Retail News CRM

Author: Mei Ling Tan

  • Singtel launches Singapore’s first OTT video portal app

    Singtel launches Singapore’s first OTT video portal app

    Singtel has expanded its media content portfolio with the launch of Singapore’s first OTT video portal app, open to the operator’s postpaid mobile customers.

    The operator’s new Cast portal will offer content from major providers including Viu and Nickelodeon, delivered over Singtel’s nationwide 4G network.

    Cast offers a choice of four content packs – premium, kids, Asian hits and Hallyu – with each priced at S$4.90 ($3.63) per month for a 12-month contract or S$6.90 per month contract-free. Customers can choose to pay an additional S$3 per month for an add-on pack including 1GB of data

    The premium pack offers a range of Korean and Japanese dramas, while the kids pack includes programming from the Nickelodeon and Nick Jr pay TV channels.

    Asian hits include popular movies from Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China, while Hallyu offers the most popular Korean entertainment.

    “Our customers are huge fans of entertainment on-the-go and we know that they want greater flexibility with what they watch and also when and how they watch it,” Singtel managing director of home consumer Singapore Goh Seow Eng said.

    “We are forging ahead in the OTT space through more strategic partnerships with strong content providers such as Viu and Nickelodeon. We look forward to partnering more top content providers to offer an ever-growing selection on Cast that will give our customers greater choice and the best entertainment experience.”

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • SGX announces independent research paper on retail sector

    SGX announces independent research paper on retail sector

    The Singapore Exchange (SGX) has launched an independent research report. The research paper covers the retail sector in four Asean countries, namely Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

    Titled “Asean Retail: Overview, Trends and Outlook, with a focus on SGX-listed Companies”, the report evaluates the growth potential for ASEAN’s retail industry in response to rising middle-class consumers, increasing spending power and rising e-commerce sales.

    The report is segmented into six retail subsectors and for each, covers an in-depth analysis of the key sector drivers and an overview of the SGX-listed companies that are in these sectors.

    There are currently 43 retail companies listed on the SGX, with a market capitalisation of $30 billion.

    According to the report, retail sales in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia are projected to collectively reach US$1 trillion ($1.3 trillion) by 2018. Asean consumers also have higher purchasing power propelled by fast-growing incomes while the e-commerce space has expanded, offering new opportunities for retailers.

    “Despite headwinds facing the retail sector recently, we recognise the need to keep investors informed of the sector’s longer-term growth outlook in ASEAN, which continues to be backed by strong demographic and macroeconomic fundamentals. The emergence of e-commerce also presents an exciting growth opportunity for the sector,” says Simon Lim, SGX Head of Equity Capital Market (Sectors).

    To download a copy of the research report, go to sgx.com/retailcluster.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Food Prices Spark Inflation in June

    Food Prices Spark Inflation in June

    The National Statistics Agency (BPS) head Suryamin said that inflation in June 2016 was 0.66 percent with increase in food prices as a factor. In addition, increase in air fares had contributed significantly to inflation. “An 8.27 percent increase in air fares had contributed to 0.08 percent of inflation,” he said yesterday, July 3, 2016.

    According to Suryamin, price hike occured in 38 out of 82 cities in the consumer price index (CPI) survey. Food commodity which contributed significantly to inflation was broiler chicken, which experienced price increase by 5.36 percent with 0.07 contribution to inflation. The increase occured in 74 out of 82 cities in the CPI. “Price increase occured due to price hike at the distributors,” he said.

    Suryamin said that food commodity with third highest contribution to inflation was fresh fish. Price of fish soared by 2.15 percent with 0.06 percent contribution to inflation. Other cause of inflation was broiler chicken eggs with 5.86 percent increase in price and contributed 0.04 percent to inflation. Other commodity was sugar which price had risen by 6 percent since early Ramadan. Its contribution to inflation was 0.04 percent. “Potato and carrot also contributed to inflation,” he said.

    Other commodities that contributed to inflation were rice, spinach, apple, electricity prices, gold and jewelries, and public transport fares, which contributed 0.02 percent each to inflation. Of 13 commodities that contributed to inflation, Suryamin said that only one had held back inflation. “The one that held back [inflation] was shallot,” he said.

