Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

Malaysia's Pardons Board has announced that former Prime Minister Najib Razak's jail sentence for corruption has been reduced from 12 to six years. The fines imposed on him will also be reduced to RM50 million (S$14.2 million) from RM210 million. Nicholas Fang, Managing Director, Black Dot and Director for Security and Global Affairs, Singapore Institute of International Affairs discuss this headline with us. 

Singapore shares climbed at the market open today, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) rose 0.5 per cent to reach 3,158.38 points after 48.1 million securities changed hands in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch today, we have DBS. The bank said it will merge its equity capital markets, brokerage DBS Vickers and DBS Digital Exchange with its treasury markets business from March.  Elsewhere from Meta announcing its first dividend to China’s central bank adding 150 billion yuan in cheap housing funds, more international headlines are in focus. On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments withSunny Soh, Lead Technical Analyst (Capital Markets & Investor Education), SIAS.

But while the existence of some AI platforms ChatGPT might have been beneficial to some organisations, what if they can build their own AI solution?  Google Cloud, along with The Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI), Digital Industry Singapore (DISG), Smart Nation Group (SNG), and Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) has recently launched a series of joint initiatives and updates aimed at advancing Singapore’s second National AI Strategy (NAIS 2.0). Caroline Yap, Managing Director, Global AI Business and Applied Engineering, Google Cloud tells us more about these initiatives. 

Retrenchments in Singapore more than doubled in 2023 from the previous year to 14,320, even as the overall unemployment rate fell slightly. Total employment growth for the full year of 2023 slowed amid weaker economic conditions, following a sharp post-pandemic rebound in 2022. So should we expect this trend to stay? Rahul Chawla, Partner & Head of Human Capital Solutions, Southeast Asia, Aon shares his views. 

Satellite technology has brought about a number of benefits for people on the ground, such as improved weather forecasting and communications.  In particular, a type of satellite called the Synthetic Aperture Radar or SAR satellites, can monitor ground activity 24/7 and penetrate rain, smoke and cloud cover, allowing governments to monitor weather conditions such as tropical storms and wildfires.  And that’s exactly what our guest does. Established in 2018, Synspective is a Japanese end-to-end satellite data and solution provider. The startup has a SAR satellite constellation that enables high-frequency and high-resolution Earth observation.  It combines the data collected with machine learning and data science techniques to derive insights on issues such as flood damage, land displacement and forestry inventory management. The insights are then provided to both private and public sector clients, such as government agencies.   But why are we speaking to Synspective? Well, the firm is seeing a number of interesting developments of late.  For one thing, it was awarded a 4.1 billion yen grant by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Japan  to develop innovative applications using SAR satellites as at the end of 2023. So what can we expect on this front? Meanwhile, the startup also signed an agreement with Uzbekistan’s Centre for Space Monitoring and Geoinformation Technologies and the national space agency of Kazakhstan, the Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary in January to carry out research or develop new applications to collect data for disaster management. But how far is Central Asia a bright spot for Synspective? On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Vincent Kessler, General Manager Synspective SG.

With greater policing of FFP & Profitability and Sustainability, clubs across Europe have had their purse strings tightened. Heading into the final day of the window, only 17 players have been signed by Premier League clubs in January, with 10 permanent transfers, seven loan deals and disclosed fees of about £50m. The outlay in January 2023? A a record-breaking £843m! We speak to James Walton, Sports Business Group Leader with Deloitte Asia, to find out more! Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg

It’s always a challenge to restore a heritage building, and it can be a fine balance between preserving links to the past and embracing the future. But there’s a new hotel in Singapore that’s doing just that! 21 Carpenter breathes a new lease of life into the former Remittance House, Chye Hua Seng Wee Kee, dating back to 1936.  Tarun Kalra, General Manager of 21 Carpenter tells us more about the hotel's unique selling point and how they are staying ahead of industry trends for the new generation of travelers.

Singapore stocks began trading in negative territory this morning, following overnight losses on Wall Street amid earnings releases. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.8 per cent to 3,127.06 points, after 97.8 million securities changed hands in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch, we have Keppel, after the asset manager posted a 2.5 per cent rise in net profit to S$439.9 million for the second half ended Dec 31, 2023. Elsewhere, from the language used in the Federal Reserve’s latest post meeting comments, to big tech CEOs grilled by US officials, more international headlines remain in focus. On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian dived into the details with Terence Wong, CEO, Azure Capital.

Women account for almost half the working population, yet this is the stark opposite of the actual representation in boardrooms of major companies worldwide. Singapore is no exception, despite positive policies and changing attitudes, women's advancement in corporate leadership lags behind other developed markets.  As of June 2023, women held only 22.7 percent of board seats in top 100 listed companies in Singapore. Junie Foo, President, Singapore Council Of Women's Organisations (SCWO) & Co-Founding Chair, BoardAgender tells us more about the non-profit's efforts to help female leaders get a seat in the boardroom. 

Long lines have popped up in Russia and beyond to get Boris Nadezhdin, an anti-war candidate, onto the ballot for Russia’s presidential election in March. Mr Nadezhdin is running against Vladimir Putin, who has headed Russia since the beginning of the millennium. Will the Kremlin allow an anti-war candidate to run for the presidency? On the other hand, what does Putin's unsurprising re-election bid mean for Russia's future? We find out from Dr Samir Puri, Associate Fellow, UK in the World Programme, Chatham House.