The World Index gained 2.49% in August. The MSCI Far East Ex. Japan index continued to chalk up further gain, adding 1.91%, supported by Chinese markets. ASEAN equities performed well with a return of +2.39%, on good performance across the ASEAN markets. Within ASEAN equities, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia stood out with strong returns. Vietnam shares (+11.96%) and Malaysia shares (+4.09%) were top gainers. Performance of regional currencies against the USD was mixed. The best performing currencies were Philippines Peso (+2.08%), Thai Baht (+1.33%) and Singapore Dollar (+1.10%), while the weaker ones were Taiwan NT (-2.26%) and Vietnam Dong (-0.56%)