    Director General of Horticulture, Agriculture Ministry, Spudnik Sujono has given his assurance that shallot and chili peppers supplies are safe until August.

  • Bioalpha banks on Indonesian,Chinese markets to boost growth

    Bioalpha banks on Indonesian,Chinese markets to boost growth

    Bioalpha Holdings Bhd is banking on its export markets in Indonesia and China to boost the group’s top line growth in the next two years.

    The firm, which produces halal-certified herbal and non-herbal based health supplement products, said that to date, Indonesia was its core market and expected sales from the region to grow by 50% in the next two years.

    At present, Indonesia sales made up more than 48%, or RM14mil, to the group’s turnover in financial year 2015 (FY15).

    “Indonesia’s market is still growing and in the last five years it has a compounded annual growth rate of about 37%,” managing director William Hon Tian Kok told recently.

    Hon said Bioalpha had gone into Indonesia after it recognised the huge potential in the market to offer its halal-certified products.

    “The risk in Indonesia is also lower because we have existed in the market since 2007 via our first sales office there,” noted Hon.

    But Hon has bigger plans for Indonesia, saying that the company aimed to turn its repackaging facility in the Riau province to a fully-fledged manufacturing plant in the long term.

    In May, Bioalpha’s unit Bioalpha International Sdn Bhd had entered into 60:40 joint venture with Mutia Restiana, a well-connected Indonesian to set up PT Herbal Malindo Makmur, for US$250,000.

    This was funded via internally generated funds.

    Hon said the PT Herbal’s acquisition not only solved product registration issues in Indonesia, but also enabled the group to repackage their semi-finished products in a 4,000 sq ft repackaging facility in Indonesia to be ready this August.

    Inevitably, the acquisition will also widen Bioalpa’s market share via small and medium enterprises and multinational corporations in Indonesia, and enable its existing clients in Malaysia to offer their products there, according to Hon.

    The group intends to double the number of product launches to 20 products in Indonesia by the end of 2017.

    Bioalpha’s second largest export market is China and it made up about 28% of the group’s revenue or RM8.3mil in FY15.

    While Bioalpha was backed by its strong research and development centre, Hon said the demand from China was a result of aggressive advertising and promotional activities that started in 2014.

    “We have about five original design manufacturers in Beijing.

    “And our focus will be the Muslim populated areas like Lanzhou, Xi’an, Xinjiang and Qinghai and we have identified four distributors in these provinces,” he said, adding that Bioalpla already has presence in the southern and central part of China.

    On the local front, Hon revealed that it was on the lookout to expand its retail chain of pharmacies via merger and acquisitions, with the idea of franchising them in the near term.

    Bioalpha now owns 13 retail pharmacies under the brandname Constant, mainly in the Klang Valley.

    Hon said Bioalpha bought Mediconstant Holding Sdn Bhd for RM5mil last year from Ng See Hein and Loh Peng Yeow in December last year with the aim to expand its housebrand supplements.

    “This not only reduce marketing costs but enable us to reach out to customers via new formulations,” he said. adding that domestic sales is expected to grow by 40% in the next two years.

    The company also has a 70:30 joint venture with MyAngkasa Holdings Sdn Bhd, the country’s largest cooperative organisation.

    MyAngkasa is a subsidiary of Angkatan Koperasi Kebanngsaan Malaysia Bhd that has 10,000 cooperatives under its umbrella and eight million members.

    “The earnings potential from this JV is also huge considering that the members can purchase our products on a special discount from our retail pharmacies,” he added.

    Bioalpha has its own organic herbal farms in Desaru in Johor and Pasir Raja in Trengganu.

    More than 20 types of herbs are being harvested at its 300-acre land in Desaru, Kota Tinggi.

    The other is a 1,000-acre farm in Pasir Raja, of which 123 acres are harvested, while the remaining 877 acres are currently being cleared.

    Hon said the company expected to produce about 400 metric tonnes of herbal medicines by 2020.

    The group is also known for its inhouse liquid fermentation process that is able to produce medicinal mushrooms strains.

    One of its bestsellers include tiger milk mushrooms, traditionally used to cure respiratory problems.

