Let's Talk, Singapore

Synopsis: Every second Friday of the month, join The Straits Times' associate editor Ravi Velloor, as he distils his experience from four decades of covering the continent. In this episode, he hosts Ms Eirliani Abdul Rahman, former Singapore diplomat and co-founder of the Berlin-backed Global Diplomacy Lab, to discuss if a feminine foreign policy (FFP) could prove a balm for global conflicts and t...

Singaporeans have gained a reputation for being results and numbers driven, hence the coining of the Singapore 5Cs - cash, car, condo, credit card and country club.  However a survey by Circles. Life has revealed that the old 5Cs are out and have been replaced with new value-based 5Cs. Jeanette Wong, Singapore Growth Lead, Circles. Life reveals to us what the new 5Cs are based on their study.  See...

In The Breakfast Brief , we discuss the implication of the latest minutes as the Federal Reserve signals further hikes in interest rates to ‘restrictive’ levels to restrain inflation, as well as recap the woes of UK PM Boris Johnson as over 30 staff quit from his government in the past day. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hou Wey Fook, CIO, DBS discusses why he feels investors should raise their exposure to China now, in view of the 3 C's: Cheap, Clarity, Catalysts, as well as why he has shifted his recommendation on Japan from neutral to overweight despite the weakening yen. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The metaverse era has begun and the growing use of immersive technologies such as augmented and virtual reality will spur those in the travel industry specifically to increase investment in new capabilities and experiences to blend physical and virtual worlds. So does this mean that the metaverse the future of the travel industry?  Mike Tansey, Managing Director, Growth Markets Travel Industry Lea...

Synopsis: The Straits Times analyses East Asia's top news developments in this weekly podcast. The Straits Times' Japan correspondent Walter Sim chats with Money FM's Elliott Danker. They discuss Japan's upcoming Upper House election, the importance of a Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) win and the battle for the Okinawa prefectural constituency.  Produced by: Walter Sim ( waltsim@sph.com.sg ) &...

A necessary skill for running a business is the proper organisation and management of financial matters. But why is financial housekeeping for a business often overlooked? And how can a platform like Spenmo help businesses do it right?  Mohandass Kalaichelvan, CEO & Founder, Spenmo provides us with his insights. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In  The Breakfast Brief,  we discuss the major blow to Boris Johnson's political future with the resignation of his health and finance ministers, as well as the impact on the British pound which lost 1.5% in the immediate aftermath. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter Chia, Senior FX Strategist, UOB,  discusses why the worst may be over for Pound weakness, and why an expected rate hike in July by the ECB will unlikely help lift the Euro, which is now at 20-year lows. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to JLL’s City Momentum Index back in 2018, the leading cities for future-proofing include major global hubs such as New York, London and Paris. Singapore was 29 on the list.  Jobs and businesses of the future will be created in cities that have an ecosystem to nurture innovative start-ups and scale-ups. So how can Singapore continue to future proof itself?  Lee Polisano, President &...

Synopsis: The Straits Times analyses South-east Asia's top news developments in this weekly podcast. The Straits Times' regional correspondent Leslie Lopez chats with Money FM's Elliott Danker. They discuss Malaysia’s central bank Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) increasing the overnight policy rate by 25 basis points to 2.25 per cent, to tame inflation. They also cover how Malaysian authorities are not...

Chong Li Min, Advocacy Committee Member, CFA Society Singapore looks back at how from ground zero in 2002, the S-Reit market has grown to become one of the biggest in the world after pioneers and frontrunner countries such as the US, UK and Australia. She discusses what makes a good REIT investment, how to identify red flags as well as good corporate governance of retail investors.   See omnystudi...

On  The Breakfast Brief,  we look at the implications of another lockdown in China as Covid-19 cases increase, and how Biden's plan to unwind China tariffs could be announced as soon as this week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jeff Halley, Senior Analyst, OANDA, discusses how much the unwinding of tariffs will do in Washington's fight against inflation, as well as the implications of strikes across Europe amidst rising wage pressures. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Data centres have become even more critical in today's digital world, owing to the pandemic-induced acceleration of digital transformation.  Singapore, in particular, is considered to become the world's regional data centre hub. But with countries increasingly adopting digitalisation in the data centre scene, how can we expect Singapore to be able to keep up? Hitesh Prajapati, Country Manager, Ver...

Synopsis: The Straits Times analyses the latest developments in China in this weekly podcast. The Straits Times' China bureau chief Tan Dawn Wei chats with Money FM 89.3's Elliott Danker. The team discusses China tightening Covid-19 curbs for cities in the eastern part of the country. Also, China has hit back at New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s comments on them.  They also chat about...

Charu Chanana, Markets Strategist, Saxo Singapore discusses how the narrative for markets will be fixated on recession risks until the next earnings season mid-July, and discusses what investors need to keep an eye on for the rest of the week. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In The Breakfast Brief , we talk about how inflation fears have given way to recession fears as investors look ahead to the second half of the year, as well as some of the key events to watch out for the week ahead including US non-farm payrolls on Friday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brand impersonation is an increasingly common problem on social media that thousands of brands are forced to deal with each day. Facebook’s annual report in 2014 revealed that fake accounts make up 5.5 to 11.2 percent of its monthly active users. So how exactly does a brand impersonation work and how bad is the situation here in APAC? Ilia Rozhnov, Head of Digital Risk Protection, Asia-Pacific, Gr...

Renewable energy may be all the rage these days, but there is a lot more to it than spinning wind turbines and fancy-looking solar panels. And Singapore based G8 is helping to accelerate the world’s low-carbon transition by developing renewable energy projects powered by innovative offshore wind and floating solar technologies. Gerald Tan, Founder and Managing Director, G8 Energy shares with us in...

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 Elliott Danker. The team discusses US President Joe Biden’s plans to protect women travelling for abortion after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Also, according to a poll, 71 per cent of Americans do not want Biden to...

In today's The Breakfast Brief, we discuss the S&P 500's worst first half since 1970 as it falls yet again while chinese equities continue may show growth as the housing slump eased in June for the first time in 2022. Also, China’s Caixin manufacturing PMI for June came in at 54.7 up from 47.8 in May. In Thailand, all Covid-19 entry requirements for vaccinated travelers will be lifted.  While...

This entrepreneur has observed a huge gap in consumer knowledge and realised that the majority of consumers were often clouded by various marketing tactics and sleep myths that do more harm than good, misperceiving that as long as mattresses were sold by big corporations, they were of good quality. Elvin Chong, Founder, Luxury Mattress Gallery (LMG) shares his experiences diving into the luxury be...

Vijay Natarajan, Analyst, RHB Group shares his second half outlook, as Singapore marks 20 years since the first REIT was listed. He discusses the trends that are playing out in the sector, as well as REITs that are looking attractive in the current backdrop of rising rates and recession talk. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Kuo, Co-Founder, The Smart Investor, discusses why the coming months will be tough, and whether Chinese stocks may be a more attractive investment instead, as well as reviews the first half of the year for the Straits Times Index, which finished little changed year-to-date.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.