Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

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 K...

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 fin...

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 Nasion...

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 l...

 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...

China has reopened its borders to international visitors for the first time since it imposed travel restrictions in March 2020. This comes ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year and two billion trips are expected to be made during the festive period, double the number that travelled last year. What does this mean for businesses in both Hong Kong and China? In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Timothy Go a...

Singapore’s labour market is expected to remain resilient in spite of economic headwinds for the first quarter of the year, while wage growth in 2023 is forecasted to stay robust. Prime Time’s Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Ken Tan, Director - Specialised Contracting (Head of Division) & Professional Service / Head of Sales, PERSOLKELLY for a guide to Singapore's career and salary o...

The mobility-retail landscape is at the heart of our discussion on the segment today.  The global retail industry as we know it, has been fundamentally disrupted by the rise in e-commerce over the last twenty years or so, changing the way businesses interact and build relations with their consumers.   But one segment of the industry that was relatively unaffected by this trend, according to McKins...

The past two years have been a uniquely challenging year. And as we start looking forward to 2023, when most have returned to the office, this could be a good time to re-evaluate our office spaces and business practices, and set a path to a more sustainable future. In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Thushendran Amarakaran, Head of Sustainable Office Solutions...

Australia has long been a popular location for Singaporeans to buy investment properties, with cities like Perth and Melbourne being particularly popular. But given rising interest rates, higher inflation and the impact of uncertain political events around the world, is it still a good idea to invest in real estate down under?  On Powering Your Property, Prime Time's Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish...

We’ll keep you up to date with all you need to know with regard to the US Stock Market today.  Markets received a much needed boost late last week after December’s non-farm payrolls showed wage growth coming in below expectations. But to what extent can we take heart in this piece of news given that the labour market in the US remained rather resilient for the month with more jobs created?  Also -...

2022 turned out to be a chaotic year for the world's venture investors as war, political tensions and inflation crimped deal flows, stymied fundraising and delayed public listings. Asia, long a prime target for venture investment, has not been immune. After a bruising year, Prime Time's Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Dr Finian Tan, Chairman and Founder of Vickers Venture Partners to fin...

In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Timothy Go and Bharati Jagdish speak with Rich Preston , Senior World News Reporter/Presenter on the highly anticipated and highly controversial Prince Harry's memoir to be officially released on Jan 10, as well as US President Joe Biden's first visit to Mexico since taking office, how will that help with the perennial immigration problem? See omnystudio.com/listene...

Bitcoin mining has long been seen as a form of energy intensive process. According to a Bloomberg report, some studies estimate that the annual energy consumption involved in mining exceeded the amount used by countries such as Belgium.  But did you know, one startup called Gridless is taking advantage of this energy intensive process to unlock cheaper and more sustainable sources of energy in Afr...

The marketing world moves at the speed of light. To succeed in the fast-paced marketing world and maintain a sense of relevance with your audience, it's vital to stay ahead of them. In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Bharati Jagdish speaks with Nick Goh, Co-Founder & Head of Strategy, BlackBear Digital to get some insights on the top marketing trends and strategies for 2023.  See omnystudio.com/l...

The Singapore stock market is in focus today as we wrap up the first business week of 2023. Some market watchers may find the Singapore market a little boring with the benchmark Straits Times Index built on value stocks and bank stocks that are defensive in nature.  But against the backdrop of higher interest rates and market volatilities, the STI bucked regional trend to gain 4.1% for 2022. So ho...

Hiring is a large investment and businesses want to find the right fit. So how can job seekers find out what employers want in 2023, in order to stand out in a crowded job market? Prime Time's Bharati Jagdish gets some insights from Yvonne Kong-Ho, Career Futurist and Workforce Developer.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The incredible success stories of self-made entrepreneurs that we read about in the press may lead many to think that today’s celebrated founders made it to the top all on their own. What headlines usually don’t say is that they all had experienced mentors to guide them. In the Spotlight on Prime Time, Bharati Jagdish speaks with Kent Teo, Founder and CEO, Invade, about where enterprising youths c...

At this time of the day we love to ask “What’s for dinner?” but as we decide on what to eat next, fast food is on the table right now on Market View.  Now, fast food has long been described as convenient and pocket-friendly. But with inflation hitting operators, we want to find out how fast food chains are dealing with the rising costs, and if they could take selling prices higher.  On Market View...

Amidst all the buzz about ESG and how Singaporeans rate it as important in their day-to-day purchase decisions, the truth is, sustainability is expensive. Many Singaporeans are more conscious of financial concerns despite their desire to practise green living. So, how do you green-proof a city? Do we have better ways to cool down as the climate heats up? In the Spotlight on Prime time, Bharati Jag...

As Singapore aims to cements itself on the world stage as a global hub, the VUCA business landscape continues to pose many challenges for businesses. In order for organisations to remain resilient and succeed, more attention needs to be placed on human capital. On Career 360, Prime Time's Bharati Jagdish speaks with Tonny Loh , Partner at Heidrick & Struggles Singapore on the ways Singapore ca...

We’ve talked in depth about private equity and venture capital investing on the show. But what about corporate ventures and how bigger players are positioning themselves for the future? Our guest for today is from Supply Chain Angels, the corporate venture arm of Singapore’s largest home-grown supply chain solutions company.  Co-invested by National Research Foundation under the Early Stage Ventur...

On the first In the Spotlight of 2023, we look at what to watch out for in the new year ahead. One of them is the metaverse. To avoid being left behind, businesses will have to start viewing the metaverse as a platform to expand their retail opportunities and increase customer engagement as analysts predict it to snowball into an US$800 billion industry by 2024. Prime Time's Bharati Jagdish speaks...

It’s the start of a brand new year and as we head into the first trading day of 2023, we seek to keep you up to date with all you need to know for the week.  In the US, the stock market had suffered a beating last year with major averages ending as much as 33.03% in the red. With the odds of a recession on the top of minds of investors, can the US Federal Reserve engineer a soft landing, and where...

Looking ahead to the new year, many will be watching the property market in Singapore with great interest. Will prices of private homes and HDB resale flats rise at a slower pace in 2023? Prime Time’s Bharati Jagdish speaks with Christine Sun, Senior Vice President of Research & Analytics, OrangeTee & Tie for her outlook for the property market in 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for priv...