UOB Asset Management (UOBAM) is set to launch the UOBAM Ping An FTSE ASEAN Dividend Index ETF on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) on 29 January 2026. This fund marks the first dividend-focused ASEAN ETF listed on SGX, offering investors a cost-efficient way to access a diversified portfolio of dividend-paying companies across ASEAN markets. 

The ETF tracks the FTSE ASEAN ex REITs Target Dividend Index, designed to enhance dividend yields compared with the broader FTSE ASEAN Index, and aims to pay at least 6% annual dividends in 2026–2027 — one of the highest among Singapore-listed ETFs. Its diversified holdings include key companies from Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines, such as DBS Group, OCBC, UOB, Malayan Banking, Astra International, and PTT. The product responds to growing investor demand for income strategies amid a low-rate environment while capturing ASEAN’s long-term growth potential.

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With a stable operating environment, beneficial supply-chain adjustments, and opportunities arising from the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone, ASEAN remains an appealing region for business.

 

“This is a place to be, and the supply chain shifts are in favour of us. We are exporting a lot more to the US, selling to the rest of the world and also on our own, we have strong fundamentals – our population, our income growth – to support them,” said UOB head of research Suan Teck Kin.

He also stated that ASEAN will continue to benefit from the shifts in supply chain and trading with China. Additionally, the trade in Southeast Asia remains stable for exports and imports despite threats from US tariffs in 2025, further added that ASEAN continues to rank as a top destination for investment.

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The foreign ministers of Vietnam and Thailand held discussions to enhance bilateral relations, reaffirming their long-standing friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership. Both sides agreed to deepen political trust through continued high-level exchanges and to develop a concrete action plan for cooperation for the 2026–2030 period.

Economic, trade, and investment cooperation remains a key pillar, with both countries promoting the “Three Connections” strategy and expanding collaboration in energy, green transition, digital economy, and logistics. They also reaffirmed commitments to security cooperation and to maintaining peace, stability, and unity within ASEAN.

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