Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

Singapore stocks fell in early trade today following losses in US and Europe markets.   The Straits Times Index fell 0.3 per cent in early trade to 3,246.54 points after 331.5 million securities changed hands.  In terms of companies to watch, Chinese EV maker NIO announced that its net loss for the fourth quarter of 2022 had widened to just over 5.8 billion yuan (S$1.1 billion), despite a 62.2 per cent on-year increase in total revenue.  Meanwhile, we have more news from property developers including OUE. Its net profits doubled year-on-year in the second half of 2022 to S$101.2 million, on higher revenue.  On Market View, the Drive Time team unpacked these developments with David Chow, Director, Azure Capital.

When fashion meets football...or not!  What do women think of men dressing up in football kits for dates? Is sportswear considered formal wear? Featuring opinions from the public, Elliott & Raushan tackle the tough questions on this episode!

After two years of Covid-19 pandemic-related closures and limitations, luxury travelers led the industry back to levels already surpassing those of 2019, according to global travel agency network Virtuoso. But with planes in short supply and more locations opening up, how will luxury travel look like this year? In The Spotlight, Drive Time's Timothy Go and Mike Harlow, the General Manager of Scott Dunn Asia, the local arm of the British luxury travel operator discuss the state of travel in 2023 and round up current luxury travel trends to catch your eye. 

Whole-cut meat products, printed on-demand for you. Sounds like the magical replicator from Star Trek? Well did you know that this is becoming a reality these days? In fact, an Israel-based biotech company called Steakholder Foods is combining stem cell technologies and 3D printing to create meals on demand.  The company also developed a process that has achieved 50 times more growth in cell production yield. But how far are we from making 3D printed meat accessible to the man in the street?  Steakholder Foods, which is listed on the US NASDAQ, also recently received its first grant of up to US$1 million (double check that it is in US dollar terms?) from the Singapore Israel Industrial R&D Foundation, to develop 3D printed structured eel and grouper products with this company called Umami Meats. But what can we expect here? On Under the Radar, Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Arik Kaufman , CEO and Co-founder of Steakholder Foods.

F&B establishments have been working hard over the last few years to keep their business running. And one way to do it is to have pop up stores around Singapore. But how feasible is the idea of pop up stores for an F&B establishment? Chia Kai Chao, Owner, Brotherbird Bakehouse shares how his business is doing so. 

Singapore stocks rose in early trade today following losses in US and Europe markets. The Straits Times Index rose 0.1 per cent to 3,265.63 points in early trade after 204.5 million securities changed hands.  In terms of companies to watch, we have for you Malaysian hospital group IHH Healthcare. The group announced yesterday a 58 per cent year-on-year fall in net profit for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2022, despite a higher revenue.  Another company we’re tracking is investment holding company Jardine Cycle & Carriage, which reported yesterday a 42 per cent on-year fall in net profit for the second half of the year ended December. On Market View, the Drive Time team took a closer look at these developments with Jeff Ng, Senior Currency Analyst, MUFG.

Award-winning sports broadcaster Colette Wong joins us on this episode to talk about parenting in Singapore. Do parents prioritise studies over sports? And does the Singapore academic eco-system provide a nurturing environment for kids to pursue high-level sports?

Diversity is critical in tech, as it enables companies to create better and safer products that take everyone into consideration, not just one section of society. But despite this, women remain widely underrepresented in IT roles.So what can IT companies do to improve their hiring practices to be more inclusive?  June Chui, Senior HR Director, APJ, Pure Storage shares more on how gender diversity can foster innovation in the tech sector. 

The Singapore National Eye Centre’s (SNEC) Myopia Centre and Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI) have recently developed a new AI tool that can predict a child’s risk for developing high myopia during teenage years. So how does this AI tool work and how can it help combat high myopia in Singapore? Prof Saw Seang Mei, Co-Head, Myopia Research Group, Singapore Eye Research Institute shares more on this AI tool. 

Batteries are on the table today, and no - we are not talking about your AAA batteries here.  Rather, we’re going to talk about lithium iron phosphate batteries that can be used to power electric vehicles, as well as battery packs and grids that can be used to power factories, data centres and communities. On that note, a Michigan startup called Our Next Energy is aiming to double the range of electric vehicles with such battery solutions. It is also aiming to do so in a more sustainable way by using materials that are abundant in supply and available locally.  But how does it actually work and how is the startup transforming the battery market, and how is it tapping the US Inflation Reduction Act in its production plans? The company also recently announced that it has closed a massive US$300 million Series B, with Temasek being one of the investors. But what is the company doing with the money? On Under the Radar, Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian sat down with Mujeeb Ijaz CEO and Founder of Our Next Energy for more.