Syfe Core Portfolios Monthly Update: Mega-Cap Tech Leads July Rally

August 8, 2025

Global equities rallied in July on policy clarity, strong tech earnings, and AI-driven momentum. Here’s how our portfolios performed and what investors should watch going forward.

Markets rallied in July, driven by strong tech earnings, AI momentum, and renewed policy clarity. The passing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and fresh trade deals lifted global sentiment, with growth stocks leading the way.

Core Equity100 returned +4.22% in SGD, outperforming the MSCI ACWI benchmark at +3.47% for the month of July. Other Core portfolios also posted strong gains, supported by exposure to mega-cap tech, emerging markets, and diversifiers like gold.

Over the past year, our Core portfolios have outperformed both their benchmark and peers, reinforcing the strength of our systematic, globally diversified investment approach.

Key highlights

China Leads, Global Exposure Pays Off

Source: Syfe, Bloomberg. As of 31 July 2025 in SGD.

China remains our top performer, with the iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI) and KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB) up +17.7% and +15.3% year-to-date in SGD.

These positions reflect our long-standing conviction in China’s role in global portfolios.

Broader geographic diversification, completing our US anchor, also supported returns, with the iShares Core MSCI EM IMI UCITS ETF (Emerging Markets, EIMI) up +10.9%, and the iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (Developed Markets ex-US, EFA) up +12.0% year-to-date.

These results underscore our conviction in maintaining a diversified geographic exposure, which allows us to capture growth opportunities beyond the US while balancing regional risks.

Mixed Factor Results, Long-Term Discipline Intact

Factors remain a foundational part of our long-term investment strategy. In 2025, Value, Size, and Quality have underperformed their long-term averages, a normal phase within the factor investing cycle.

As we’ve previously highlighted, factors often experience shorter periods of underperformance before reverting to their historical trends.

In July, we saw signs of recovery. The VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (MOAT), which blends Value and Quality, delivered solid returns but remains under review within our portfolio framework.

We maintain confidence in our factor-driven Smart Beta approach as a core driver of long-term portfolio performance.

Gold Shines, Bonds Stabilise

Fixed income made a modest comeback in July, contributing positively to our multi-asset Core portfolios after a more challenging first half of the year.

Gold continued to shine, extending its strong run in 2025. The metal has now returned 19% year-to-date in SGD, benefiting from persistent demand for safe-haven assets and central bank accumulation. Gold’s role as a portfolio diversifier has been particularly valuable this year, helping offset equity and bond volatility during earlier market stress.

Together, fixed income and gold have helped reinforce the defensive strength of our multi-asset Core portfolios. These asset classes remain important components in our effort to manage downside risks while capturing long-term growth.

Looking Ahead

Uncertainty is a constant in investing, but so is opportunity. Here’s what our investment team is monitoring:

Rate cuts expected across major markets, next Fed meeting mid-September.
Valuations remain elevated, as AI optimism contends with macro risks including fiscal policy shifts and geopolitical tensions.
Potential growth sectors are emerging, such as the REITs rebound and disruptive technology

We continue to take a long-term, research-driven view, focused on building resilient portfolios that can navigate both upside and downside risks.

Investment Strategy

Our role is to help clients stay invested with confidence, through both volatility and opportunity. Based on current market conditions, consider the following actions:

Stay geographically diversified with Core portfolios, if valuations are a concern, dollar-cost averaging (DCA) is a prudent strategy to smoothen market entry.

Automate your investing. Setting up auto-invest can help you stay consistent and remove the stress of trying to time the market.
Explore satellite exposure. With local REITs rebounding, REIT+ offers a focused way to complement your Core portfolio with local real estate.

If you have any questions, feedback or there are other topics you would like to hear more on then please don’t hesitate to reach out at [email protected].