Money Matters with Hongbin Jeong and Chua Tian Tian

Singapore equities began the day in negative territory, tracking losses in global markets last Friday. In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) fell 0.3 per cent to 3,790.51 points after 36.9 million securities changed hands in the broader market. In terms of counters to watch, we have Stoneweg E-Reit, after it received a “BBB-” long-term issuer credit rating from S&P Global Ratings. That’s on the expectation of stable operational performance and cash flow over the next two years.  Elsewhere, from more on Chinese trade surplus soaring to a record last year ahead of US president-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House, to how TSMC is expected to report a 58% jump in Q4 profits on Thursday – more international and corporate headlines remain in focus. Also on deck – a lookahead to the US banking sector with industry behemoths set to report mid-week. On Market View, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with Chin Hui Leong, Co-founder, The Smart Investor.

Hougang United’s season hangs in the balance, and newly-appointed interim head coach Robert Eziakor has 12 league games to turn things around. Bold moves, fresh tactics, and big decisions—will it be enough to reignite the Cheetahs? Tune in as he sits down to Sports Minutes to tell us more. READ MORE: https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/robert-eziakor-steps-up-as-hougang-interim-coach-in-13th-year-with-cheetahs Got a story to tell? Get in touch! raushan@sph.com.sg

Elections and central bank actions have dominated global markets over the past year, and analysts expect unusually high monetary policy risk to remain a key driver in 2025. That means the impact on Asia’s credit markets will likely be less marked, especially for US dollar denominated Asian bonds. So what’s the outlook for Asian fixed income in 2025? Will Asian fixed income have a good year once again? On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Omar Slim, Co-Head of Asia Fixed Income at PineBridge Investments, to find out more.

Sara Soong suffered years-long battle against eczema that had left her skin reddened, drying, and constantly peeling. But that wasn’t even the worst of it — she had been left a husk of her former self as the eczema ate away at her, becoming a drawn-out war with depression and anorexia too. In fact, 1 in 3 Singaporean youths grapple with mental health, largely fuelled by appearance-related concerns. That was how Sara came to start Restoration Essence, her very own line of handcrafted skincare products specially for individuals living with skin conditions. On The Right Business, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Sara Soong, Founder of Restoration Essence to find out more. 

Converting complex data landscapes into actionable insights that can drive strategic business outcomes.  That’s the work of our guest for today, Qlik. Founded in 1993, Qlik is a software company that focuses on data integration, analytics and artificial intelligence, providing enterprise grade artificial intelligence and machine learning powered solutions that work with diverse data sources.  The firm serves over 40,000 global customers including some of the brands that we interact with on a day-to-day basis.  Take for instance, Dominos Pizza. In this scenario, Qlik built a comprehensive data tracker to streamline Dominos Pizza’s 85,000 data sources into a single view of its customers and global operations. Another example would be how Qlik worked with Urban Outfitters to reduce the time taken to complete store level reporting from hours to minutes. But who does Qlik work with right here in Asia? What should we know about its business and the opportunities present in the region? Meanwhile, Qlik is also an interesting company to look at right now because it is expanding through both organic and inorganic means.  It had in November 2024 announced the launch of a new cloud region in Mumbai to enhance its global cloud infrastructure and meet growing demand for local data storage and advanced AI capabilities. But what are the opportunities in India and how far would a deeper presence in India benefit regional ASEAN markets?  The firm had also in May 2023 acquired data management vendor Talend, but how has it integrated the firm into its business, and how has the acquisition benefitted Qlik more than one year down the road? On Under the Radar, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Chong Yang Chan, Managing Director, ASEAN & Greater China Region, Qlik.

 Is hybrid working still productive in 2025? What was once an emergency measure, a temporary solution borne out of necessity, has now evolved into the heartbeat of modern work culture.  But the tides of time do not wait for us to catch up. As we stand at the threshold of a new era, we must ask ourselves—has hybrid working truly lived up to its promise?  Has the fusion of home and office become a sustainable model, or has it fractured the very essence of what it means to be productive in the workplace? On The Hot Seat, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Issac Lim, Founder of Anthro Insights and Organisational Sociologist and Adrian Tan, HR Influencer to find out more.       

Singapore equities began the day in negative territory, with the benchmark index retreating further by the midday break, driven by losses in banking stocks. As at noon, the Straits Times Index (STI) was down 1.7 per cent at 3,795.3 points after 419.9 million securities changed hands in the broader market. In terms of companies to watch today, we have Sats given how the company and its wholly owned subsidiary Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) clinched 14 new cargo and ground-handling contracts from Air India in major airports around the world.  Elsewhere from Nvidia slamming new US chip export restrictions that are expected to be announced soon, to how shares of Bloks Group jumped as much as 82 per cent in their Hong Kong trading debut, more international and corporate headlines remain in focus. On Market View, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with Sunny Soh, Lead Technical Analyst (Capital Markets & Investor Education), SIAS.

From Tokyo to Tanjong Pagar, Noh Alam Shah is back from his training stint in Japan - rejuvenated and ready to to reignite the Jaguars’ season. Tune in as we talk to the freshly minted interim head coach of Tanjong Pagar United about earning credibility as coach, navigating challenges and managing expectations ahead of the resumption of the Singapore Premier League. READ MORE: https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/noh-alam-shah-focuses-on-turning-losers-tanjong-pagar-into-winners Got a story to tell? Get in touch! raushan@sph.com.sg

These days, Gen Z students are managing multiple tools and subscriptions just to streamline their studies. This digital overload isn’t helping—it’s leaving them drained, financially strained, and pressed for time. Two years ago, one student decided to do something about this problem. He dropped out of school to pursue his startup, Intellecs.ai, a tool that helps Gen Zs get productive. Intellecs.ai is an all-in-one AI-powered workspace aimed at helping students  summarize notes, and search the web. On The Right Business, Hongbin Jeong speaks with Neil Ruaro, Founder & CEO, Intellecs.ai to find out more.  

Since Donald Trump won the election last November, the US dollar has extended its rally. Across the same time frame, the greenback has also strengthened substantially against the Singapore dollar. Meanwhile, a Hawkish Fed risk is now better reflected in the USD. But tariff risk could continue to keep the USD supported in the early stages of Trump 2.0 So how far can the US dollar go in 2025? On Wealth Tracker, Hongbin Jeong speaks to Sim Moh Siong, Currency Strategist, Bank of Singapore, to find out more.