Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

Having clinched MULTIPLE gold medals representing Team Singapore, you'd think national swimmer Toh Wei Soong gets the recognition he deserves for his heroics. Not quite. Tune in as he tells us about his battle overcoming transverse myelitis to emerge as a champion in the pool, the lack of support for para-athletes like himself and his aspirations for 2024! Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg

New year, new gear? If you love the great outdoors, it might be time to invest in new wearables in 2024! Suunto, a pioneering force in GPS sports watches and navigation technology, has recently unveiled their latest innovations, SUUNTO RACE and SUUNTO WING. With state-of-the-art technology and durability, these devices are set to create a new benchmark in the world of adventure and sports technology.  Cody Huang, Head of APAC, Suunto explains how their latest technological innovation addresses the evolving needs of outdoor enthusiasts and athletes. 

Singapore stocks opened lower today to track overnight losses in European markets. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) declined 0.4 per cent to 3,186.29 points after 26.8 million securities changed hands in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch for today, we have Singapore Airlines. The national carrier posted a 15.8 per cent increase in passenger traffic in December 2023 during the year-end peak travel season.  Meanwhile, from how the global ETFs industry fared so far to China’s plan for the massive silver economy, to news surrounding Apple and OpenAI, international headlines are in focus today. On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with Toby Gresham, Investment Counselor Team Lead, Citi Private Bank.

In this edition of China Perspective, we focus on China's reactions relating to Taiwan election results.  Dr. Oh Ei Sun, Senior Fellow, Singapore Institute of International Affairs shares his views.

It’s all about storing your computer data safely and securely through the use of hardware solutions.  You might recall storing data in hard disk drives in the past which often has slow reading and writing speeds.   Fast forward to today, super-fast SSDs or Solid State Drive that use NAND-based flash memory to store data are more commonly used, as they are said to be more reliable and efficient than hard drives.  But while they may be faster, the question remains as to whether using SSDs are more secure. And that’s the problem that our guest Flexxon wants to address.  Founded in 2007, Flexxon is a Singapore-headquartered firm that marries cybersecurity solutions and hardware. In particular, the firm launched the world’s first AI-embedded firmware based cybersecurity solution called the X-PHY® Cybersecure SSD in 2021.  The solution detects anomalies in behavioural data access patterns and effectively shuts down potential incursions in real-time to prevent critical data loss and exposure.  The solution has since been integrated into laptops with major PC makers including Lenovo, ASUS, HP, and Thomson Computing. But how does it work exactly? Meanwhile, the Heliconia-backed firm also said it has 30 patents under its belt, but what can we look forward to in terms of its product pipeline for the year?  On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Camellia Chan, CEO and Founder, FLEXXON.

Kevin De Bruyne marked his return to full fitness with a sublime showing off the bench to inspire City's 3-2 comeback win against Newcastle. Could the Citizen's talisman returning click the reigning champions into the next gear? We discuss this and all the rest of the weekend's results! Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg

With corporations looking for unique experiences to pull employees back to the workplace, sustainability has become an unlikely hero for employee engagement.  With a firm belief that urban farming should be enjoyed by all, homegrown urban farming company Grobrix is helping corporations such as KPMG, LinkedIn, Cushman & Wakefield to place sustainability and employee wellness on the agenda. So how are they doing so? Mathew Howe, Founder, Grobrix tells us more. 

Taiwan has elected its new president, the Democratic Progressive Party's Lai Ching-te, who is also the current Vice President. Saturday's election was closely watched, not just by Taiwanese voters, but also by China, and the United States. What does the result of the Taiwanese presidential election mean for Washington’s delicate relationship with Beijing? Emeritus Professor Joseph Camilleri, La Trobe University, Melbourne and Fellow, The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australiaexplains.  .

We’re going to talk all about the disposable gloves that gained prominence over the pandemic today.  Founded in 1989, our guest is Thailand's largest gloves producer Sri Trang Gloves Thailand.  The firm makes a wide range of natural latex and nitrile examination gloves as well as general-purpose disposable gloves that cater to a wide variety of uses such as healthcare and medical, food processing and handling, as well as manufacturing.  Just to give you a sense of the company’s scale of operations, Sri Trang Gloves Thailand has production facilities in three provinces in Thailand producing over 49.5 billion pieces of disposable rubber gloves every year.  Why are we talking about Sri Trang Gloves you might ask? Well, glove companies the likes of Top Glove, Sri Trang, Supermax were put into the spotlight in prior years as the pandemic pushed up demand for personal protective equipment and protective gear. While that interest has somewhat fizzled as economies opened up post pandemic, causing a supply glut, the sector was put into the spotlight once again amid a rise in infection numbers within Southeast Asia last December.  But is the recent rise in interest sufficient to drive up demand for the near term? What are glove makers doing right now to position themselves for more sustainable and reliable growth in the future? And is the current lull period a good time for glove makers to reassess their portfolio, consolidate business units and improve their financial standing? On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to  Jarinya Jirokul, CEO, Sri Trang Gloves Thailand.

A town council’s decision to partially cordon off the void deck of a public housing block in Singapore to prevent ball-playing has caused quite the stir on social media. A staple of most of us who grew up in the 90s, what are kids of today being robbed off - beyond just outdoor play? Sazali Abdul Aziz, assistant editor with The Straits Times, joins us to discuss this trending debate. READ MORE: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/no-football-signs-leave-a-void-in-the-void-deck Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg