US markets rallied following the news, with the S&P 500 index closing 3.3 per cent higher and the Nasdaq Composite index surging 4.4 per cent by the close.

Despite the precious metal’s spot price breaking US$3,000 in March and surging to US$3,500 less than two months later, buyers do not appear deterred and sales are still going strong.

The police and four banks here worked together to stop more than 3,500 bank customers from losing over $51.7 million through scams, in a two-month operation.

DBS, OCBC and UOB each said this was a pre-emptive step to beef up their reserves as they navigate the impact of US tariffs and a possible economic slowdown,

With this launch, users will no longer be able to add card details to their device for contactless payment until they switch on the “mobile wallets” toggle in the DBS banking app.

But market watchers warn that the Singapore dollar’s strength against the greenback could cut both ways for companies here.

On a year-on-year basis, retail sales grew 1.1 per cent, against the previous month’s 3.5 per cent fall, according to figures released by the Singapore Department of Statistics on May 5.

Singapore’s currency was up 0.6 per cent to 1.292 per US dollar as at 5.02pm local time. This brought its advance to date in 2025 to 5.3 per cent.

The weakening growth outlook will, however, keep inflation – already at a four-year low – modest, with both core and all-items inflation averaging between 0.5 per cent and 1.5 per cent in 2025.

He had a “productive” virtual meeting with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on April 25 to discuss bilateral economic and business ties.

Meanwhile, prices in the landed private property segment stabilised, gaining 0.4 per cent in the first quarter, compared with a 0.1 per cent drop in the previous quarter.

Its real GDP growth forecast for Singapore is now 2 per cent for 2025, from 4.4 per cent achieved in 2024. Its previous forecast for 2025, released in October 2024, was 2.5 per cent.