Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

Singapore announced several key changes to its Covid-19 measures today, including larger group sizes and making mask-wearing optional in outdoor settings from Mar 29, as part of what Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong described as taking a “decisive step forward” towards living with Covid-19. After a turbulent two years of absorbing blows from the pandemic, what does this mean for Singapor...

In The Straits Times’ The Big Story, Multimedia journalist Hairianto Dirman spoke to Margaret Ong, author of One Husband Two Men about her experience of being both wife and caregiver to a husband with schizophrenia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Sustainable Singapore, Prime Time’s Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke to David Yeung, Founder of Green Monday Group and OmniFoods as he shares his take on the growing plant-based industry in the Asia Pacific region. With Green Monday coming up on its 10th anniversary on April 22nd, David has pioneered an integrated platform and social venture that engages millions of people towa...

On Eco Money, Prime Time’s Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke to Herry Cho, Head Sustainability & Sustainable Finance at SGX about the launch of SGX and OCBC Bank’s low carbon index tracking Singapore’s largest companies. The new product removes companies with a heavy involvement in the fossil fuel sector, while maintaining best-in-class selections based on greenhouse gas per...

Slowly but surely, we're seeing more countries across Southeast Asia easing border and quarantine restrictions, hoping to boost tourism industries and provide battered airlines a much needed lift. But with oil prices rising on the back of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, might this blunt any recovery for carriers across the ASEAN? Shukor Yusof, founder of Endau Analytics, joined us on Across the ASEA...

Though European stocks have recovered after a harrowing start to March, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and sanctions on Moscow have raised questions about Europe's seeming dependency on Russian oil and gas, and if they can wean itself off of it before the next winter. Peter Lundgreen, founder of Lundgreens Capital, joined us on Prime Time from Copenhagen, Denmark, to discuss. See omnystudio.com/l...

In this inspiring entrepreneurs series, part of  Citi’s 120th year in Singapore celebrations we delve into the minds of 5 entrepreneurs to understand their journeys, lessons they have learnt, and what they think it takes to be successful. In this episode, Rachel Kelly speaks with Huang Ban Chin, Executive Director cum Chief Operating Officer, BEST WORLD INTERNATIONAL about his journey f...

When it comes to male-dominated industries, one that regularly tops the list is the real estate industry. In Powering Your Property, Prime Time's Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke to Deb Noller, CEO at Switch Automation about female representation in the sector. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 How are volatile oil and gas prices on the back of Russia's invasion of Ukraine posing threats to developing countries in the region? Can developing nations further a push towards cleaner, renewable energies in a time of high energy inflation? Why would Chinese traders resell LNG bought in the US to Europe to make a quick buck? And is the turbulence in nickel markets all down to a Chinese ty...

Each Monday in March, we'll be speaking to the folks at Rajah & Tann to take a closer look at NFT's -- what these mysterious "Non-Fungible Tokens" are, what opportunities and pitfalls may befall potential investors and creators, and if there is a role for regulating this fast-changing new world. In  Part Three , JP Ong speaks with Rajesh Sreenivasan, Head of Rajah & Tann's Technology,...

The number of international visitor arrivals is on the rise  as Singapore readies to open up its borders to all vaccinated travellers. But industry players and observers are still waiting for a significant recovery in inbound tourism, with  tourists currently a fraction of the travellers entering under the Vaccinated Travel Lane scheme. In The Straits Times’ The Big Story, Multimed...

In The Spotlight, Prime Time's Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke to Adrian Choo, CEO, Career Agility International about the out look for Singapore's labour market. Total employment rebounded in 2021, with unemployment rates dipping to near pre-pandemic levels, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said in its 2021 Labour Market Report released on Monday (Mar 14). The labour market recovery is...

While the Federal Reserve made its rate hike in more than 3 years, oil prices continued to swing as Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to spook sentiment. And while news of Saudi Arabia opting to sell oil to China for Yuan instead of dollars boosted the Renminbi, the Japanese Yen seemed to have lost its luster as a safe haven in recent times. Jeff Ng, Senior Currency Analyst at MUFG, joined us...