    Noteworthy is Bioalpha’s market capitalisation, which has more than doubled to about RM200mil now, compared to when it was first listed in the Ace Market in April, last year.

    The company has dividend policy of 30% of profit after tax and has recently proposed for a bonus issue of 166,666,666 new ordinary shares of RM0.05 each in the company on the basis of one bonus share for every three existing Bioalpha shares held at an entitlement date to be determined later.

    Hon is currently the major shareholder with a 17% stake, followed by Malaysian Technology Development Corp 16.1% interest and Perbadanan Nasional Bhd 10.3%.

    Shares of Bioalpha closed unchanged at 38 sen on Friday, arriving at a market capitalisation of RM190mil.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Indonesia’s Pertamina targets stakes in two Iranian oil, gas blocks

    Indonesia’s Pertamina targets stakes in two Iranian oil, gas blocks

    Indonesia’s state-owned Pertamina will sign a memorandum of understanding with the National Iranian Oil Co. next month to develop oil and gas blocks in Iran.

    Under the initial agreement, Pertamina will be allowed access to data on four Iranian oil blocks, a senior company official said Friday.

    “There are two to four blocks that will be evaluated based on the initial study. Of the four, there are two blocks that will be our priority,” Syamsu Alam, Pertamina’s upstream director, said.

    Pertamina expects to get an additional production of 30,000 b/d from each block if it is allowed to acquire the blocks, Alam said.

    Indonesia and Iran have recently intensified efforts to cooperate. Pertamina and NIOC recently signed a heads of agreement for the latter to supply refrigerated LPG to the former. Pertamina is also planning to import a 1-million-barrel cargo of Iran Light crude oil in the third quarter of this year to test the grade at its 348,000 b/d Cilacap refinery in Central Java

    Pertamina has allocated a capital expenditure of $5.31 billion this year, of which 72% is for upstream business. The company plans to spend $2 billion on upstream mergers and acquisitions this year.

    The state-owned company’s overseas blocks produced 83,000 b/d in May 2016 compared with 75,000 b/d in May last year. The increase mainly came from the company’s 10% stake in the West Qurna block in Iraq.

    Pertamina has three producing oil and gas blocks located in Malaysia, Algeria and Iraq.

    The company produced 306,250 b/d of crude in Q1 2016, up 14.5% year on year. Gas production rose by 22.2% year on year in Q1 this year to 1.98 Bcf/day, Alam said. The company is targeting production of 327,000 b/d of crude and condensate and 1.926 Bcf/d of gas in 2016. The figure is equal to 659,000 b/d of oil equivalent, up 10% year on year.

    With limited options domestically, the company is looking at growing its production via acquisition of overseas blocks. It is in advanced talks with Russia’s Rosneft to take a stake of about 10%-15% in two oil gas blocks in Russia. The company is aiming to get 35,000 b/d of production and 200 million barrels of reserves from those blocks.

    Lees ook:

  • Indonesia plans emergency law to let foreigners buy apartments

    Indonesia plans emergency law to let foreigners buy apartments

    Property sector needs reform to attract investments, says minister. Indonesia plans to issue an emergency law – known as a perppu – to break an impasse of more than a decade in efforts to streamline unfriendly laws as the country aims to allow foreigners to purchase apartments in Indonesia.

    The government had in the past repeatedly tried to move forward and set regulations to allow foreigners to own apartments in South-east Asia’s biggest economy.

    But they were never able to get these implemented because the basic stipulation under Indonesia’s 1960 Agrarian Law is that foreigners just cannot own homes in the country, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan said.

    “But the era has changed now. The property sector needs a reform so we could attract foreign investment. Foreigners should be allowed to buy apartments – but not landed houses – even if they don’t hold Kitas (Indonesia’s residence permit),” Luhut told The Straits Times.

    “It is similar to that in Singapore,” he added.

    Indonesia’s Constitution gives the President the right to issue a rule in lieu of law (perppu) when he determines that an emergency in the country requires it.

    A perppu is immediately effective after the President signs it, and Parliament can either let it remain effective or end it within a year after the perppu is issued.

    Luhut said the perppu that covers a new rule allowing foreign investors to buy apartments is one of between four and five perppu that Indonesia plans to issue by August, to resolve other obstacles hindering the government reform programme.

