Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

We dive deep into a groundbreaking study by More Than Equal, an organisation co-founded by ex-Formula 1 driver David Coulthard, that uncovers the deep-rooted prejudices preventing female growth in the world of motorsport. Joining us to xplore the challenges faced by women in this male-dominated industry and shed light on the barriers that hinder their progress is Alex Yoong, former F1 driver & founder of AXLE Motorsport. Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg

Singapore stocks opened weaker today following overnight losses on Wall Street. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.2 per cent to 3,179.3 points after 47.1 million securities changed hands. In terms of companies to watch, we have Singapore Post. That’s after the Singapore government said it will consider allowing SingPost to introduce postage rate adjustments to “better reflect the cost of letter mail business”.  Elsewhere, from the latest Federal Reserve’s policy meeting minutes to Chinese investors rushing to make dollar deposits and buy Hong Kong insurance – we’ve got more international headlines in focus.  On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director Azure Capital.

Do you still remember the time when every eligible Singaporean could book for attraction tickets, hotel stay-cations and local tours using the SingapoRediscovers Vouchers?  Well, we are bringing this up because our guest for today is one of the industry players that helped to facilitate your SingapoRediscovers voucher redemption.  Founded in 2013, GlobalTix is one of the leading reservation and distribution platforms that provide end-to-end solutions for attractions and operators of tours and activities to grow, manage and connect tourist activities to travel agents.  How does it differ from your Klook or KKDay you might ask? Well, think of it this way, GlobalTix is not an online travel agency that manages and aggregates your tour bookings.  Instead, works as a wholesaler providing reservation and distribution platforms for clients such as Gardens by the Bay, Mandai Wildlife Group and the Singapore Airlines. That means all customer bookings and data goes are managed by the attractions or tour operators themselves rather than GlobalTix.  But how exactly does GlobalTix position itself in the ticketing business? And with tourism coming back in full swing, what does it mean for GlobalTix’s product offerings? On Under the Radar, Chee Kong Chan, COO, GlobalTix joined Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian in-studio for more.

From Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn inaugurating the opening of the country's parliament on Monday, to updates on Pita Limjaroenrat's race to become Prime Minister, we put Thailand in focus on this edition of Regional Roundup. We speak to Dr. Termsak Chalermpalanupap, Visiting Fellow & Acting-Coordinator of the Thailand Studies Programme, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute more about these headlines.

Mental health awareness is becoming increasingly more important as factors that could pose a threat to mental health, such as social media, are playing a larger role in a lot of our lives. McDonald's has launched the Family Mental Wellness campaign in 2022 to promote greater awareness amongst parents on the importance of supporting their children's mental wellness.  We speak to Benjamin Boh, Managing Director, McDonald's Singapore more about this.

Singapore stocks opened weaker today, following cautious sentiments in the European market amid global economic uncertainties. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.1 per cent to 3,199.39 points, after 79.5 million securities worth S$35.9 million changed hands. In terms of companies to watch for today, we have UOL Group, after the real estate group entered into an agreement with an entity of Worldwide Hotels, to sell Parkroyal on Kitchener Road for S$525 million.  From the Monetary Authority of Singapore posting a record S$30.8 billion loss following the tightening of the Sing dollar to China’s internet and game provider NetEase’s 85% stock comeback to expectations of the Fed’s latest minutes out later in the trading day, we’ve got more news weighing on markets.  On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with Matthias Chan, Head of Research at SAC Capital.

With AI being capable of replacing humans when it comes to doing tasks in the Human Resources sector, many are afraid that they will lose their jobs. This worry is spread across many other industries as well. However, rather than losing jobs, it seems like the roles and job scope of people working in HR will instead experience a shift to one that can work together with AI to provide good services. We speak to Sriram Iyer, Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Department of Management & Organisation, NUS Business School more about this.

With the imminent arrival of Mason Mount to Manchester United after spending 18 years at Chelsea, and Mauricio Pochettino returning to English Football since his departure from Spurs in 2021 - Elliott and Raushan are in a pensive mood as they discuss the benefits of a fresh starts. Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg | raushan@sph.com.sg

Extended reality solutions - the umbrella term for virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality solutions – are at the heart of our conversation today.  Our guest for today is from Varjo. The Finnish firm that – by the way consists of veterans who previously came from Nokia Cast – makes what it calls the highest immersion virtual and mixed reality products and services that includes not just the headset, but also software applications for enterprises. Its devices are used to train advanced VR users such as astronauts, pilots, nuclear power plant operators, as well as for car design and pioneering research.  According to TechCrunch, Varjo’s customer base includes about a quarter of the Fortune 100 companies – think the likes of Boeing and Aston Martin. The firm also works with governments in the US and Europe.  But how does Varjo assess the demand for extended reality products and services from these big players?  And with Apple unveiling its Apple Vision Pro spatial computer, is competition heating up for Varjo? Does Varjo want Apple to succeed to aid the growth of the nascent industry? On Under the Radar, Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Patrick Wyatt, Chief Product Officer, Varjo.

Never Ending Use, or NEU battery materials is a Singapore-based lithium-ion battery recycling startup. Although battery recycling has been around for some time already, this startup aims to further promote sustainability by using more environmentally friendly ways of going through this process. We speak to Bryan Oh, Co-Founder & CEO & Kenneth Palmer, Co-Founder & CTO, NEU Battery Materials more about this.