Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

In the Spotlight on Prime Time every Monday, Bharati Jagdish and Timothy Go will speak with our friends from the BBC in London on some of the top stories they are tracking in the week ahead. This week, they are joined by Jonathan Frewin, Senior Journalist with BBC World Service Partner Hub in London to discuss China, with the new year travel rush  roaring back to life despite uncertainty around Covid-19, what can some countries outside China expect?  And on Friday, western defence ministers are gathering in Germany for a Ramstein meeting, to discuss the supply of weapons to Ukraine. What can we expect from that? Finally, a trial gets underway in Belarus of the opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, one of the high profile trials in the country at the moment. Who is she, why is she going on trial and what is the significance of that?

An Institute of Policy Studies survey shows that different generations value different aspects of their jobs. Over 50 per cent would be willing to accept less pay or a lesser work role for the benefit of their family or personal life. In The Straits Times’ The Big Story, Multimedia Correspondent Cheow Sue-Ann spoke with Dr Laurel Teo, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies to find out more about the study.  

Employers across Singapore appear to be investing in talent when it comes to sustainability-related initiatives. Prime Time's Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Dr Noorashikin Rahman, Co-Lead for NP’s Personalised Learning Pathway (PLP) Minor in Sustainability to find out how they’re equipping the future talent pool with the right ESG skills. 

We’ll talk all about exchange traded funds today and in particular, we’re going to be talking about thematic ETFs. These are ETFs that are positioned to benefit from long term structural changes such as changes in technology, society, the environment and demographics over time.  And on that note, fund management company Global X ETFs has launched their December 2022 edition of the Thematic ETF Report.  The report provides industry-level analysis of thematic investing ETFs, looking at new launches and closures, changes in assets under management (AUM), and fund flows. So what are the key findings and how would they help us better position for 2023? On Market View, Prime Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian spoke with Richard Siaw, Director Southeast Asia at Global X ETFs for more.

Hotels are increasingly being turned into co-living spaces in markets, where institutional investors are hunting for cheaper alternatives to residential conversions and high rental growth potential. But come February, those who are looking for alternative living options can look forward to a first boutique hotel with co-living and hospitality services for a truly flexible stay experience. In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Timothy Go speak with Giselle Makarachvili, Chief Executive Officer, Hmlet to find out more. Produced and edited by Anthea Ng (nganthea@sph.com.sg)

We deep dived into the latest happenings in the US, South Korea, China and Singapore for today.  In the US, consumer prices fell month-on-month for the first time in over two years, but to what extent does this provide a case for the Federal Reserve to go for a 25 basis point rate increase at the end of the month? Also, what would the implications be on the King dollar? Over in Asia, we’ve South Korea’s central bank action dominating headlines, but again, how would another rate hike affect the won and imported inflation?  We’ll also take a quick look at several key data points out of China ahead of its Q4 GDP figures, as well as some of the key indicators due to be out of Singapore early next week.  On Market View, Prime Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the numbers with Jeff Ng, Senior Currency Analyst at MUFG.  

Biodiversity loss has been extensive over the last 50 years, and the impacts go far beyond the ecological concerns. Certain companies face real financial risks tied to the loss of biodiversity - meaning investors need to consider these risks when allocating funds to these companies and sectors. Prime Time’s Timothy Go speaks with Nadia Laine, Executive Director, Head of ESG Products at MSCI to find out how they’re helping investors assess biodiversity, deforestation risk in portfolios.

UMNO president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has defended his party’s strategy during the 15th General Election, urging members to stop finding faults and instead think of the way forward. In his policy speech at the UMNO General Assembly on Friday,  Ahmad Zahid also laid out why UMNO and the Barisan Nasional coalition it leads chose to form a unity government with Pakatan Harapan instead of Perikatan Nasional. In The Straits Times' The Big Story, Multimedia Correspondent Cheow Sue-Ann speaks with Malaysia Correspondent Ram Anand to find out more. 

Southeast Asia has seen a burgeoning retail media growth with giants such as Shopee and Tokopedia. But with the bumper shopping days quarter over, such as 10.10, 11.11, 12.12 sales, and a looming recession, what can marketplaces and retailers do to power the next stage of growth? The answer may just lie in retail media. But what exactly is retail media, what is the strategy that marketers should look at? In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Junho Lee, Head of Retail Media Platform (RMP) Business, SEA & ANZ, Moloco to find out more about retail media. Produced and edited by Anthea Ng (nganthea@sph.com.sg)

 If you thought travel came back with a vengeance last year, you’re not wrong. Air traffic hit about 70% of pre-pandemic levels globally. While we’re thrilled to see normalcy returning and tourism rebounding, will travel in 2023 be as overwhelming? Prime Time's Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Boon Sian Chai, Managing Director and Vice President of International Markets, Trip.com Group to find out what lies ahead for the travel industry in 2023.