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Tag: household

  • Singaporean Households Can Now Access $380 Vouchers from New Cost-of-Living Relief Program

    Singaporean Households Can Now Access $380 Vouchers from New Cost-of-Living Relief Program

    The latest distribution of CDC vouchers is set to bring some cheer to Singaporean households, providing much-needed financial relief amid ongoing economic pressures. These vouchers can be claimed online via the official website and are valid until December 31, 2025.

    Where Can They Be Used?

    A split distribution model allows half of the vouchers to be redeemed at participating heartland merchants and hawkers, while the other half is valid at eight major supermarket chains—Ang Mo Supermarket, Cold Storage, Giant Singapore, HAO Mart, NTUC FairPrice, Prime Supermarket, Sheng Siong, and U Stars Supermarket—spanning nearly 400 outlets across the nation.

    This initiative represents the sixth distribution under the CDC voucher scheme, established in 2020 in response to the financial challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which directly impacted hawkers and local businesses. Last year alone, two distributions totaling S$800 were rolled out, with an impressive 97% of Singapore’s 1.3 million households making claims.

    This year saw an additional S$300 set issued in January 2025, with approximately 97.3% of households already having claimed their share as of Monday. Of those, around 83.4%—equating to over S$324 million—have already been redeemed, as reported by The Straits Times.

    Government Support Continues

    At the launch of the latest distribution on Tuesday, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong emphasized the importance of these vouchers in light of persistent inflation in Singapore, which, while easing more quickly than in other parts of the world, still leaves households wrestling with high costs. Wong highlighted that this initiative is part of a broader set of measures introduced in the national budget to ease financial burdens.

    Singaporeans can expect further assistance in the upcoming financial year from April 1 to March 31 next year, with SG60 vouchers offering S$600-800 coming in July, along with another S$300 in CDC vouchers set for release next January. For a typical family of four with two young children, total support this financial year could reach around S$5,000, illustrating the government’s ongoing commitment to provide relief.

    “This is not a one-off exercise,” Wong assured. “We will continue to strengthen our social support system across various areas—housing, healthcare, education, and retirement,” he noted, as quoted by CNA. “All these updates, changes, and improvements in policy will help give Singaporeans greater assurance at every life stage.”

    Who knew vouchers could be the superhero cape for struggling families?

    Questions & Answers

    **What are CDC vouchers, and how can I claim them?**
    CDC vouchers are financial aids distributed to help households cope with rising living costs and can be claimed online through the official website until December 31, 2025.

    Which merchants accept these vouchers?
    Half of the vouchers can be used at participating heartland merchants and hawkers, while the remainder is accepted at major supermarket chains like Cold Storage and NTUC FairPrice.

    How much total support can a typical family receive this financial year?
    A typical family of four with two young children can receive approximately S$5,000 in total support, thanks to various assistance initiatives and upcoming voucher distributions.

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  • Miniso eyes Hong Kong stock market listing

    Miniso eyes Hong Kong stock market listing

    Miniso Group Holding, the New York-listed Chinese household and consumer goods retailer, is planning a second listing in Hong Kong, joining an increasing number of US-listed mainland companies seeking a listing closer to home.

    The retailer submitted its application to Hong Kong stock exchange on Thursday, according to the bourse’s website.

    The Guangzhou-based company is following in the footsteps of electric-vehicle makers Li Auto and Xpeng in seeking a dual primary listing in Hong Kong to hedge against the risk of being delisted from US exchanges. Legislation introduced by the Trump administration in 2020 seeks to delist Chinese companies that fail to pass US audit reviews for three consecutive years, and the Biden administration is not letting up.

    Miniso raised US$608 million from its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange in October 2020. The company’s shares, however, have fallen more than 66 percent since listing and were trading at US$7.88 on Thursday.

    Miniso’s revenue increased by 24.2 percent to 5.42 billion yuan (US$853.5 million) for the six months ended December 2021, while adjusted net profit rose 114 percent to 398.6 million yuan, according to its listing application.

    The company said it expects to see strong growth because of China’s booming retail and pop toy market.

    The estimated growth rate of the pop toy market in China, which saw gross merchandise value (GMV) reach 34.5 billion yuan in 2021, is 24 percent from 2022 to 2026, according to Miniso’s filing, citing data from Frost & Sullivan.