    “This is a revolutionary step to address such problems,” he said.

    A so-called debottlenecking working committee has been set up to identify problematic and protracted clauses in all laws.

    “We will comb all legislations that overlap with each other,” Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, who heads the working committee, told The Straits Times.

    The perppu will supersede only the problematic clauses in each law and serve to bypass them, Luhut said.

    He added that one perppu could address problems in five to more than 10 existing laws, and about 80 per cent to 90 per cent of the existing laws can be harmonised.

    Issuing perppu is a normal practice that some foreign governments, such as the United States, also use, Luhut said, adding that the term used in the US is “presidential Act”.

    In May, President Joko Widodo signed a perppu that allows courts to increase penalties for sex crimes, which include for the first time chemical castration and death sentence, after the media highlighted a growing number of attacks against children.

    Previously, the maximum sentence for a child sex offence was 15 years’ jail. Indonesians have mostly welcomed the move.

    Amending existing laws through the normal process, by proposing Bills to Indonesian Parliament, can drag on for several years, and in some cases, proposed Bills were thrown out.

    Numerous government reform programs in Indonesia in the past decades have hit a snag due to conflicting laws that need amendment.

  • Durex maker looking for greater penetration in Indonesia

    Durex maker looking for greater penetration in Indonesia

    Reckitt Benckiser is aiming to expand its presence in Indonesia’s consumer market as the British multinational company plans to introduce several new brands.

    “We’re looking for an aggressive product and portfolio expansion. We’ll continue to work on building brands, entering new categories. The products will come in the near future,” Reckitt Benckiser Indonesia president director Ratanjit Das said during a recent interview.

    Das, however, declined to provide details regarding the brands or their expected launch schedule. The new brands will add to its list of 20 brands already being marketed in Indonesia, such as Durex condoms, Dettol antiseptic, Vanish stain remover and Strepsils throat lozenges.

    To deepen its presence, the company will meet head-to-head with its major competitors, namely Anglo-Dutch Unilever, American SC Johnson and Son and Japan’s Kao.

    Das said he was confident in the Indonesian market, citing the country’s relatively higher disposable income on the back of falling inflation and greater media use.

    “Consumers are becoming more and more aware of household products through the media. Therefore they’re ready to spend and more willing to experiment. So in the future, I would say it will be good for the FMCG [Fast Moving Consumer Goods] business, as well as for us,” he said.

    Data from the World Bank show that Indonesia’s GDP per capita rose significantly in the 2004-2014 period. GDP per capita stood at US$3,491.9 in 2014, an increase of more than three times from $1,150.3 in 2004.

    The Boston Consulting Group has also projected that 8 to 9 million people are expected to enter the middle-income bracket every year in Indonesia, until the total reaches 141 million in 2020.

    According to Reckitt Benckiser, the use of digital media has increased, especially social media like YouTube, and has helped the company advertise its products. At present, it primarily uses digital media to advertise its Durex products due to existing restrictions on condom advertising on television.

    Despite the company’s growing preference for digital media, offline activities still dominate Reckitt Benckiser’s marketing activities. For instance, it partners with the Health Ministry and the Indonesia Doctors Association (IDI) in its Healthy Life Mission campaign to introduce Dettol antiseptic at community centers.

    The company currently operates two factories in Cileungsi, West Java, and Semarang, Central Java.

    In terms of costs, Das said the exchange rate remained one of its biggest business challenges as many products were still imported. High logistics costs amid a lack of proper infrastructure are also two items of concern.

    No specific financial details are available regarding the company’s operations in Indonesia. However, its latest financial report reveals that 31 percent of its £719 million ($956.68 million) revenues in the first quarter of 2016 were generated from developing markets, including Indonesia.

  • MPPA increases stake in MatahariMall.com to 10%

    MPPA increases stake in MatahariMall.com to 10%

    With the acquisition, MPPA hopes to benefit from wider access to e-commerce as its development will remain strong this year. The Company views e-commerce in Indonesia is an enormous market and will continue to grow.

