liability by Royal Charter 1853 Reference Number ZC18. Standard Chartered Securities (B) Sdn Bhd is a limited liability company registered with the Registry of Companies with Registration Number RC20001003 and licensed by Brunei Darussalam Central Bank as a Capital Markets Service License Holder with License Number BDCB/R/CMU/S3-CL and it is authorised to conduct Islamic investment business through an Islamic window. China Mainland: This document is being distributed in China by, and is attributable to, Standard Chartered Bank (China) Limited which is mainly regulated by National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA), State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), and People’s Bank of China (PBOC). Hong Kong: In Hong Kong, this document, except for any portion advising on or facilitating any decision on futures contracts trading, is distributed by Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited (“SCBHK”), a subsidiary of Standard Chartered PLC. SCBHK has its registered address at 32/F, Standard Chartered Bank Building, 4-4A Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong and is regulated by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and registered with the Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) to carry on Type 1 (dealing in securities), Type 4 (advising on securities), Type 6 (advising on corporate finance) and Type 9 (asset management) regulated activity under the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571) (“SFO”) (CE No. AJI614). The contents of this document have not been reviewed by any regulatory authority in Hong Kong and you are advised to exercise caution in relation to any offer set out herein. If you are in doubt about any of the contents of this document, you should obtain independent professional advice. Any product named herein may not be offered or sold in Hong Kong by means of any document at any time other than to “professional investors” as defined in the SFO and any rules made under that ordinance. In addition, this document may not be issued or possessed for the purposes of issue, whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere, and any interests may not be disposed of, to any person unless such person is outside Hong Kong or is a “professional investor” as defined in the SFO and any rules made under that ordinance, or as otherwise may be permitted by that ordinance. In Hong Kong, Standard Chartered Private Bank is the private banking division of SCBHK, a subsidiary of Standard Chartered PLC. Ghana: Standard Chartered Bank Ghana Limited accepts no liability and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising directly or indirectly (including special, incidental or consequential loss or damage) from your use of these documents. Past performance is not indicative of future results and no representation or warranty is made regarding future performance. You should seek advice from a financial adviser on the suitability of an investment for you, taking into account these factors before making a commitment to invest in an investment. To unsubscribe from receiving further updates, please send an email to feedback.ghana@sc.com. Please do not reply to this email. Call our Priority Banking on 0302610750 for any questions or service queries. You are advised not to send any confidential and/or important information to Standard Chartered via e-mail, as Standard Chartered makes no representations or warranties as to the security or accuracy of any information transmitted via e-mail. Standard Chartered shall not be responsible for any loss or damage suffered by you arising from your decision to use e-mail to communicate with the Bank. India: This document is being distributed in India by Standard Chartered in its capacity as a distributor of mutual funds and referrer of any other third party financial products. Standard Chartered does not offer any ‘Investment Advice’ as defined in the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013 or otherwise. Services/products related securities business offered by Standard Charted are not intended for any person, who is a resident of any jurisdiction, the laws of which imposes prohibition on soliciting the securities business in that jurisdiction without going through the registration requirements and/or prohibit the use of any information contained in this document. Indonesia: This document is being distributed in Indonesia by Standard Chartered Bank, Indonesia branch, which is a financial institution licensed and supervised by Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (Financial Service Authority) and Bank Indonesia. Jersey: In Jersey, Standard Chartered Private Bank is the Registered Business Name of the Jersey Branch of Standard Chartered Bank. The Jersey Branch of Standard Chartered Bank is regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission. Copies of the latest audited accounts of Standard Chartered Bank are available from its principal place of business in Jersey: PO Box 80, 15 Castle Street, St Helier, Jersey JE4 8PT. Standard Chartered Bank is incorporated in England with limited liability by Royal Charter in 1853 Reference Number ZC 18. The Principal Office of the Company is situated in England at 1 Basinghall Avenue, London, EC2V 5DD. Standard Chartered Bank is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority. The Jersey Branch of Standard Chartered Bank is also an authorised financial services provider under license number 44946 issued by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority of the Republic of South Africa. Jersey is not part of the United Kingdom and all business transacted with Standard Chartered Bank, Jersey Branch and other SC Group Entity outside of the United Kingdom, are not subject to some or any of the investor protection and compensation schemes available under United Kingdom law. Kenya: This document is being distributed in Kenya by and is attributable to Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Limited. Investment Products and Services are distributed by Standard Chartered Investment Services Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Limited that is licensed by the Capital Markets Authority in Kenya, as a Fund Manager. Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Limited is regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya. Malaysia: This document is being distributed in Malaysia by Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (“SCBMB”). Recipients in Malaysia should contact SCBMB in relation to any matters arising from, or in connection with, this document. This document has not been reviewed by the Securities Commission Malaysia. The product lodgement, registration, submission or approval by the Securities Commission of Malaysia does not amount to nor indicate recommendation or endorsement of the product, service or promotional activity. Investment products are not deposits and are not obligations of, not guaranteed by, and not protected by SCBMB or any of the affiliates or subsidiaries, or by Perbadanan Insurans Deposit Malaysia, any government or insurance agency. Investment products are subject to investment risks, including the possible loss of the principal amount invested. SCBMB expressly disclaim any liability and responsibility for any loss arising directly or indirectly (including special, incidental or consequential loss or damage) arising from the financial losses of the Investment Products due to market condition. Nigeria: This document is being distributed in Nigeria by Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Limited (SCB Nigeria), a bank duly licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria. SCB Nigeria accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising directly or indirectly (including special, incidental or consequential loss or damage) from your use of these documents. You should seek advice from a financial adviser on the suitability of an investment for you, taking into account these factors before making a commitment to invest in an investment. To unsubscribe from receiving further updates, please send an email to clientcare.ng@sc.com requesting to be removed from our mailing list. Please do not reply to this email. Call our Priority Banking on 02 012772514 for any questions or service queries. SCB Nigeria shall not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from your decision to send confidential and/or important information to Standard Chartered via e-mail. SCB Nigeria makes no representations or warranties as to the security or accuracy of any information transmitted via e-mail. Pakistan: This document is being distributed in Pakistan by, and attributable to Standard Chartered Bank (Pakistan) Limited having its registered office at PO Box 5556, I.I Chundrigar Road Karachi, which is a banking company registered with State Bank of Pakistan under Banking Companies Ordinance 1962 and is also having licensed issued by Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan for Security Advisors. Standard Chartered Bank (Pakistan) Limited acts as a distributor of mutual funds and referrer of other third-party financial products. Singapore: This document is being distributed in Singapore by, and is attributable to, Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) Limited (Registration No. 201224747C/ GST Group Registration No. MR-8500053-0, “SCBSL”). Recipients in Singapore should contact SCBSL in relation to any matters arising from, or in connection with, this document. SCBSL is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Chartered Bank and is licensed to conduct banking business in Singapore under the Singapore Banking Act, 1970. Standard Chartered Private Bank is the private banking division of SCBSL. IN RELATION TO ANY SECURITY OR SECURITIES-BASED DERIVATIVES CONTRACT REFERRED TO IN THIS DOCUMENT, THIS DOCUMENT, TOGETHER WITH THE ISSUER DOCUMENTATION, SHALL BE DEEMED AN INFORMATION MEMORANDUM (AS DEFINED IN SECTION 275 OF THE SECURITIES AND FUTURES ACT, 2001 (“SFA”)). THIS DOCUMENT IS INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO ACCREDITED INVESTORS, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 4A(1)(a) OF THE SFA, OR ON THE BASIS THAT THE SECURITY OR SECURITIES-BASED DERIVATIVES CONTRACT MAY ONLY BE ACQUIRED AT A CONSIDERATION OF NOT LESS THAN S$200,000 (OR ITS EQUIVALENT IN A FOREIGN CURRENCY) FOR EACH TRANSACTION. Further, in relation to any security or securities-based derivatives contract, neither this document nor the Issuer Documentation has been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore under the SFA. Accordingly, this document and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the product may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the product be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons other than a relevant person pursuant to section 275(1) of the SFA, or any person pursuant to section 275(1A) of the SFA, and in accordance with the conditions specified in section 275 of the SFA, or pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA. In relation to any collective investment schemes referred to in this document, this document is for general information purposes only and is not an offering