    Miniso, which opened its first store in China in 2013, has built a global network with over 5,000 stores in around 100 countries, including 3,100 in China as of end 2021.

    The aggregate GMV of products sold through its network was about 18 billion yuan in 2021, making it the largest global branded variety retailer of lifestyle products, according to Frost & Sullivan.

    BofA Securities, Haitong International Capital and UBS are the joint sponsors.

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  • Macro launches eco-friendly household cleaning products range

    Macro launches eco-friendly household cleaning products range

    Macro Wholefoods, Woolworths’ health, and food brand, has expanded into the home category with the launch of “Macro Whole Living”, a range of eco-friendly household cleaning products.

    Products include laundry powders, kitchen liquids and tablets, and multipurpose sprays, which the brand says will help customers keep their homes fresh and clean without harsh chemicals.

    The product range is not tested on animals, contains no synthetic fragrance or dyes, is greywater and septic tank safe, and independently certified by Good Environmental Choice Australia (GECA) under their Cleaning Products and Machine Dishwashing Standards.

    Each Kitchen and Multipurpose bottle from Macro Whole Living is made from 100-per-cent recycled material. In contrast, the Laundry bottle is made from 75-per-cent recycled material and uses a paper scoop instead of the traditional plastic.

    Woolworths is also introducing its first cleaning product refill station, trialed at Burwood Brickworks in Melbourne, where customers can refill their bottles with three products from the Macro Whole Living Range – laundry liquid, multipurpose surface cleaner, and dishwashing liquid.

    The refill stations aim to reduce plastic waste by allowing customers to re-use their existing bottles.

    Pether Hathaway, GM of Macro Wholefoods, said that as more customers look for eco-friendly cleaning products, introducing a cleaning line was a natural extension for the brand to help them make better choices.

    “We’ve put the entire range of Macro Whole Living products through independent tests to ensure they’re not only tough on dirt, grease, and stains but equally as gentle on the environment.”

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  • Japan’s Lixil adopts DTC model in Singapore retail store launch

    Japan’s Lixil adopts DTC model in Singapore retail store launch

    LIXIL, maker of pioneering water and housing products, today announced the launch of its flagship showroom in Singapore. Located at a heritage shophouse unit at 24 Mohd Sultan Road, the 6,000 square feet store is in the heart of Singapore’s prime lifestyle district. Bringing multiple LIXIL brands under one roof, the store offers a wide range of sustainable living solutions, meaningful design, and cutting-edge hygiene technology.

    The launch of the store comes at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic and the planet’s health have put issues such as sanitation and hygiene at the forefront of consumer minds. Besides offering LIXIL’s unique hygiene technology through the store, LIXIL is also leveraging on its industry-leading experience with a direct-to-consumer business approach and unparalleled retail concept to offer a full bathroom product line-up to reach more consumer segments. The showroom will feature products from GROHE and American Standard, with plans to include INAX, the Japanese brand that manufactures innovative sanitaryware and artistic ceramic tiles.

    Satoshi Konagai, Leader, LIXIL Water Technology-Asia Pacific, said, “We are very happy to inaugurate our flagship showroom and hope to provide the best solutions for their living and working spaces. The customer and retail experience have always been very important to us at LIXIL and we are constantly looking for ways to maximize the value for our consumers.”

    He further added, “Today the world is more concerned than ever about hygiene. Singapore’s recent commitment on sustainability and its exemplary handling of the pandemic showcases a rising awareness on these global issues, and we believe there is a growing demand for solutions to address them. Homeowners expect proven solutions that offer peace of mind. Our technologies such as Touchless faucets and flushing systems, Easy to clean solutions, Double Vortex flushing system, HygieneRim technology and Aqua Ceramic can help to provide the ‘optimum hygiene’ to our discerning consumers.“

    “Also, in a time where people are unable to travel and spend more time at home, they want to be able to feel relaxed and enjoy a spa-like experience right in their own home. Here our solutions like GROHE F-Digital Deluxe, GROHE SmartControl, GROHE Sensia Arena shower toilet can provide a ‘home spa‘ experience to consumers by bringing the enjoyment of water to them.”

    Built on the brand’s core pillars of hygiene, sustainability, and innovative design, LIXIL’s flagship showroom in Singapore takes an experiential approach at showcasing its award-winning water technology and living solutions.

