Your Way Home with Hongbin Jeong

Hong Kong’s pro-establishment camp swept all but one seat in the first Legislative Council election after Beijing’s “patriots-only” overhaul of the political system amid a record low turnout of 30.2%. Claire Huang, Hong Kong Correspondent, The Straits Times shares the details. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While the Omicron variant of COVID-19 raises more questions about the global reopening, Singapore saw November inflation hit 3.8%, its highest jump in over 8 years. Song Seng Wun, Economist at CIMB Private Banking, joined us on Prime Time to review these pressures ahead of the Christmas weekend. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the first time in its history, The Straits Times is auctioning a column, and three of its Opinion section art illustrations, as non-fungible tokens. The online auction will run on the digital platform Blockchain For Good until the 28th December. But why are they doing this? What was the process of setting it up like? And where are the proceeds going? Rachel Kelly speaks to Grace Ho, Correspond...

In Across the Asean, Finance Presenter, JP Ong, speaks to Rob Ramos, Head of Trusts & Investments at RCBC on his outlook for Philippine stocks - and the impact of the recent typhoon on economic recovery.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Airlines will no longer be allowed to sell new vaccinated travel lane flight tickets for travel into Singapore from today until January 20th. This as the country tightens its borders amid a rising number of imported Covid-19 cases. In The Big Story, Straits Times Journalist, Toh Ting We i has the details.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Data and disclosure - Investors and regulators have called for a higher degree of standardisation and harmonisation of both when it comes to  ESG investing. That’s because transparency is key when it comes to tackling issues such as greenwashing. In Eco Money Rachel Kelly speaks to Nneka Chike-Obi Director of ESG Research at Fitch to find out how this will impact key ESG trends in the y...

Worldwide, a plastic bag is used, on average, for 12 minutes before being discarded - which is massively damaging the environment. From 1st January, BHG Singapore will cease the use and sale of single-use plastic bags as part of its ongoing bid towards a more sustainable experience at the department store. On Sustainable Singapore, Rhianne Lovell-Boland speaks to  Zander Lee, Marketing Execut...

From next Monday (27th December) the Covid-19 vaccination for children aged five to 11 will begin. In The Big Story, Amelia Teng, Education Correspondent, at The Straits Times shares what you need to know about the vaccination exercise for more than 300,000 children. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did you know that 47% of employers in Singapore provide mental health benefits? That’s according to recent findings by Cigna, Mercer and WorkWell.  Prime Time host, Rachel Kelly speaks to Neil Narale, Mercer Marsh Benefits Leader, Mercer, Singapore and Dr. Tony Leung, Head of Clinical,Cigna Hong Kong to find out what more employers can do to support their workforce. See omnystudio.com/l...

The year that was saw markets in Singapore hold on to encouraging gains, though it markets weren't short of challenges from new COVID variants, inflation, and meme stock volatility, to name a few. Nirgunan Tiruchelvam, Tellimer's Head of Consumer Equity Research, joined us on Prime Time to talk about his biggest takeaway from the markets and what he's hopeful for in the year ahead. See omnystudio....

In Powering Your Property, Prime Time's Rachel Kelly spoke to Dr. Tan Tee Khoon, Country Manager, PropertyGuru Singapore shares about their property market outlook for 2022. PropertyGuru has revealed in its annual Singapore Property Market Outlook 2022 report that the property sector has displayed incredible resilience in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic but may need to contend with dev...

Loh Kean Yew stunned the badminton world by becoming the first Singaporean to win the World Championships - and he is 'just getting started’.  Straits Times Sports Correspondent, David Lee, spoke to Singapore’s recently crowned badminton star and shared highlights on The Straits Times, The Big Story.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could the UK go into lockdown before Christmas? Coming up in the Best of Prime Time, Rachel Kelly and Shehzad Haque find out and get the latest global Covid-19 Omicron updates from Rich Preston, Senior Journalist at the BBC. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alexandre Tavazzi, Global Strategist and CIO of Pictet Wealth Management Asia, joined us on Prime Time to share Pictet's outlook for 2022. He shares how economies across Europe, the US, and Asia might fare in a year where monetary policy is expected to tighten, and Omicron uncertainties remain unanswered. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A slew of central banks across the world made policy decisions in the week that was, perhaps none more important than the Federal Reserve, which foreshadowed as many as 3 rate hikes next year. JP Ong spoke to Mizuho's Head of Economics and Strategy, Vishnu Varathan, on Forex Fridays about the implications of the Fed's more hawkish stance for FX markets, and what he makes of the Turkish Lira after...

As the Omicron variant continues to spread, countries in the region are stepping up measures to manage the situation. In The Straits Times Big Story, Harianto Diman shares how the Omicron variant is keeping countries on edge. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ismail Gafoor is the founder and CEO of Propnex - one of Singapore's largest listed real estate agency with over 10,000 real estate salespersons - But did you know that many moons ago, Ismail started off from much humbler beginnings? Ismail shares with Rachel Kelly challenges he has faced over the years, how he overcame them, and what he thinks are key personal attributes that can lead to success....

Singapore has introduced a new round of property curbs for its private and public residential markets, a bid to cool a surge in home prices over the past year. Prime Time’s Rachel Kelly and Shehzad Haque speak to Michelle Ng, Journalist, The Straits Times who shares more on how home buyers and property agents reacted to the announcement. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In its last policy decision for 2021, the Federal Reserve sped up the pace of its bond tapering, while also projecting up to 3 possible rate hikes next year. Frederic Neumann, co-head of Asian Economics at HSBC, joined us on Prime Time to discuss the Fed's decision and its implications for the region, along with what diverging paths between the Fed and China's PBOC might mean for policymakers, and...

The number of passengers passing through Changi Airport crossed the 5 per cent mark of pre-pandemic levels for the first time since Covid-19 forced borders shut. But now with the Omicron spreading globally, what impact has this had on year end travel? Prime Time's Rachel Kelly and Shehzad Haque speak to Lavinia Rajaram, Asia Head of Communications, Expedia Group Brands who shares more on key trave...

Spikes in private housing prices and Housing Board resale flat prices in Singapore have prompted the authorities to introduce a new round of cooling measures. On Straits Times Big Story, Hairianto Diman speaks to Dr Lee Nai Jia, deputy director from the Institute of Real Estate and Urban Studies at the National University of Singapore , who shares more on who stands to benefit and lose from S...

A recent report by The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and Oxford Economics' Economics has revealed that South-East Asia will remain the fastest-growing region in the world, despite challenges from new Covid-19 variants. Prime Time's Rachel Kelly speaks to Sian Fenner, ICAEW Economic Advisor and Oxford Economics Lead Asia Economist  who shares what's driving this. See...

In a surprise move, the authorities have introduced cooling measures in an effort to curb continued rising property prices. To find out more about the measures and what they mean for property owners and buyers, Prime Time's Rachel Kelly speaks to Nicholas Mak, Head of Research & Consultancy at ERA Real Estate. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It may be argued that the most frustrating job this year was to be an economist covering Southeast Asia, with high hopes of a recovery dashed by the COVID resurgence from Manila to Ho Chi Minh laying waste to economies and projections alike. Nomura's Senior Economist Euben Paracuelles joined us on Across the ASEAN to discuss how challenging the year was, and what their outlook is for the region in...

In The Straits Times’ The Big Story, multimedia journalist Hairianto Dirman spoke to Journalist Toh Ting Wei on how the bus operators plan to accommodate the expected increase in demand for the expanded VTL scheme between Singapore and Malaysia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.