2025 Portfolio Review – A Look Back Before Moving Forward
This is my first blog post of 2026, so let me start by wishing everyone a Happy New Year. I hope 2026 will be kind to all of us, with good health, steady income, and returns that are at least as decent as what we experienced in 2025. No need for anything spectacular, just consistent and sensible gains will do. 😊
Before rushing into new plans and ideas for the year ahead,
I find it important to pause and properly review the past year. Investing is a
long journey, and these yearly check-ins help me stay grounded, remind myself
what worked, what didn’t, and what I should not take for granted.
How 2025 Started – Strong Momentum, Then a Reality Check
Then April came.
The market correction that hit in April was sharp and
uncomfortable. The main trigger was the Trump
tariff war, or so-called “Liberation
Days”. Tariff threats, retaliation headlines, and daily market
noise caused volatility to spike very quickly. Prices dropped across several
markets, and sentiment turned cautious almost overnight.
It was one of those periods where you are reminded that markets don’t move
in a straight line. Even when fundamentals haven’t changed much,
fear and uncertainty can take over in the short term.
Thankfully, as the year progressed, negotiations continued,
and some clarity slowly returned. Markets stabilised, and prices recovered
gradually. By the second half of the year, things felt more balanced again,
although volatility never fully disappeared.
Performance Summary – Numbers That Matter
Looking at the full year, I’m satisfied with how the
portfolio performed.
For 2025, the portfolio delivered an XIRR of +28.11%.
Before currency adjustment, the return was even higher at +32.91% ( but we
have to accept the currency risk as part of diversification into other
markets). To put things into perspective, in 2024, the portfolio XIRR was +14.9%.
That means we have achieved two consecutive years of double-digit growth, with a combined growth of around 43.01% over these two years. That is very rare and exceptional by any reasonable standard.
As another measurement of the performance, I am happy that this year I also beat the benchmark index by +2.79% ( vs the weighted average of Portfolio % from various Market Indexes of 25.32% )
At the same time, I think it’s important to stay realistic. Returns like this are not normal every year, and it would
be a mistake to assume the same pace will continue indefinitely. Markets
have cycles, and future returns are likely to be more moderate. Being mentally
prepared for that is part of staying disciplined as an investor.
Looking further back, the XIRR since inception (1998)
stands at 14.3% (0.8% increase over last year). This is the number I care about the most. Over such a
long time frame, I’m genuinely happy with this outcome. It tells me the strategy has worked through multiple market cycles,
not just during good years.
Dividends – The Quiet Hero of 2025
In 2025, total dividends received amounted to $231,337,
compared to $189,665 in 2024. That’s an increase of about 22%
year-on-year and another milestone that the dividend
collected has exceeded $200K mark.
What’s encouraging is that this increase didn’t come mainly
from injecting large amounts of new capital. Net capital flow for the year
was only around +2.36%. The bulk of the dividend growth came from higher
payouts by the companies themselves. 😁
This reinforces why I still value dividend-paying businesses
so much. Even when markets are volatile and prices move up and down, dividends provide tangible cash flow. They
smooth out the emotional ups and downs and give the portfolio a sense of
progress even during choppy periods. Of course will also need to pick those companies with strong fundamental and sustainable free cash flow to either re-invest ( CAPEX ) or pay dividends.
For 2025, the portfolio yield stood at around 5.7%,
which I consider healthy and sustainable for the type of companies I hold.
The Power of Compounding and Starting Early
One thing that becomes clearer the longer I invest is how
powerful compounding really is “ Time does
most of the heavy lifting”. Reinvested dividends, small gains
added year after year, and patience make a huge difference. Starting early
matters more than timing the market. Even average returns can become meaningful
wealth when given enough time. Clearly,
this can be shown from the chart below that I only started with less than $1K
p.a. of dividend in 1998, and it continues to increase with more re-investing and
compounding to now more than $200K p.a. 😊
Dividend Breakdown by Market – Where the Income Comes From
Looking at the dividend breakdown by market, the portfolio
remains heavily tilted towards Asia, especially Hong Kong and Singapore.