    Some of the key highlights that consumers can expect to see in the store:

    • Cutting-edge technologies in interior design, such as the GROHE F-Digital Deluxe Spa System which consists of a shower system with lights, steam and sound, controlled by an app; as well as GROHE Sensia Arena shower toilet, one of LIXIL’s most internationally awarded product.
    • LIXIL’s first 3D metal-printed faucet, the GROHE Allure Brilliant Icon 3D faucet retailing at S$34,234.24.
    • Kitchen solutions, such as the GROHE Zedra SmartControl which features our “push-and-turn technology”, as well as GROHE Blue, the brand’s sustainable living water filter system and faucet.
    • American Standard’s elegant hygiene products such as its Line Sensor Technology Faucet, the elegant Acacia SupaSleek Collection, and its Signature Collection — featuring its cutting-edge HygieneClean System for toilets, with its Double Vortex flushing technology, anti-stain Aqua Ceramic material, anti-bacterial ComfortClean technology and rimless Hygiene Rim design.
    • FREE 360-degree virtual bathroom design and proprietary LIXIL’s rendering service CustoMySpace, allowing visitors to shortlist their favourite products and render them in 3D in a virtual bathroom setting for them to bring their ideas to life.
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  • The Loft heads to China with new store Opening

    The Loft heads to China with new store Opening

    Japanese household goods store The Loft is preparing to open a new store in China’s Chengdu with local superstore business Chengdu Ito-Yokado.

    The Loft holds a 90 percent stake in the new joint venture, which has registered capital of RMB45 million (US$6.54 million).

    Chengdu Ito-Yokado is a subsidiary of fellow Japanese general merchandise retailer Ito-Yokado, which has 14 stores in Chengdu and Beijing. The Loft entered discussions with the company to form a partnership while it was evaluating opportunities for a long-term corporate strategy in Mainland China. The new joint venture now paves the way for The Loft to prepare to open its directly managed stores in Chengdu and elsewhere in China.

    The Loft, which specializes in display and layout arrangements for household accessories, cosmetics, and stationery, is one of Japan’s largest retailers of household goods with more than 100 stores in Japan. It also has a presence in Thailand. As many Chinese tourists have been visiting Loft stores, particularly Shibuya Loft in the Tokyo metropolitan area, the firm believes its stores in China will be able to attract new local customers.

    The new store is expected to launch in spring next year.

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  • LG Acquires Avon

    LG Acquires Avon

    LG Household & Health Care has acquired Avon North America in a US$125 million deal with an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management.

    LG H&H holds a strong market position in South Korea’s consumer goods industry, one of the world’s largest beauty markets, with more than $13.1 billion in sales last year. It currently distributes a number of its brands in the US, including Belif and The History of Whoo.

    The addition of Avon’s brand, products, employee base and network of 250,000 sales representatives throughout North America is expected to support LG H&H’s international growth strategies.

    “We recognise Avon North America’s strong brand, leading market position in the region, and talented employees and representatives,” said LG Household & Health Care CEO Suk Cha. “Avon North America’s innovative social selling model builds deep connections with customers and we are excited to leverage this as we continue to expand. We look forward to building on Avon North America’s success to drive customer engagement and long-term growth in this market.”

    “LG H&H respects and admires our strong community of representatives, and supports our mission to empower women through economic opportunity,” said Avon North America CEO Laurie Ann Goldman.

    The transaction is expected to close on September 30 and is subject to certain customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals in the US.

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  • Indian consumers ask Amazon to resume Pantry service

    Indian consumers ask Amazon to resume Pantry service

    The Indian users of online grocery delivery service Amazon Pantry have taken to Twitter to urge the e-retail major to resume services ever since it was discontinued on February 1. “Currently, pantry items are not available on Amazon. Kindly stay tuned for more updates. Thank you for understanding,” Amazon responded to its Indian users in a tweet. The service became unavailable in India on February 1, the day revised norms for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in e-commerce came into force in the country.

    Following the new norms, Amazon has also removed from its website sellers such as Cloudtail India and Appario Retail Pvt Ltd in which it owns a stake.

    “I am missing Amazon Pantry service which catered to my monthly needs. It was super convenient,” tweeted a user.

