Portfolio Rescue: How My SG Portfolio Saves the Quarter

UPDATE (4 April 2026): Here’s a quick video summary of the post, generated by NotebookLM.

“SaaSpocalypse“.

Escalating Middle-East conflicts.

While I didn’t foresee these specific crises, they have confirmed the ebb and flow of my portfolio’s “rhythm,” much like I wrote about in 2026 Investment Outlook: Carrying an Umbrella in the Sun? just a few months ago.

The good news: My portfolio has been more resilient than expected. It is only up by 1%, but I am grateful that it has held firm against the onslaught.

Perhaps the real impact hasn’t arrived yet. Perhaps it never will.

What is crucial, however, is the preparation — ensuring you stay afloat if the storm finally breaks.

US Portfolio: Facing the Brunt at the Front Line

Let’s get real.

With a US portfolio laden with tech counters, it is no surprise that I’m feeling the heat from the current “SaaSpocalypse.”

Year-to-date (YTD), my US portfolio is down by a whopping 16%, while the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) has only dropped by less than 6%.

Interestingly, the market seems to be in “sell everything tech” mode. It is punishing the software companies it thinks will be disrupted by AI, while simultaneously selling off the “disruptors” themselves.

Even my larger infrastructure positions like Arista Networks (ANET) and Alphabet (GOOGL) haven’t been spared from the carnage.

Why I’m Not Losing Sleep Over This Drawdown

Despite the red on the screen, I’m staying calm for three simple reasons:

1. A Necessary Valuation Reset

After the relentless bull run of the past few years, many tech valuations were stretched thin. My US portfolio more than doubled over the three-year period from 2022 to 2025.

It allows the underlying business fundamentals to catch up with the stock prices, clearing out the “froth” from the market.

2. Survival of the Adaptable

I don’t believe AI will kill the entire SaaS industry. You are seeing a separation of wheat from chaff:

• The Vulnerable: Companies that only provide a user interface (dashboards and basic UX) are easily replaced by AI agents.
  
• The Resilient: Companies dealing with the “backbone” — proprietary data and mission-critical cybersecurity — are much harder to disrupt. Those that successfully pivot their business models to embrace this shift won’t just survive; they will bounce back stronger.

3. The Insatiable Demand for AI

Much like the early days of the Internet, the long-term demand for AI is only going in one direction: up.

The current “roadblocks” aren’t about a lack of demand, but rather physical constraints like energy consumption and thermal management. These are engineering challenges, which will be solved (maybe by AI) in due time.

The recent announcement of Google’s TurboQuant Algorithm — which slashes the memory required for AI context by 6x — is a prime example of how innovation consistently finds a way to widen the path when the industry hits a bottleneck.

Therefore, the long-term secular growth story for the infrastructure play in my portfolio, Arista, Alphabet and Microsoft (MSFT), remains firmly intact.

Finally, having less than 25% exposure to the US markets, the loss is offset by the strength of my SG portfolio.

SG Portfolio: Holding The Fort

While it has been a tough battle on the US front, my SG portfolio has been holding the fort, with a return of 6.8% for the quarter against SPDR STI ETF (ES3)’s 5.2%.

If you have read my posts over the past two months, you would know that AEM Holdings (AWX) has contributed significantly to this quarter’s performance.

It’s having a huge lead in the race with an astonishing YTD return of 143%!

Moreover, the latest strategic partnership with ASE Technology (ASE) not only bodes well for its growth trajectory, but the two tranches of warrants – with exercise prices anchored at S$4.11 and S$4.19 – provide a strong psychological “floor” for the stock.

It’s not just AEM propping up my SG portfolio’s performance, though; 11 out of the 14 stocks are in the green this year.

Among them, Micro-Mechanics (55D) and UMS Integration (558) have also performed exceptionally well with returns of ~40%.

It’s interesting to note that while my US portfolio is experiencing a tech sell-off, my SG portfolio is being boosted by semiconductor-related stocks. The likely reason is the delay in the recognition of sales and profits in these downstream manufacturers.

With such performance, you might wonder: Why is my SG portfolio only up 6.8%?

The answer lies in the relative underperformance of three holdings – Amova-STC AREIT (CFA), Frasers Centrepoint Trust (J69U), and iFAST Corporation (AIY),

While they are only down slightly (low single-digit percent), their heavier weightings cause the drag.

However, I’m not bothered by it.

It’s clear to me that as long as iFAST continues to execute its growth plan well, the market will re-rate it eventually.

As for the Amova REIT ETF and FCT, their dividends will boost the total returns in the coming quarters.

Portfolio Top 10 Positions

With the various strategic shifts during the quarter, here are the latest top 10 positions of my portfolio.

These are two notable changes when compared to the previous quarter.

• Two Newcomers: Micro-Mechanics (55D) has taken over the slot vacated by UOB (U11) following my divestment. Meanwhile, the recent price drop in the US tech sector caused Alphabet (GOOGL) to temporarily exit the top 10.
  
  While HRnetGroup (CHZ) holds that tenth slot for now, it is being hotly contested by the surging AEM, The Hour Glass (AGS), and UMS.
  
• Increased Concentration: The total weighting of my top 10 positions has inched up by 1.7%
  
  This is partly due to my tactical additions to iFAST and Parkway Life REIT (C2PU), but it also reflects the outperformance of my higher-conviction stocks during this volatile period.

2Q 2026 Outlook: Time to Buy the Dip?

I always look forward to the second quarter for its bumper dividends. However, with dark clouds currently looming, I am in no hurry to deploy them.

My strategy for the coming months is one of calculated patience.

If the current volatility worsens into a formal correction or a sharp crash, I am ready to activate my contingency plan: deploying my CPF-OA funds into the Amundi Index MSCI World Fund across my pre-planned tranches.

Should this evolve into a long-drawn bear market, my three-year cash buffer is designed precisely for this — to allow me to ride through the cycle without compromising my lifestyle or my long-term holdings.

For the specific Actionable Steps I’ve written for myself, you can read the final section of this post: Can I Survive The Next Bear Market?

Ultimately, I cannot control the weather, but I can certainly adjust the sails.

With the right preparation, there is no need to over-worry about the unknowns.

Instead, I simply need to stay alert, disciplined, and nimble enough to navigate whatever comes our way.

In the meantime, you’ll find me busy at upcoming AGMs, continuing to learn from the business leaders who are navigating these same waters.