HKEX contributed the largest share of dividends for
the year, accounting for roughly 57% of total dividends. This reflects
my exposure to Chinese and Hong Kong-listed companies, many of which are mature
businesses with strong cash generation and generous payout policies.
SGX was the second-largest contributor at about 33%.
Singapore remains a core market for me, particularly for banks, REITs, and
selected blue chips that provide stable and predictable income.
LSE contributed around 9%, while NYSE
exposure remained very small, contributing less than 1% of total
dividends. The US market is not a major income driver for this portfolio, and
that is by design, mostly the Tech stocks.
On a quarterly basis, dividend inflows were uneven, which is
normal given different payout schedules across markets. Q2 and Q3 were
particularly strong, while Q4 was softer. Over a full year, these differences
tend to balance out, and we shouldn’t pay too much attention to monthly figures.
Portfolio Breakdown by Market – Geographic Diversification
From a portfolio allocation perspective (not just
dividends), the breakdown by market shows a fairly diversified structure (
though skewed towards the HK market ).
- HKEX
makes up about 59.5% of the portfolio
- SGX
accounts for roughly 26.7%
- LSE
stands at around 12.7%
- NYSE
is about 1.1%
This allocation reflects my comfort level and familiarity
with Asian markets, especially Singapore and Hong Kong. These are markets I
follow closely, understand better, and feel more confident navigating during
periods of volatility.
At the same time, having exposure to the UK and a small
slice of the US adds some geographical diversification and different economic
drivers, like the UK more on Energy and Commodities, even if
they are not the main contributors in 2025.
Portfolio Breakdown by Sector – Not Just One Story
Sector diversification is another area I pay close attention
to.
The largest sector exposure is Financials, making up
about 26.3% of the portfolio. This includes banks and financial
institutions that benefit from scale,
strong balance sheets, and consistent cash flows. It’s a sector I’m comfortable
holding over the long term, especially in Singapore and parts of Asia.
Next is Conglomerates at around 17.9%. These
are businesses with diversified operations, which can provide some resilience during economic slowdowns.
Energy and commodities come in at about 16.9%,
reflecting exposure to companies that benefit from global demand and
inflationary environments, but which can also be volatile.
REITs make up around 9.8%, providing steady income and some inflation protection, although higher interest rates remain a risk to
watch.
Technology sits at roughly 9.1%, while consumer
discretionary, industrial & electronic manufacturing, transport
& logistics, and healthcare make up smaller portions of the
portfolio.
Utilities, telecoms, and property development are present
but kept intentionally small. Overall, no single sector dominates excessively,
which helps reduce concentration risk. The overall portfolio composition basically
remains unchanged, with an increase in Financial due to stronger price
appreciations and a drop in Energy & Commodities ( from around 20%) due to
lower oil prices and iron ore prices, which affect the Oil Majors ( SHELL/BP) and BHP/RIO.
Lessons from 2025
If there’s one key takeaway from 2025, it’s this: volatility is part of the journey, not a sign that something is broken.
The April correction was uncomfortable, but it didn’t derail
the long-term plan. Dividends continued to come in, businesses continued to
operate, and markets eventually found their footing again.
Another lesson is to stay humble during good years. Two years
of strong returns are something to be grateful for, not something to assume
will repeat endlessly.
Managing expectations is just as important as managing capital.
Final Thoughts
Gratitude for the strong returns, growing dividends,
and the fact that a long-term, disciplined approach continues to work. Caution, because markets have a
way of reminding us not to get complacent.
I don’t expect 2026 to be as strong ( also don't have crystal ball to predict the market returns in 2026 ) as 2025, and that’s
perfectly fine. If the portfolio can continue to grow steadily, generate
reliable income, and compound sensibly over time, that’s more than enough. As usual, if I need to give any advice or prediction, I would say that the market will be "volatile" and fluctuate in short term ,but if invest in good fundamental companies in the long run, it should be fine with earnings grow and compounding effect,just need to have long term view and patience.
As always, the goal remains simple: keep calm, stay invested, and collect dividends. 😊
Till next update!
Cheers!
STE
Top 50 Holdings :
** The top holding CHN/HK Value ETF include 2800/2801/3437/3070/3416
Holding 51-116 :
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