    “What happened to Amazon Pantry? Please fix it,” read another user’s tweet.

    Under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s new guidelines issued on December 26, e-commerce platforms providing a marketplace are barred from exercising control or ownership over the inventory.

    They are also barred from allowing any company to sell its products exclusively on their e-commerce platforms alone.

    The Indian arm of the Seattle-based e-commerce giant did not respond to questions by IANS on the expected impact to its business in the light of the revised norms.

    While the company had earlier in a statement to IANS said that “it has always operated in compliance with the laws of the land”, it did not respond to queries on the changes it may have to make to its business model to suit the new norms.

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  • Milkbasket India launches operations in Bengaluru

    Milkbasket India launches operations in Bengaluru

    Milk delivery startup Milkbasket Wednesday said it plans to hire 2,500 people over the next two years and announced the launch of its services in Bengaluru. According to a report, the company said it will hire people to support the operations and growth in Bengaluru. “Within next two years, we hope to have the largest operations in Bengaluru and will be creating employment for over 2,500 people in the process,” Anant Goel, Co-founder and CEO, Milkbasket was quoted by PTI as saying.

    Hiring will be made for ground operations as well as the corporate office, the company said. The startup has 1,500 employees in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru.

    It has raised close to US$ 16 million from Mayfield Advisors, Beenext, Kalaari Capital, Unilever Ventures, Lenovo and Blume Ventures.

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  • Lotte Mart’s distribution fees scrutinized

    Lotte Mart’s distribution fees scrutinized

    Korea’s antitrust body is examining the practice of retailers unfairly shifting distribution costs to their suppliers. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has started evaluation proceedings against Lotte Mart for transferring this burden and charging an onward transportation fee after a product has been delivered. The regulator could fine the retailer 400 billion won ($353.92 million) if it is found to have violated the law. It has the authority to prosecute and punish companies that contravene the Fair Trade Act and other statutes related to anti-competitive practices.

    The FTC’s Distribution Division, which monitors the activities of retailers, submitted an evaluation report, equivalent to a prosecutor’s indictment, to the commission early last month. The document outlined Lotte Mart’s infractions over five years.

    Lotte Mart has until early February to respond.

    This will be the first time the FTC has taken action against a company for shifting distribution costs to suppliers. Lotte Mart’s practice of transferring the costs, commonly known as post-distribution costs, is widespread.

    The action comes amid FTC Chairman Kim Sang-jo’s drive to root out unfair practices in the retail industry.

    Lotte Mart’s shifting of post-distribution cost to suppliers is likely to have far-reaching implications in the industry as the practice is common.

    “When signing a contract, there are requests to supply products at a price three to five percent lower than the actual price to account for the post-distribution costs,” explained Mr. Lee, who operates a company that supplies to retail stores. “It’s not just Lotte. It is common for large retail stores such as Emart, Homeplus, department stores, convenience stores and even e-commerce companies, such as Coupang.”

    The 400 billion won fine, if charged, would be an unprecedented amount. If other companies are fined, the total sum could rise to the trillions.

    “Unlike sales promotion fees, distribution costs have to be paid,” said Mr. Kim, the president of a large food company. “We struggled as it’s impossible to know the exact figure, but the FTC took on this matter for the first time.”

    From the FTC’s perspective, large retail stores use distribution centers for their own benefit, and it is unfair to force suppliers to take on costs incurred after products are delivered to the centers.

    “Suppliers that just want to deliver to distribution centers are forced to deliver to branches,” explained a senior FTC official. “If the final delivery destination is a branch store, the supplier should be able to manage their products as they want at the distribution center, but that is not the case.”

    “From a common-sense perspective, distribution costs apply only until the delivery location, not costs after the delivery,” the official added.

    Other experts disagree with the FTC’s assessment.

    “If the retailer and supplier haven’t agreed on the location of the delivery, the supplier burdening the delivery cost abides by civil law,” said Lee Ho-young, a law professor who specializes antitrust law at Hanyang University.

    Lotte is going all out on its defense, hiring Kim & Chang’s fair-trade team to represent it.

    “In the past, when there weren’t distribution centers, suppliers used to be burdened with the distribution costs,” said a Lotte Mart official. “Post-distribution costs are paid after distribution centers were established.”

    The FTC is looking into other cases.

