We look at the Singapore blue chips that performed the best in September in spite of market volatility, what supported their rally, and what investors should look out for. What happened? Singapore stocks pulled back in September after a strong rally so far this year. The Straits Times Index (STI) ended the month 1.4% lower after reaching a record high earlier in the month. Only five stocks had positive returns in September. The Fed’s first interest-rate hike since 2023 brought renewed attention to how higher borrowing costs could affect Singapore blue chip stocks like DBS, OCBC and UOB, as well as interest rate sectors like Singapore REITs. Against this volatile backdrop, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, UOB and OCBC emerged as September’s best-performing blue chip stocks. Notably, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and OCBC were also among August’s three best-performing blue chips and July’s three best-performing blue chips, making them repeat appearances on the list. In this article, we look at what drove the gains in...