    The investment and partnership with MatahariMall.com is a new opportunity to foster O2O e-commerce components that encourage the sale contribution in the future. The relationship will improve MPPA’s position as the leading multi-format modern retailer in Indonesia, as well as contribute to a sound financial outlook going forward. MPPA takes advantage to secure a new opportunity to display and market the Company’s exclusive brand throughout Indonesia via e-commerce.

    Lees ook:

  • SMEs switch to online for branding, expansion

    SMEs switch to online for branding, expansion

    Indonesian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are taking advantage of the unique methods of engagement that online services offer them and potential customers.

    The owner of Jakarta-based desserts maker PUYO Desserts, Adrian Agus, owes much of his brand’s success to intensive online campaigns through various social media and messaging apps.

    By connecting directly with his customers through these platforms, Adrian has been able to find a quick way for his colorful home-made puddings to capture the public eye.

    Shortly after he started the business in 2013, Adrian found that social media greatly helped his marketing operations at little cost. In the beginning, PUYO’s marketing campaigns mostly centered on Instagram where it slowly gained traction and attracted loyal followers.

    “Social media campaigns have been very effective for the business. Right now, we’re holding a lot of competitions on Instagram,” he told The Jakarta Post on Thursday, elaborating on the creative engagement that Instagram offers between customer and vendor.

    Gradually, PUYO has branched out to Twitter and LINE to help sell its products, with the use of these services’ operational tools such as LINE’s LINE@ service, which enables the user to send mass messages to all customers that follow its LINE account.

    Japanese-based LINE Corporation itself describes the Line@ feature in its messaging app as “the same as broadcast messaging”. The company, however, says that the idea is more specifically aimed at nurturing businesses.

    Currently, PUYO has over 59,600 followers on its Instagram account and has evolved from being a home-based business in 2013 to having 22 outlets across Greater Jakarta.

    Meanwhile, the social apps behind these successes are increasingly aware of their role in the small business sector.

    Apps such as LINE, KakaoTalk, WeChat or WhatsApp have had their purposes extended beyond the simple text message, with some apps gradually rolling out new features that help small businesses thrive or become more efficient.

    LINE Indonesia’s head of marketing Galuh Chandrakirana explained that the rollouts of the company’s newer features such as Line for PC, Line Group Call and Line Today would help small businesses in making their operations more mobile, as mobility is becoming more emphasized in today’s business world, with SMEs able to benefit from these services through trimming their costs.

    “Features such as Line for PC, which can be opened from desktops, are not geared necessarily for SMEs but it serves to help them cut communications costs. However, we do plan to roll out a feature which is specifically designed to help that sector in the next month or two,” she elaborated.

    Currently, LINE has recorded over 1 million downloads in Indonesia comprising small businesses including online shops, offline retailers, specific communities and bloggers. Up to 40 percent of that figure is active businesses who utilize LINE in their practices.

    Indonesia has the highest number of SMEs in Southeast Asia, with over 50 million operating nationwide, however, only 1 percent of these are officially “connected” online.

    Last month, the government announced its cooperation with online SME promotion service Nurbaya Initiatives to explore new ways of encouraging SMEs to tap into the digital era’s potential.

    Collaborating with state-owned postal company PT Pos Indonesia, Nurbaya is targeting to bring 2 million SMEs online within the next two years. The company will assign a facilitator to provide each participating SME with advice on online promotion, including the setting up of online stores and payment platforms.

    Nurbaya will also assign a relationship manager to every online shop, allowing clients to focus on production. “By our collaboration with the postal service, SMEs will have help in terms of logistics and quality control,” Nurbaya’s CEO Andy Sjarif said.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Indonesia ranked 2nd in top destinations for Muslims

    Indonesia ranked 2nd in top destinations for Muslims

    Indonesia has been ranked second in the list of “Top 20 Destinations for Muslim Travelers in Ramadan 2016,” in the Mastercard-Crescent Rating Ramadan Travel Report.

    The deputy for overseas tourism marketing of the Ministry of Tourism, I Gde Pitana on Monday hailed the achievement which showed that Indonesia has become a more favorite destination for Muslim travelers.

    In the survey carried out by CrescentRating, Malaysia was ranked first.

    The survey was carried out to know the 20 favorite destinations for travelers during the 2016 Ramadhan holiday.