    “The retail business cannot work if post-distribution costs are shifted to retailers,” said an executive at a large retail company who is in charge of fair trade matters.

    The FTC could make a final decision as early as March.

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  • Ikea to open first New Zealand store in Auckland

    Ikea to open first New Zealand store in Auckland

    Ikea will open a store New Zealand in the coming years, opting for the city of Auckland to bow its debut store. The Swedish firm, known for its buy-and-assemble furniture, will open up a pop-up shop in the coming months in the lead up to a fully-fledged flagship store, which would create 400 jobs in the city, according to local media reports With no an exact time frame for the megastore launch, Ikea’s New Zealand manager, Will Edwards, said that Ikea would open a pop-up shop in central Auckland, as a physical store would take a number of years to set up.

    “It does take time to build a truly big blue and yellow iconic Ikea store, it will take a number of years to get the full offer up and running but we don’t want to keep people waiting,” Edwards told media on Friday at a press conference, which also saw the attendance of Ikea’s global chief execute, Jesper Bodin.

    “It makes sense to be in Auckland where many people are living and also commuting in and out of. We’d like to give a piece of Ikea before the full meal comes along,” added Edwards.

    Ikea requires some 300 to 400 employees to run the Auckland store, as well as several hundred more staff to support logistics.

    Bodin said that New Zealand will get the “whole shebang”, with a product range of about 7000 items at least in the warehouse store.

    While price-points weren’t disclosed, Bodin said that “our ambition is always to be affordable for people and competitive with other retailers in New Zealand.”

    Ingka Group, Ikea’s largest franchisee and operator of Ikea stores in 30 markets around the world, was granted exclusive rights to explore options to expand into New Zealand.

    Founded in 1943 in Sweden, Ikea sells furniture and homewares to 1.2 billion customers around the world.

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  • LG profit plunges, missing forecasts by a mile

    LG profit plunges, missing forecasts by a mile

    LG Electronics’ operating profit fell nearly 80 percent in the fourth-quarter of 2018 year-on-year, according to preliminary figures disclosed in a Financial Supervisory Service regulatory filing Tuesday.  The smartphone and household appliances manufacturer estimated 75.3 billion won ($67.0 million) in operating profit for the final quarter of last year compared to 366.8 billion won in the same quarter in 2017.

    The estimate is far below the 398.1 billion won forecast by analysts surveyed by FnGuide, a data provider. The company anticipated 15.8 trillion won in revenue from October to December last year, a 7-percent decline from the same period a year earlier.

    Analysts pointed to the slowing global smartphone market as a factor weighing on the company.

    “With the smartphone market currently in a slump, [the company] is unable to find an opportunity to recover,” said Kim Ji-san, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities in a report Tuesday that predicted disappointing earnings prior to LG’s announcement. “Demand has slowed as smartphone replacement cycles have become longer in high-value markets such as Korea and the United States,” Kim added.

    Meanwhile, the company estimated annual operating profit for 2018 at 2.7 trillion won, a 9.5 percent rise from the previous year.

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  • Amway forays into the herbal oral care segment

    Amway forays into the herbal oral care segment

    Amway India, the country’s largest FMCG direct selling company has announced the launch of its latest innovation – ‘Glister Herbals Toothpaste’, to mark its entry into the herbal oral care market. Building on the success of its globally popular Rs 100 crore brand – Glister, the new herbal oral care product is a seamless blend of numerous herbal ingredients with appealing taste and pleasing color to suit everyone’s palate. With this new and advanced product, Amway aims to target the flourishing Rs 1,980 crores oral care segment in India.

    Announcing the launch of Glister Herbals, Sundip Shah, Chief Marketing Officer, Amway India, said, “Glister has been one of our most popular global brands. A bestseller for over five decades, it has won the trust of millions of consumers worldwide and has been an integral part of their oral hygiene routine. Keeping with our commitment of offering highest quality products and addressing the increasing demand for natural and herbal alternatives for long-term healthy living, Glister Herbals is an expansion of our flagship brand and indigenously developed for our Indian consumers.”

