Santa Rally Is Over

For the past couple weeks, it felt like stocks only knew how to go up. Prices drifted higher and higher on holiday optimism. But looking at the screens this week, the holiday is definitely coming to an end.

Geopolitical tensions are flashing across the news ticker again. The market is remembering that the world is actually a messy, complicated place. I took the chance to accumulate some defensive positions in my portfolio.

The Value Play, UOB: Everyone loves DBS and OCBC right now. But as an investor, the price tag matters as much as popularity. I picked up shares at $35.87 this week, seeing that it trades at a relatively lower price-to-book of 1.17 while offering an attractive dividend yield. UOB offers a margin of safety while remaining a blue chip company with solid business fundamentals to remain profitable and survive a financial crisis.

Great Eastern: Trading at a P/E of just 7.3, this is a classic "defensive" asset. It is cash-rich, boring, and pays a reliable dividend. In a choppy market, I want to own companies that make money even if the stock market closes for a month. I started a new position buying shares at $15.39.

Buy The Dip, Singtel: Singtel had a massive run in 2025, and investors might be looking at it thinking they missed the boat. The stock recently corrected >10% and I took the opportunity to start a new position in Singtel at a price of $4.43. Singtel is our market leader in the telco sector, and the company has a strong commitment to shareholder returns especially with their dividend policy. 

My Current Watchlist

The rising geopolitical tension is unfortunate for the world, but it often creates opportunities for the patient investor. If the market sells off on fear, I will want to collect some quality companies that haven't seen a good discount in a while.

My eyes are fixed on these companies for the next leg down:

DBS and OCBC. While I own significant positions in the sector already, their high valuations make them prone to larger selldowns. If fear drives prices down and yields back up, I will gladly add to my unit count.

CICT. I will happily pick up more prime real estate when offered at a discount. I have added FCT last month and I am looking to add more CICT as well. Singapore real estate remains ever attractive, and these two REITs are great ways to gain exposure to retail and office properties. 

Summary

The December holidays have come to an end. 2026 is going to be another choppy year. There will be red days, there will be scary headlines. My playbook for 2026 will involve adding blue chip stocks to my portfolio, and making sure to take advantage of any market selldown to add quality stocks at a discount. 

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