SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) – Healthcare and energy firm New Silkroutes Group will appoint an independent public accounting firm to conduct an independent review into matters relating to two agreements involving its China subsidiary and the valuation of its stake in a Thai firm. This comes after the mainboard-listed company’s independent external auditor Deloitte & […]

SINGAPORE (REUTERS) – Asian stock markets fell on Thursday (Oct 29) but not as sharply as Wall Street’s rout overnight, while oil bounced off lows and US futures jumped, as Asia’s brighter economic outlook offset investor worries about fresh Covid-19 lockdowns in Europe. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1 per cent. […]

STOCKHOLM (REUTERS) – Ikea’s shopping malls business, one of the world’s biggest, said its expansion plans remained on track with visitors quickly returning to its premises after the lifting of coronavirus-related lockdowns which had forced stores to close. Ingka Centres, which has 45 malls anchored by Ikea stores across Europe, Russia and China and plans […]

SINGAPORE – Leaders of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) here will learn how to drive change and growth in their companies as part of a new initiative. The Enterprise Leadership Transformation programme, which was announced at Budget 2020, was launched on Wednesday (Oct 28). The inaugural run will see 60 participants from 38 local SMEs […]

SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) – Beauty and wellness firm Mary Chia Holdings has entered into a sale and purchase agreement to buy an 80 per cent stake in five companies under the Monsoon Hairdressing group for about $3 million. The seller is Lee Eng Tat, or Addy Lee, a celebrity hair stylist and the founder […]

SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) – SIA Engineering will recognise a non-cash impairment provision against its base maintenance unit’s assets, and is working on finalising the quantum. This is expected to have a material impact on the group’s financial results for the first half of its fiscal year, said the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) […]

BEIJING (BLOOMBERG) – China’s economic recovery displayed mixed signals while remaining broadly steady in October, with small businesses turning more cautious and the property market weakening even as car sales soar. The aggregate index combining eight early indicators tracked by Bloomberg was unchanged from the previous month. Small business confidence eased in October, with sub-indices […]

NEW YORK (REUTERS) – Home-rental startup Airbnb plans to list its shares on the Nasdaq, setting the stage for one of 2020’s most high-profile stock market debuts. Earlier this month, Reuters reported the company was aiming to raise US$3 billion (S$4.1 billion) in its initial public offering ( IPO), which could give it a valuation […]

SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) – The issuing of loans and securities linked to the Swap Offer Rate (SOR) that mature after end-2021 will need to cease by April next year, in a push by a financial industry-led committee to shift away from the use of SOR to the Singapore Overnight Rate Average (Sora) in financial […]

SINGAPORE – Singapore has strengthened its status as a global logistics hub amid the Covid-19 pandemic, riding on its competitive advantages such as the efficiency, reliability and resilience of its network, said Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing on Tuesday (Oct 27). Speaking to the media after a visit to German logistics firm DB […]

HONG KONG (BLOOMBERG) – Jack Ma, the former English teacher who co-founded Alibaba Group Holding with US$60,000 (S$81,600), is poised to become the world’s 11th richest person after Ant Group priced shares for a record initial public offering (IPO). Mr Ma’s 8.8 per cent stake is worth US$27.4 billion based on the stock pricing in […]

HONG KONG (REUTERS) – Ant Group will close its Hong Kong institutional book building one day early as it aims to raise about US$17.2 billion (S$23.4 billion) in the city, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. The book was due to close on Thursday (Oct 29), but that deadline will be […]

SINGAPORE (BLOOMBERG) – Japan’s largest airline has signed up for jet fuel made from renewable materials in Singapore in a small step towards more environmentally friendly travel that will add costs for an industry crushed by the coronavirus. All Nippon Airways (ANA) signed a preliminary agreement to start buying so-called sustainable aviation fuel from a Singapore […]

SINGAPORE (BLOOMBERG) – Amazon.com secured relief in its dispute with Future Group after a court put a temporary hold on the debt-strapped Indian conglomerate’s US$3.4 billion (S$4.6 billion) deal to sell assets to billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. An arbitration court in Singapore restrained Future Retail and its founders from going ahead with the sale, […]

SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) – Keppel Data Centres Holding (Keppel DC), City Gas and City-OG Gas Energy Services will jointly explore using liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen to power Keppel DC’s floating data-centre park in Singapore. The park is in its exploration phase, the three parties said on Monday (Oct 26), the same day […]

SYDNEY (REUTERS) – The deputy chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) resigned on Monday (Oct 26) amid an expenses scandal that has engulfed senior executives at the corporate regulator. Daniel Crennan’s resignation comes just days after it was revealed that he had received a rental allowance of around A$70,000 (S$67,800) when he […]

KUALA LUMPUR (REUTERS) – The world’s largest medical glove producer, Top Glove Corporation, has been making improvements in its efforts to reverse an American import ban placed on two of its subsidiaries in July, US authorities said. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in an email to Reuters on Friday (Oct 23) that it […]

SEOUL (REUTERS) – Shares in Samsung Electronics and affiliates rose on Monday after the death a day earlier of chairman Lee Kun-hee sparked hopes for restructuring and stake sales, analysts said. Investors were betting that such measures would be needed to pay a hefty inheritance tax, estimated around 10 trillion won (S$12 billion) for stockholdings […]

SINGAPORE – Can milk be made in a laboratory instead of from cows or humans – and can it taste just as good? Local biotech start-up TurtleTree Labs certainly thinks so, and it impressed the judges of the Entrepreneurship World Cup 2020 enough to walk away with the top cash prize of US$500,000 (S$678,000). The […]

(BLOOMBERG) After nosediving from March through May as lockdowns devastated US household spending, consumer prices rebounded in the following four months. Some fear this is the start of a resurgence of inflation. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s survey of consumer inflation expectations shows a jump from 2.4 per cent to 3 per cent […]