Posts by Stephanie Irvin
Falling yields pile pressure on China’s insurers
CHINA’S insurance companies reported higher investment returns in 2024 despite falling market interest rates and an economy flirting with deflation, as the bond market soared, the stock market took off in the latter part of the year, and companies increased their dividend payouts. Insurance companies’ annualised total returns were 7.16 per cent in the first three quarters…
Read MoreTSMC considers running Intel’s US factories after Trump team request
TAIWAN Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is considering taking a controlling stake in Intel’s factories at the request of Trump administration officials, a source familiar with the matter said, as the president looks to boost American manufacturing and maintain US leadership in critical technologies. Trump officials raised the idea of a deal between the two companies…
Read MoreSpotify weighs US$6 premium for added features, access to tickets
SPOTIFY Technology is looking to charge as much as US$5.99 a month on top of existing subscriptions for a new super-fan streaming service that will include higher-quality audio, remixing tools and access to concert tickets, sources familiar with the matter said. The company hopes to roll out the Music Pro tier later this year, said…
Read MoreFamily offices bet on Nvidia before US$589 billion DeepSeek rout
INVESTMENT firms for the world’s ultra-rich boosted their Nvidia Corp. allocations ahead of the DeepSeek-driven selloff. Family offices for Sweden’s Rausing dynasty, US hedge fund billionaire David Tepper and Silicon Valley’s elite all increased investments to the AI chipmaker in the three months that ended Dec 31, according to 13F regulatory filings. Nvidia was the…
Read MoreExecutor Duties: 10 Things You Must Do When Someone Dies
Being named an executor is no small task. It’s a role filled with responsibilities that can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re dealing with the loss of a loved one. Executors have a list of duties they must carry out to ensure everything is handled properly. From managing finances to making sure the deceased’s wishes are…
Read MoreMeta layoffs hit Singapore as tech giant cuts global workforce
JOB cuts by social media giant Meta have hit Singapore, according to public posts on professional networking platform LinkedIn and sources who spoke to The Straits Times (ST). This comes following a leaked internal memo by Meta’s vice-president of human resources Janelle Gale in February, which communicated its plans to carry out company-wide layoffs globally. …
Read MoreLower inflation wouldn’t assure rate cuts, Fed’s Lorie Logan says
US FEDERAL Reserve Bank of Dallas president Lorie Logan urged policymakers to remain cautious in the coming months, reiterating lower inflation would not necessarily prompt further interest-rate reductions. “Even if we do get better data – and it does look like it’s coming close to 2 per cent – I think we should be cautious,”…
Read MoreEurope: Shares log longest weekly streak of advances in a year
EUROPE’S main stock index closed lower on Friday (Feb 14), as investors paused following four successive sessions of gains, while luxury stocks advanced after robust earnings from Birkin bag maker Hermes. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index settled down by 0.2 per cent, after closing the previous four sessions at record high levels. Still, the benchmark…
Read MoreUOI’s H2 profit down 9.8% at S$15.6 million
UNITED Overseas Insurance, the insurance arm of UOB, posted a net profit of S$15.6 million for the second half of its 2024 fiscal year ended Dec 31, a 9.8 per cent decrease from S$17.3 million in the same period the previous year, said the company via a bourse filing on Friday (Feb 14). Insurance service…
Read MoreGrand Centrex’s Nasdaq listing fuels ambitions of becoming video game developer
It aims to eventually build a sizeable game studio in Singapore, capable of producing blockbusters VIDEO game distributor and publisher Grand Centrex Limited (GCL) has come a long way. The company got its break in 2008, distributing physical copies of the popular video game Grand Theft Auto IV. More recently, it was one of the…
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