document or prospectus (as defined in the SFA). This document is not, nor is it intended to be (i) an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell any capital markets product; or (ii) an advertisement of an offer or intended offer of any capital markets product. Deposit Insurance Scheme: Singapore dollar deposits of non-bank depositors are insured by the Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation, for up to S$100,000 in aggregate per depositor per Scheme member by law. Foreign currency deposits, dual currency investments, structured deposits and other investment products are not insured. This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Taiwan: SC Group Entity or Standard Chartered Bank (Taiwan) Limited (“SCB (Taiwan)”) may be involved in the financial instruments contained herein or other related financial instruments. The author of this document may have discussed the information contained herein with other employees or agents of SC or SCB (Taiwan). The author and the above-mentioned employees of SC or SCB (Taiwan) may have taken related actions in respect of the information involved (including communication with customers of SC or SCB (Taiwan) as to the information contained herein). The opinions contained in this document may change, or differ from the opinions of employees of SC or SCB (Taiwan). SC and SCB (Taiwan) will not provide any notice of any changes to or differences between the above-mentioned opinions. This document may cover companies with which SC or SCB (Taiwan) seeks to do business at times and issuers of financial instruments. Therefore, investors should understand that the information contained herein may serve as specific purposes as a result of conflict of interests of SC or SCB (Taiwan). SC, SCB (Taiwan), the employees (including those who have discussions with the author) or customers of SC or SCB (Taiwan) may have an interest in the products, related financial instruments or related derivative financial products contained herein; invest in those products at various prices and on different market conditions; have different or conflicting interests in those products. The potential impacts include market makers’ related activities, such as dealing, investment, acting as agents, or performing financial or consulting services in relation to any of the products referred to in this document. UAE: DIFC – Standard Chartered Bank is incorporated in England with limited liability by Royal Charter 1853 Reference Number ZC18.The Principal Office of the Company is situated in England at 1 Basinghall Avenue, London, EC2V 5DD. Standard Chartered Bank is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority. Standard Chartered Bank, Dubai International Financial Centre having its offices at Dubai International Financial Centre, Building 1, Gate Precinct, P.O. Box 999, Dubai, UAE is a branch of Standard Chartered Bank and is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (“DFSA”). This document is intended for use only by Professional Clients and is not directed at Retail Clients as defined by the DFSA Rulebook. In the DIFC we are authorised to provide financial services only to clients who qualify as Professional Clients and Market Counterparties and not to Retail Clients. As a Professional Client you will not be given the higher retail client protection and compensation rights and if you use your right to be classified as a Retail Client we will be unable to provide financial services and products to you as we do not hold the required license to undertake such activities. For Islamic transactions, we are acting under the supervision of our Shariah Supervisory Committee. Relevant information on our Shariah Supervisory Committee is currently available on the Standard Chartered Bank website in the Islamic banking section. For residents of the UAE – Standard Chartered Bank UAE does not provide financial analysis or consultation services in or into the UAE within the meaning of UAE Securities and Commodities Authority Decision No. 48/r of 2008 concerning financial consultation and financial analysis. Uganda: Our Investment products and services are distributed by Standard Chartered Bank Uganda Limited, which is licensed by the Capital Markets Authority as an investment adviser. United Kingdom: In the UK, Standard Chartered Bank is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority. This communication has been approved by Standard Chartered Bank for the purposes of Section 21 (2) (b) of the United Kingdom’s Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (“FSMA”) as amended in 2010 and 2012 only. Standard Chartered Bank (trading as Standard Chartered Private Bank) is also an authorised financial services provider (license number 45747) in terms of the South African Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, 2002. The Materials have not been prepared in accordance with UK legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research, and that it is not subject to any prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research. Vietnam: This document is being distributed in Vietnam by, and is attributable to, Standard Chartered Bank (Vietnam) Limited which is mainly regulated by State Bank of Vietnam (SBV). Recipients in Vietnam should contact Standard Chartered Bank (Vietnam) Limited for any queries regarding any content of this document. Zambia: This document is distributed by Standard Chartered Bank Zambia Plc, a company incorporated in Zambia and registered as a commercial bank and licensed by the Bank of Zambia under the Banking and Financial Services Act Chapter 387 of the Laws of Zambia.