    He further added, “The industry for herbal oral care products has grown significantly in recent years, fueled by consumers’ preference for herbal solutions and trust in their long-term benefits. However, our research empirically highlights the need for likeable sensorials – a gap that exists in the available offerings in the market currently. This often leads to consumers shifting to regular and non-herbal products. Glister Herbals’ has the goodness of herbs with great taste and appealing colour. With this powerful mix, we aim to transform the product usage experience and long-term adoption of herbal toothpastes in the market and I am confident in our latest innovation and its potential to transform the category”

    Anisha Sharma, Category Head, Beauty & Personal Care, Amway India, added, “Glister Herbals is best defined as the herbal oral care solution from Amway offering great taste with the goodness of herbs. This multi-action toothpaste is enriched with 11 ingredients such as spearmint, clove, ginger, neem, mulethi, among others, which are known for their benefits and great taste. It also has biodegradable microbeads of essential oils comprising clove and tea tree to ensure maximum efficacy of the constituents. The goodness of herbs promises 12-hour germ protection and fresh breath benefits along with remineralization and teeth whitening.”

    She further added, “We are excited with the business opportunity offered by the market. In order to ensure national wide reach and to engage consumers, we are introducing digital activations across platforms and organizing dental camps in key markets. As ingredient story and taste is key to the success of our new herbal offering, we have begun taste challenges for our direct sellers for which we have received an overwhelming response. We are sure that the Glister Herbals will receive favorable response from the consumers.”

    Glister Herbals follows the thriving success of Amway’s Nutrilite Traditional Herbs in its Nutrition and Attitude Be Bright Herbals in beauty categories last year.

    Amway Glister Herbals is sold exclusively by Amway Direct Sellers across India and can be easily ordered on the company’s website.

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  • Export growth breezes in for Daikin Malaysia

    Export growth breezes in for Daikin Malaysia

    Air conditioning company Daikin Malaysia Sdn Bhd, which has allocated a capital expenditure (capex) of RM434 million for the next financial year ending March 31, 2020 (FY20), will ramp up its efforts on driving export growth, in line with its aim for export to contribute 70% of its total sales by FY20, from 65% now. COO Ooi Cheng Suan said products from its flagship factory here, mainly air conditioners for residential (household) use, as well as light commercial and commercial, are exported to 70 countries in the world.

    “We are driving export because the Malaysian market is not big and it is limited. To expand, we must go beyond, go out (of Malaysia). Being made in Malaysia, it (our products) is well accepted. In these two years, our ringgit has weakened and this has given us certain advantage when exporting. We become more competitive,” he said.

    He said traditionally, the company had been exporting to Europe, with the more prominent countries being Italy, Greece, France, UK, as well as the Middle East. This year, in addition to Central Europe, it has expanded its export to the US and Latin America.

    “We want to achieve at least 70% export for this factory here (remaining 30% for local market). As per our plan and budget, we’re on track to move towards 70%,” said Ooi.

    He explained that the US-China trade war has given the company an opportunity of exporting into the US due to the imposition of tariffs on products from China, which impacted Daikin China’s export into US.

    “Malaysia’s platform is similar to China’s platform, so we can transfer that demand from US (supplied originally by China) to Malaysia. We’re in a good position (to secure that opportunity) because we’re competitive and we’re able to respond fast to changes so there’s a high chance that the demand of US (for Daikin) will shift to Malaysia (from China),” explained Ooi.

    In Malaysia, Daikin, the world’s industry leader in air conditioning, prides itself as the number one air conditioner maker in terms of sales turnover and the number of air conditioners sold in the market. Annually, its Sungai Buloh factory produces 1.4 million sets (comprises indoor evaporator and outdoor condenser). Currently the residential segment makes up over 60% of its sales, while the remaining 40% comes from the light commercial, commercial and industrial segments.

    Ooi, who is also deputy regional general manager for Asia emerging districts, claims that the Japanese brand Daikin is also the top air conditioner maker in almost all of the markets in Southeast Asia (SEA), based on its survey.

    “Some players claim they’re number one at serving only a niche market. Daikin has the full range of air conditioners, from as small as 0.5 horsepower to a few thousand horsepower. We cover the full spectrum of the market,” said Ooi.

    The company is expecting to close FY19 with a double-digit growth based on its current sales momentum.

    “For the Malaysian market, the situation (sales) is slow, but the upcoming Chinese New Year will spur some buying from consumers. From past experience, when it comes to February and March, the weather turns hot and this will spur impulse buying.

