Market View: Asia markets drop on Trump, Iran threats; Singapore’s February core inflation accelerates to 1.4%; Luxury brands from LVMH to Kering defy slowdown with more new store openings in Europe; Meta’s Zuckerberg reportedly developing AI agent to help with his CEO duties; Kpop agency HYBE shares drop after boyband BTS comeback concert; Lendlease Global Commercial Reit to watch

Singapore shares dived today to track hefty losses across regional markets. The Straits Times Index was down 2.38% at 4,831.30 points at 2.44pm Singapore time, with a value turnover of S$1.76B seen in the broader market. In terms of counters to watch, we have Lendlease Global Commercial Reit, after the Reit’s preferential offering of 352.4 million units was only 62.2 per cent subscribed. Elsewhere, from how Singapore’s core inflation picked up, while headline inflation eased in February, to how owners of luxury brands ranging from Gucci to Fendi and Bulgari opened more stores in Europe last year despite a slowdown in the wider sector, more economic and international headlines remained in focus. Plus – all about the selloff in Asia today, and how Kpop agency HYBE saw shares drop after boyband BTS’ comeback concert. On Market View, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with David Kuo, Co-founder, The Smart Investor. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.