The Evening Runway with Elliott Danker, Timothy Go and Chua Tian Tian

If you are looking for a place that combines rich historical significance with a variety of activities, Kazakhstan should be at the top of your travel list. As the world's largest landlocked country, Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world, covering an area equivalent to Western Europe. We get an exclusive inside of Kazakhstan and the potential the country has to be the Singapore of Eurasia with His Excellency, Askar Kuttykadam, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. 

Singapore stocks opened slightly lower today after global equities closed largely on a positive note. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) was down 0.1 per cent to 3,074.93 points after 21.2 million securities changed hands in the broader market.  In terms of companies to watch for today, we have Nio. The electric vehicle player sank deeper into the red with a net loss of 4.6 billion yuan (S$868.7 million) for the third quarter of FY2023.  Elsewhere from US job openings falling to a more than two-and-a-half year low in October to China blue-chip stocks hitting 5-year lows, more international and corporate headlines remain in focus. On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian dived into the details with David Poh, Head of Investment and ESG Strategies, South Asia, Amundi.

From Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) retaining their Kemaman seat with candidate Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar to six Thai hostages kidnapped and held for weeks in the Gaza Strip by Hamas arriving back home on Monday.  Adib Zalkapli, Director, BowerGroupAsia gives us an analysis of those headlines and more. 

This conversation is set to help you cool down in sunny Singapore.  Our guest for today is Carrier Corporation, which is a leading global provider of sustainable and intelligent building and cold chain solutions.  The firm is mainly focused on three business areas, namely heating, ventilation and cooling or HVAC, refrigeration and fire and security.  In total, the segments generate US$20.4 billion in net sales for the year of 2022, with Asia Pacific contributing some 17% to the figure.  With the global heating, ventilation and cooling (HVAC) system market projected to grow to US$228.74 billion by 2030, how does Carrier intend to capture growth looking ahead? What is its area of focus within Asia and particularly in the Southeast Asian markets of Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei? Meanwhile, Carrier had in April announced strategic actions to transform its business portfolio and establish itself as a pure-play, global leader in intelligent climate and energy solutions. But what were the reasons behind that? On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to  Chong Wai Yen, Managing Director, Carrier Corporation.

The global luxury market continues its upward trajectory and is projected to reach a record €1.5 trillion in 2023, according to a new report from Bain & Company and Italian luxury goods association Altagamma. This represents an 8-10% growth over 2022, proving the sector’s resilience amid economic uncertainty. What trends will shape the luxury industry in 2024 and beyond? And as markets shift and consumer preferences change, how should luxury brands adapt in order to stay competitive? Federica Levato, Partner at Bain & Company & Leader in Global Fashion and Luxury Goods Practice explains. 

Singapore stocks opened weaker today following overnight losses on global markets. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.1 per cent to 3,080.87 points after 19.5 million securities changed hands in the broader market. Meanwhile, international headlines are in focus today with investors mulling a private sector survey which showed China’s services activity expanded at a quicker pace in November.  Also in focus today – Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang’s comments that the firm will build a network of semiconductor plants in Japan, as well as US consumer spending outlook and gold prices.  On Market View, Drive Time’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with Ken Shih, Head of Wealth Management, Greater China, SAXO Markets. 

It is not uncommon for employees to use their corporate devices to hunt for tempting gift deals. This allure of online shopping and festive cheer also unfortunately brings with it an increased risk of holiday scams, which for businesses can lead to the compromise of sensitive corporate data and financial losses. So what are the risks associated with employees using corporate devices for personal holiday shopping? Lindsay Brown, Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific and Japan, GoTo shares how a secure IT infrastructure can help safeguard employees from scams in this shopping holiday period. 

Omakase, seafood buffet, beef steaks and warm bowls of ramen or perhaps delicious bowls of bak chor mee, or minced meat noodles topped with a dash of tangy black vinegar. You might have seen countless videos of people recommending restaurants and eateries serving delectable meals on social media, but have you ever how many of them do you end up remembering and trying out?  Well, that’s the problem that our guest for today, Drigmo, aims to solve. Founded by ex-Googlers in 2022, Drigmo aims to be a Spotify playlist, but for food.  Put simply, it is a social app where users create their own restaurant lists, organise the places on a map, and bring the list to life by adding notes, pictures and videos. Users can also see what their friends have on their lists and save discoveries from them.  The app was first announced in Singapore via TikTok in March this year. Since then, users have saved over 45,000 places and created over 15,000 tags on the platform. According to a DealStreetAsia article, the firm hopes to disrupt Google’s restaurant reviews.  So how does the firm define the industry it operates in and its positioning strategy?  More importantly, how much money is in the restaurant review business and what does Drigmo’s growth trajectory look like in the near future? On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Pieter Walraven, Co-founder, Drigmo.

From China’s Communist Party signaling further delay to third plenum to China Evergrande Group granted an adjournment of a court hearing into a liquidation petition to January 29.  Dr. Oh Ei Sun, Senior Fellow, Singapore Institute of International Affairs gives us an analysis of those headlines and more. 

If money and accolades bring many of the finer things in life, why are "successful" Singaporeans still unhappy, unfulfilled, and dissatisfied? In fact, today 80 percent of senior executive leaders and C-suites in Singapore are on the verge of quitting, with Singapore losing S$16 billion a year because of crippling mental health conditions that lead to high absenteeism and low productivity.  Kellyjo Coney-Khan, Founder and Psychotherapist, Tidylodge shares with us stubborn barriers to achieving better mental health in Singapore, especially for C-Suites and high-net-worth working professionals.