    “Air conditioner has become a necessity. The price of air conditioner in Malaysia is not too far reaching that it becomes a luxury item. It has been relatively low, affordable for the public,” said Ooi, adding that globally, demand for air conditioner from developing countries like India and Africa is growing fast.

    He stressed on two important pillars for growing the local market, including the introduction of R32 refrigerant products (low global warming potential), as well as educating the market to move to energy-efficient products, such as the Inverter series.

    Daikin Malaysia will invest RM100 million annually as capex for facility and machine upgrading.

    Its two new factories in Shah Alam and Banting will focus on manufacturing applied products, comprising chillers and air handling units, for large, high rise buildings, shopping centres and industrial use. The Shah Alam factory, which was set up at RM140 million, will start its full-fledged production by 2019 and is expected to have a turnover of RM100 million per year in the beginning.

    “This is the only applied factory in SEA Oceania and this will be the factory that will support the whole SEA Oceania. With our plan to expand our applied business in SEA Oceania, we’ve set up our applied regional hub in Malaysia and Singapore to expand the sales in SEA.”

    Meanwhile, it will also invest RM125 million to set up a factory in Shah Alam to make electronic devices (air conditioner controllers), which will come into production by 2020. Ooi said this factory will supply to Daikin’s affiliates, of which there are 73 factories in the world.

    “Currently we’re already exporting to Daikin factories in Turkey, Vietnam, Czech Republic and the US. We can’t cater to the whole demand of Daikin. These factories that we’re catering for are less than 20% of the demand of Daikin group. A good percentage is still supplied by others,” said Ooi.

    It is also allocating RM135 million to set up a centralised logistics centre, which is expected to start operations by early 2020-2021.

    In addition, some RM74 million has been budgeted for research & development in FY20.

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  • Supermarket retailer Big C opens 147th hypermarket

    Supermarket retailer Big C opens 147th hypermarket

    Supermarket retailer Big C has launched its 147th hypermarket at Nakhon Si Thammarat. Big C Supercenter CEO Aswin Techajareonvikul said Big C’s business has continued to expand this year. “We are recruiting new employees to drive our promising business providing the best shopping experience to our customers. “In Nakhon Si Thammarat, we are offering the new shop-in-shop concept serving the variety of customers. We also focus on home appliance and electronic products responding to trend and consumers’ interests in electronics and IT products.”

    The new centre will employ more than 1000 workers and joins the firm’s network of hypermarkets, 60 markets, 671 Mini Big Cs, and 138 Pure Pharmacies, as well as e-commerce channel Big C Shopping.

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  • Household consumption key to achieving economic growth in 2018

    Household consumption key to achieving economic growth in 2018

    The head of Indonesias National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), Bambang Brodjonegoro, has said household consumption and inflation will be the key to achieving higher economic growth in 2018.

    “To ensure consistent growth, the best recipe is to maintain the rise in household consumption, while keeping the growth at five percent or more,” Bambang said as he provided directives at a Bappenas consultation gathering in Jakarta on Friday.

    According to Bambang, household consumption will rise only when consumers have confidence about economic outlook and spend money.

    Bamang stressed that the central and regional governments should be able to ensure a perception of a normally-running economy so that people are willing to spend money.

    “If people spend money (to shop), it means household consumption is increasing, which boosts economic growth. When people shop, retail trade increases, large trade also rises, and the economy registers growth,” explained Bambang.

    Meanwhile, inflation itself should be kept as low as possible. According to Bambang, controlling inflation was the most effective way of maintaining purchasing power.

    If inflation is allowed to erode purchasing power, he added, the growth in household consumption will also be affected.

    When it comes to inflation itself, three factors can have an impact. These are a rise in food prices, change in government-set (administered) prices and core inflation. As far as core inflation is concerned, it is the task of Bank Indonesia to control the availability and demand for money. The administered price falls under the central governments authority.

    Bambang reminded that at times, two aspects can be controlled but food prices can become volatile. As a result, inflation seems higher than it should be.

    “This becomes a matter of concern in the region. Of course, there are no specific instances in the region about dealing with inflation, and response should be coordinated. But it needs to be consistently ensured that inflation should be kept as low as possible by maintaining food price stability and meet the peoples food needs,” Bambang concluded.

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