    The ten top destinations for Muslim travelers, according to the survey, are Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Turkey, Brunei Darussalam, South Africa, Maldives, United Arab Emirates, Iran and Oman.

    Pitana said in the past few years, a number of countries have focused on Muslim majority markets and have thus become his offices focus of attention with regard to tapping their potential to boost foreign visitors to Indonesia.

    With the recognition, he said, it is hoped Indonesia will be better known among Muslim travelers across the world.

    “This is a potential segment that, we hope, will contribute much to achieving the target of foreign tourist arrivals this year,” he said.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Abu Dhabi to host International Travel Week

    Abu Dhabi to host International Travel Week

    Abu Dhabi will be hosting International Travel Week (ITW Abu Dhabi),  a co-location of synergistic travel events each focused on the fastest growing global tourism source market sectors, in November this year.

    Taking place from November 21 to 25 at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center, ITW-Abu Dhabi will aim to deliver a comprehensive programme which will combine targeted meetings with first-class networking opportunities, inspiring knowledge-bound seminars and innovative experiences, culminating in a glittering gala awards evening to celebrate outstanding achievements across the international halal tourism landscape.

    Commenting on the strategic partnership with the host destination, Andy Buchanan, executive organising committee director said: “We are thrilled to bring ITW Abu Dhabi to the culturally-rich and trailblazing city of Abu Dhabi. Against this remarkable backdrop, participants will have the opportunity to discover, connect and be enriched, which in turn will assist them in defining and driving the future of their own business.”

    Indonesia Ministry of Tourism are delighted to be the official Headline Sponsor for the ITW Abu Dhabi 2016, and commented: “Indonesia participates again in 2016 but this time bigger than 2015 as we want to bring more sales.” As a major sponsor of the summit, Indonesia Ministry of Tourism expects to welcome key international delegations, investors, tourism associations and market-leading specialists to the summit.

    Evolutionary progression

    ITW-Abu Dhabi is a progressive and evolutionary event which has developed from last year’s World Halal Travel Summit. The 2015 edition enjoyed unprecedented success, where the summit yielded impressive results, generating more than $18.4 million worth of business on the show floor, and a further $73.5 million stemming from opportunities directly created at the event.

    With more than 6,000 travel professionals expected to participate in this year’s ITW-Abu Dhabi, this transformative five-day event is hotly-anticipated to be the premium platform for the global halal travel, medical and shopping tourism industry.

    With a dedicated commitment to the fiercely and hugely influential fast-growing travel sectors, ITW-Abu Dhabi will continue to shine the spotlight on the exceptional halal, medical and shopping-relevant opportunities available worldwide at this year’s event, with major influencers bringing their insight and knowledge to the seminar stage.

    Expansion of ‘ITW-Abu Dhabi’

    Hot on the heels of 2015’s World Halal Travel Summit success, and in response to growing demand for a platform for discussion and recognition on halal, medical and shopping tourism segments, ITW-Abu Dhabi will this year open up a Ministerial Forum, a high level debate of ministers and key stakeholders on Intra OIC (Organisation of Islamic Co-operation), medical and shopping tourism and the real world challenges of implementation. ITW-Abu Dhabi will also host the second World Halal Travel Awards, a glittering event to recognize outstanding products and service within the halal tourism sector. The winners of the 2016 World Halal Travel Awards will be announced at a gala event in Abu Dhabi on 22nd November 2016. The awards ceremony forms a crucial element of the summit which is the largest gathering of global executives operating in the family friendly travel sector. For the first time, ITW-Abu Dhabi will also introduce ‘The Family Vacation Show’ wherein exhibitors will have a chance to interact with consumers face-to-face. The event will be information packed and created to directly sell and introduce offers, packages and promotions to qualified consumer travel audience.

    Results-driven

    According to Buchanan, the expanded 2016 edition is expected to be a boon for all involved: “ITW-Abu Dhabi was established with a clear objective of providing opportunities to explore and maximise on the latest trends and offerings within the fastest growing travel segments namely halal, medical and shopping tourism. In a concerted effort to distinguish itself on the halal, medical and shopping travel industry event landscape, ITW Abu Dhabi aims to deliver an elevated business-to-business platform that is innovative, inspiring, and result-driven, with the structured five-day programme including elements such as knowledge-sharing seminars, show floor meetings, exceptional networking experiences and a dazzling awards evening. I expect the 2016 edition to be a windfall for those organisations and individuals that exhibit and participate.”

