Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

As world leaders gather in the resort island of Bali for the G20 Summit to discuss how countries can “Recover Together, Recover Stronger” from the pandemic, macroeconomic challenges such as inflation, slowing growth and US interest rate hike continue to weigh on governments and central banks.  For one thing, Indonesia’s central bank is set to raise its interest rates by 50 basis points later this week, while further away, the UK is set to release its highly anticipated fiscal statement tomorrow.  So what would all of these mean for markets, and what is the investment outlook ahead for us retail investors in Singapore?  On Market View, Prime Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian spoke with James Cheo, Chief Investment Officer, Southeast Asia at HSBC Global Private Banking and Wealth for more.

From $10 in the bank account and up to one’s ears in debt to S$1 million in revenue in 4 four years - this is the story behind Uncle DiDi - famous for their unique Popcorn & Cotton Candy flavours. What was the secret behind their success? In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Bharati Jagdish speaks with one of the co-founders Caleb Li of Uncle DiDi to find out more. Produced and edited by Anthea Ng (nganthea@sph.com.sg) Highlights from the conversation: 01:20: The inspiration behind the name Uncle DiDi 02:20: Taking the leap to start a snack business without any experience in the F&B industry 06:20: How Uncle Didi embarked on its growth to be a million dollar business 08:26: Impact of inflation and disruptions in the supply chain worldwide on the business 13:57: Next step in evolving the business locally 

Donald Trump has announced he's running for US president again in 2024, saying he wants to ‘save the US' with White House bid. On the Straits Times The Big Story, Multimedia journalist, Cheow Sue-Ann speaks with Nirmal Ghosh, US Bureau Chief at the Straits Times in Washington D.Cfor more.

The United Nations Environment Programme found that circularity is key in promoting sustainable consumption and production patterns. But it has yet to be at the centre of business strategies, with HR departments long been regarded as inconsequential in our path towards carbon neutrality.  Prime Time’s Bharati Jagdish speaks with Tim MacCartney, Senior Vice President APAC, CoachHub to find out ways HR leaders can pave the way for a sustainable business transformation.

All eyes are on China after the country announced a more targeted approach to handle the pandemic. While that has provided a boost to Chinese stocks, for how long can this continue? In the meantime, private equity firms are seeing an increased number of ultra-wealthy Chinese investors exploring bigger investments in private assets as they seek shelter from wild swings in public markets.  But does it make sense for investors to shield themselves from the ongoing volatilities by turning to private equity funds, which is also seen as a form of high-risk investment? On Market View, Prime Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Nick Xiao, VP of Hywin Holdings and CEO of Hywin International.

World leaders will be in Thailand later this week for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit starting Friday. Another summit that has been complicated by the Russia-Ukraine war. There’s also a survey on Thailand’s leadership succession, with the daughter of a former PM a popular candidate. In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Bharati Jagdish discusses what to expect with Syetarn Hansakul, Analyst, Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).  Produced and edited by Anthea Ng (nganthea@sph.com.sg)

A highly anticipated meeting between China's leader Xi Jinping and President Biden on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, saw both leaders expressing an openness to restoring channels of communication and repairing a relationship that has been compared to a second Cold War. On the Straits Times The Big Story, Multimedia journalist, Cheow Sue-Ann speaks with Danson Cheong, China Correspondent at the Straits Times in Beijing and Nirmal Ghosh, US Bureau Chief at the Straits Times in Washington D.C, on some other key takeaways from their 3-hour face-to-face meeting for the first time.

The US economy is on our agenda today, after October’s inflation print came in better-than-feared at 7.7% on-year. While that suggests that consumers are reacting to the Fed’s series of outsized rate hikes, is a pivot within sight?  Meanwhile - we saw massive layoffs by a number tech giants in recent weeks including Twitter and Meta. So what does this signal for the tech sector going forward as we head into the holiday season? On Market View, Prime Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian spoke with Thilan Wickramasinghe , Head of Research at Maybank Securities on the above topics. They also discussed the FTX saga on broader markets and the blockchain industry, as well as China’s easing of Covid-19 rules and investments into sustainability in the Southeast Asia region. 

In the Spotlight on Prime time, Bharati Jagdish speaks with Rob Hugh-Jones, Editor, BBC Partner Hub on the top stories they are tracking this coming week. These include what to expect from this week’s G20 Summit in Bali, the key bilateral meetings on the sidelines, plus the latest in the war in Ukraine, whether Russian president Vladimir Putin is changing his strategy with the pullout from Kherson, as well as the controversial lead up to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

As inflation continues to eat away at each dollar and push up the cost of living, the National Wages Council (NWC) has called on employers to raise salaries for employees in guidelines released on Monday. On the Straits Times The Big Story, Multimedia Journalist, Cheow Sue-Ann speaks with Desmond Choo, Assistant Secretary-General at NTUC for more.