Breakfast with Ryan Huang, Emaad Akhtar and Audrey Siek

It has been a busy week for the country with their National Bureau of Statistics releasing their latest GDP numbers, to Beijing’s first locally transmitted Omicron infection case and lastly Chinese President Xi Jinping calling for improved regulation and governance of China's digital economy. Tan Dawn Wei, China Bureau Chief, The Straits Times gives an analysis of it all. 

Synopsis: The Straits Times analyses the latest developments in the United States in this weekly podcast.  The Straits Times' US bureau chief Nirmal Ghosh chats with Money FM 89.3's Elliot Danker and Bharati Jagdish about the following points: Highlights (click/tap above): 00:40 US Supreme Court blocks US President Joe Biden's rule requiring large companies to have a vaccine, mask or testing mandate 02:42 Students in Boston and Chicago demand remote learning due to surge in Omicron-related cases 04:55 US bipartisan piece of legislation forces defence contractors to stop buying rare earths from China by 2026 07:10 A rabbi and several others taken hostage in synagogue have been rescued 09:03 Former US President Donald Trump holds a rally in Arizona Produced by: Nirmal Ghosh (nirmal@sph.com.sg), The Breakfast Huddle, Money FM 89.3, Ernest Luis & Fa'izah Sani Edited by: Dan Koh Subscribe to our Asian Insider Podcast channel to follow our various shows each week and rate us on your favourite audio apps: Channel: https://str.sg/JWa7 Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWa8 Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/wQsB  Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaX SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/ Website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts Feedback to: podcast@sph.com.sg Read Nirmal Ghosh's stories: https://str.sg/JbxG Register for Asian Insider newsletter: https://str.sg/stnewsletters --- Discover more ST podcast series: Green Pulse Podcast: https://str.sg/JWaf Health Check Podcast: https://str.sg/JWaN ST Sports Talk Podcast: https://str.sg/JWRE #PopVultures Podcast: https://str.sg/JWad Bookmark This! Podcast: https://str.sg/JWas Lunch With Sumiko Podcast: https://str.sg/J6hQ Discover BT Podcasts: https://bt.sg/pcPL Follow our shows then, if you like short, practical podcasts!

Phan Vee Leung, CIO, Trackrecord Asia, discusses how cryptocurrencies will perform against a backdrop of tightening Central Bank policies.

Due to Covid-19 the search for vaccines and therapies has been the most urgent and widespread the world has ever seen. The biopharma industry specifically has a good couple of years after finding itself at the centre of global attention from the pandemic’s outset. Stewart Campbell, Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific, West Pharmaceutical Services shares how the company fit in the whole healthcare industry ecosystem and why they view APAC as an active, dynamic and promising region. 

Marketing is constantly evolving, and, with so much change in the past year alone, moving forward, what are the winning tools and strategies that will help organisations fire up their marketing initiatives in 2022? Ksenia Newton, Marketing Content Specialist, Brandwatch shares why marketers have an issue with understanding who their customer is and what knowledge and resource gaps require bridging in the marketing scene. 

In this morning's The Breakfast Brief, we discuss the market’s focus toward fourth-quarter earnings, China's release of its its fourth quarter and 2021 full year GDP data, Singapore's first SPAC listing, and more. 

From former President Donald Trump first rally of 2022 Saturday in Arizona, to hundreds of students in Boston and Chicago walking out of classes in protests demanding a switch to remote learning as a surge in COVID-19 cases fueled by the Omicron variant, Nirmal Ghosh, US Bureau Chief, Straits Times gives an analysis of it all. 

The impact of Covid-19 aside, increasing competition from proliferating heartland shopping malls and the rise of e-commerce has significantly decreased footfall to smaller heartland shops.  Estee Lim, General Manager, Bee Choo Origin shares her views on the importance of digitalisation for heartland businesses and how they can push boundaries to preserve the ‘kampung spirit’. 

Have you tried one of those meat alternative products, can it potentially replace real meat in the near future? It was recently suggested that 54 percent of Gen Z respondents were already trying to restrict their meat consumption. Gautam  Godhwani, Managing Partner, Good Startup shares his views on how the meat alternative industry can continue to re-define consumer food choices worldwide and retain investors' attention globally.       

We knew it was coming all along, but the question was when? It looks like we might be seeing a GST hike in 2022, with some saying it might come as early as April. But is this the right time to do so? Simon Poh, Associate Professor, Accounting Department, NUS Business School shares his views.