United States President Joe Biden will warn Chinese President Xi Jinping against supporting Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, said the Biden administration ahead of Friday’s call between the two leaders. The call will happen in the evening Beijing time, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, which said that “China-US relations and issues of common concern” would be discu...

On March 7, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing told Parliament during the debate on his ministry's budget that the Ministry of Education is considering allowing more working adults to get places in government-funded degree programmes. While there will be more opportunities for younger Singaporeans to get university degrees later in life, they are still split on whether to continue studying or enter...

Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam said Thursday that she was mulling easing some of the city's Covid-19 restrictions due to waning public tolerance. Meanwhile, according to an estimate of the damage caused by the deadly Omicron wave, about half of Hong Kong’s 7.4 million people have already been infected with Covid-19. On Inside Hong Kong, Prime Time's Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke...

The Federal Reserve hiked rates by 25 basis points -- and laid out plans for multiple rate hikes this year to combat rising inflation. But how complicated did rising energy costs and conflict in Ukraine make the Fed's decision this time around? And was the Fed too slow to react to inflationary pressures. JP Ong spoke to Taimur Baig, Chief Economist at DBS, on Prime Time about the Fed's recent deci...

The US Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter percentage point and signaled hikes at all six remaining meetings this year, launching an aggressive campaign to tackle the fastest inflation in four decades even as risks to economic growth mount. The hike is likely the first of several to come this year, as the Fed said it “anticipates that ongoing increases in the target range will...

Netflix says it is testing charging a fee to subscribers who share their accounts with people who don't live in their homes. The United States-based steaming service has long taken a relaxed approach to users sharing passwords with family or friends, but recently saw stock dive on quarterly results that showed cooling subscriber growth. On Tech Talk, Prime Time’s Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak...

A victim who was allegedly injured by a man with a sword in Buangkok was among six people who received Public Spiritedness Awards from the police on Tuesday for helping to restrain the suspect. The six people, including Mr Amila Chinthana, were each awarded a plaque at Ang Mo Kio Police Division’s headquarters. Prime Time's Timothy Go and Melissa Hyak spoke to  Mr Amila Chinthana to fin...

Women representation at the board level has improved; despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 saw a moderate improvement in the rate of increase in women representation on boards compared to 2020. On Eco Money, Prime Time’s Timothy Go spoke to Miranda Carr, Head of Thematic ESG Research, APAC at MSCI to discuss the latest MSCI’s annual Women on Boards report on the state of women&r...

The last few weeks has seen commodity prices trade in volatile fashion thanks in part to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But how sensitive are Southeast Asia's economies to these price swings? On Across the ASEAN, JP Ong spoke to Ong Sin Beng, JPMorgan's Chief  Economist for Emerging Asia and the ASEAN, about the possible implications. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Singapore Management University has published a study, "A cross-country investigation of social image motivation and acceptance of lab-grown meat in Singapore and the United States". On Sustainable Singapore, Prime Time’s Timothy Go spoke to Associate Professor of Communication Management (Practice), Mark Chong and Associate Professor of Psychology, Angela Leung at SMU about to find out...

In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Singapore's Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said he hopes China will use its "enormous influence" on Russia to help end its war with Ukraine, warning that Beijing's decisions in the coming days and weeks could determine the future path of the global economy. In The Straits Times’ The Big Story, Assistant video editor Olivia Quay spoke to Global...

On March 21st, both ESR-REIT and ARA Logos Logistics Trust will be holding EGMs where their respective unit holders will vote on the proposal to merge the two REITs. JP Ong spoke to both Adrian Chui, CEO of ESR-REIT, and Karen Lee, CEO of ARA Logos Logistics Trust, on Market View to discuss the merger proposal, what benefits they think this will yield for investors, and to answer some of the criti...