    Confirmed participation for the ITW-Abu Dhabi 2016, stretching across multiple spectrums, hails from a diverse spread of key players including Accor Hotels, Bangladesh Tourism Board, Dinar Standard, Etihad Airways, HCA Healthcare, Holiday Bosnia, and Jannah Hotels, among others.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Shopping malls in Jakarta to remain open on Eid

    Shopping malls in Jakarta to remain open on Eid

    A number of shopping malls in Jakarta will remain open on the Eid al-Fitr holiday or Lebaran on Wednesday to serve visitors.

    The malls that will open that day include Atrium and Lotus. “We will open late,” an employee of the Lotus shopping mall, Doni, said here on Tuesday.

    He informed that ahead of Lebaran, the shopping center closed 30 minutes later than the usual time of 22.00 hours.

    “Since June 27, we have been closing at 2230 hours, and opening at 0900 hours,” he added.

    Doni disclosed that for the past three days, just ahead of Lebaran, his shopping center has been closing at 2300 hours.

    “On Lebaran day, we will open at 13.00 hours,” he noted.

    The Atrium Mall in Pasar Senen, Central Jakarta, will also remain open on Lebaran.

    A shop attendant at the mall, Agus, rued that he could not return to his home town in Solo, Central Java, because he had to work.

    Several shops in the shopping centers in Jakarta will remain closed during Lebaran, including those at Mal ITC Cempaka Mas.

    Lees ook:

  • Direct flight links MSAR to Manado, Indonesia

    Direct flight links MSAR to Manado, Indonesia

    Some 205 Chinese travellers took off from Macau International Airport and arrived in Ratulangi International Airport, North Sulawesi, Indonesia by Lion Air’s Boeing 373 on Monday, reported Chinese News Agency. This represents the opening of the direct link between the SAR and Manado, a city on an Indonesian island.

    North Sulawesi Governor Olly Dondokambey expects that direct visits from a number of cities in China can be done regularly so that the Indonesian government’s target to increase tourist arrivals can be achieved.

    Lion Air is seeking to attract 30,000 Chinese tourists to Manado by year-end. “From now, we will have daily flights from six Chinese cities to Manado,” said Rusdi Kirana, Lion Group boss, and a member of the Presidential Advisory Board.
    The six cities are Macau, Shenzhen, Chongqing, Wuhan, Shanghai and Changsha. Rusdi said the six cities have huge market potential, large populations and high purchasing power.

    The Indonesian Government has expressed its target of attracting 1.2 million Chinese tourists to the country and North Sulawesi can be one of the main attractions, says its governor. “We believe North Sulawesi is a proper travel destination [for tourists] from Asia Pacific, particularly China with its huge market,” said the governor.

    Lees ook:

  • Maybank Indonesia converts Indian operations to Intellectual Property branches

    Maybank Indonesia converts Indian operations to Intellectual Property branches

    Intellect Design Arena Limited, a specialist in applying true Digital Technologies across Banking, Financial Services & Insurance, announced that Bank Maybank Indonesia one of the largest banks in Indonesia has gone live with Intellect’s Integrated Treasury Management System(ITMS)-OneTreasury for their Indian operations.

    The centralized treasury management solution from Intellect’s Risk, Treasury and Markets (iRTM) division has enhanced operational efficiency across asset classes and enabled overseas branch to eliminate dependence on intensive manual operations. The entire process of solution deployment, User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and data migration was completed in a span of 7 months.

    The product implemented will play a key role in the bank’s treasury operations in India. This robust and functionally rich ITMS solution is compliant with the RBI regulations and integrates seamlessly with the Bank’s Core Banking System. The solution suite implemented will enable its Indian customers to trade across Fixed Income, Money Market and Foreign Exchange securities electronically and mitigate the risk associated with these trading activities. The flexible data upload facility aids decision makers to make insightful decisions on time by reducing manual intervention and minimizing errors. Bank’s need for a treasury solution which could be implemented in quick time frame for mobilizing operations was possible by Intellect’s Rapid Implementation Methodology which allows the bank to transfer and deliver a working system in a span of couple of months inclusive of go-live.

    Commenting on the successful go-live, Pravin Batra, CEO, India, Bank Maybank Indonesia said, “We are happy to have chosen the stable and functionally rich solution from Intellect to manage our treasury operations in India. This implementation has been smooth and has enabled us to meet India-specific regulatory needs in line with our business objectives.

    We are extremely delighted to see the outstanding team effort put forward by team Intellect during implementation. At Maybank we believe in providing superior customer experience, with a stable treasury system from Intellect we are confident of providing an unprecedented service and banking experience. We look forward to further strengthening the relationship
    between Maybank group and Intellect Design Arena going forward.”

    Venkatesh Srinivasan, Chief Executive Officer, Risk, Treasury & Capital Markets, Intellect Design Arena Limited said, “Bank Maybank Indonesia’s choice of Integrated Treasury Management System, Intellect OneTREASURY, to power their foreign branch operations is yet another testimony to the superior functionality of our solution and our leadership in the country’s treasury management space. The cost effective OneTREASURY solution meets the Indian regulatory requirements which will enable the bank to achieve its business objectives and improve its competitiveness in the international marketplace.”

    The advanced scalable OneTREASURY solution enhances productivity and enables centralized decision making for the bank. Customers of the Indian branch will now have access to a user-friendly treasury system which centralizes operations and provides operational efficiency through complete automation and seamless integration of treasury functions.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Singapore Tourism Board Launches Travel Privileges Exclusive for Thai Visa Cardholders

    Singapore Tourism Board Launches Travel Privileges Exclusive for Thai Visa Cardholders

    Thai travelers to Singapore will benefit from exclusive offers, courtesy of Visa and the Singapore Tourism Board, throughout 2016. With a variety of attractions, Singapore offers something for every family member. This campaign, a collaboration between Visa and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB),  includes exclusive offers from airlines, hotels, and attractions, aiming to augment the unique experiences for Thai visitors in the vibrant island city. 

    Participating partners include Singapore Airlines, Scoot, Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), Sentosa Leisure Management, Gardens by the Bay, Asiatravel.com, ION Orchard, Mount Faber Leisure Group, Wildlife Reserves Singapore and many more.

    “For Thais, Singapore is a destination that is easy to plan and travel, offering a mixture of cultures, and great experiences for leisure and business travelers alike. Hence, Thailand is one of our key markets. Over half a million Thais visited Singapore last year spending an average of THB 30,000 per trip. They stayed for around 4 days each time,” said, Edward Koh, Executive Director, Southeast Asia, Singapore Tourism Board.

    The island country is full of events and festivals year round, as well as packed with concerts and exciting entertainment options. Families can enjoy world-renown attractions such as Singapore Zoo, River Safari, Universal Studios Singapore and S.E.A Aquarium. It is also regarded as a shopper’s paradise with options aplenty for all budgets. 

    “Singapore has so many fun activities for both business and leisure travelers – people of all ages and backgrounds. Even though you might be frequent travelers to Singapore, there will always be some new activities and experiences that are worth exploring. Under the partnership, VISA and Singapore Tourism Board want Thais to have memorable treasured moments in Singapore,” said  Ms. Sherleen Seah, Area Director, Thailand & Myanmar, Singapore Tourism Board. 

    “As the preferred card for Thai travelers Visa is delighted to work with Singapore Tourism Board and our merchant partners in the city-state to offer special privileges and discounts exclusively to Visa cardholders. Singapore is a family-friendly destination. Our offers add crucial values for everyone on all touchpoints during travel from purchasing air tickets to booking accommodation and all the way to shopping and dining,” said Suripong Tantiyanon, Visa Country Manager, Thailand. 

    Key highlight for the promotion is the lucky draw. Thai visitors to Singapore who spend more than THB 30,000 during a calendar month between July and September will have the chance to win a premium travel package worth THB 250,000 for that month. A total of 3 premium travel packages will be given away. Key events in Singapore during this time include the Great Singapore Sale between June 3 and August 14, the Singapore Night Festival on the last two weekends in August, and the Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix on September 16 – 18.

    Lees ook: