Retail News CRM

Tag: Summit

  • Swiss Financial Giant UBS Sparks Investment Insight at 14th ASEAN Summit in Singapore

    Swiss Financial Giant UBS Sparks Investment Insight at 14th ASEAN Summit in Singapore

    The global financial powerhouse UBS recently launched the 14th iteration of its Southeast Asia summit. The objective of the summit is to foster an exchange of insights and investment ideas for the upcoming year.

    The newly inaugurated UBS OneASEAN Summit has assembled in Singapore. The event has drawn an impressive crowd of over 850 individuals comprising institutional investors, influential policy makers, and industry leaders, the company revealed in a statement.

    The conference, spread over two days, is packed with panel discussions centered around various themes. These include global trade imbalances, investment prospects in China, Japan, and Europe, the future of gold and other precious metals, the rise of digital assets and artificial intelligence in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the creation of new energy systems for the AI-driven economy.

    The distinguished panel of speakers at the summit includes Suahasil Nazara, Deputy Minister of Finance for Indonesia, Brad Setser from the Council on Foreign Relations, Alfred Schipke from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Ken Jimbo from the International House of Japan, Peter Conti-Brown from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and William Dalrymple, the acclaimed author.

    Robust Economic Growth

    As per Grace Lim, the Senior ASEAN and Asia Economist at UBS Investment Bank Global Research, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the ASEAN-6 countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam – is forecasted to grow by 4.9 percent in 2026.

    Lim explained that the region continues to benefit from strong integration into global manufacturing value chains, bolstered by a substantial domestic market. She stated, “The conditions for growth are still in place, with household consumption fueling momentum in Indonesia, a rise in private investment underway in Thailand and the Philippines, and a resilient tech-related export strength in Singapore and Malaysia.”

    Nicolo Magni, Head of UBS Global Banking South-East Asia & South Asia, added to this sentiment, saying, “Southeast Asia continues to be a strategic alternative for investors. We anticipate strong deal-making momentum to persist throughout 2026 and the capital markets will likely be more active in the healthcare, real estate, and consumer sectors.”

    Questions & Answers

    What is the objective of the UBS OneASEAN Summit?
    The objective of the summit is to foster an exchange of insights and investment ideas for the upcoming year.

    Who are the attendees of the UBS OneASEAN Summit?
    The event has drawn an impressive crowd of over 850 individuals comprising institutional investors, influential policy makers, and industry leaders.

    What is the predicted GDP growth for the ASEAN-6 countries in 2026?
    The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the ASEAN-6 countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam – is forecasted to grow by 4.9 percent in 2026.

  • Top Financial Leaders Gather in Zurich to Discuss Retail Trends

    Top Financial Leaders Gather in Zurich to Discuss Retail Trends

    Top leaders from the realms of politics, finance, and technology will converge in Zurich for the highly anticipated third edition of the Point Zero Forum. This event, taking place from May 5 to 7, 2025, aims to address pivotal issues impacting the financial sector amid changing market dynamics.

    A Call for Trust and Stability

    Recent turbulence in financial markets has heightened awareness of the need for trust and stability, elements essential for fostering innovation and sustainability within the industry. The Point Zero Forum offers a vital space for high-level discussions focused on the future of global finance.

    Key Themes for Discussion

    As part of its agenda, this year’s forum will tackle several pressing topics relevant to the evolution of financial systems:

    • Path to Europe’s Technology Independence: Explore strategies for Europe to build a solid policy and infrastructure foundation that ensures digital sovereignty.
    • Demographic Challenges: Identify innovative policies that can bolster social and economic inclusion amid significant demographic transitions.
    • Startup Founders Spotlight: Examine how Europe’s entrepreneurial landscape can harness innovation and funding to enhance economic resilience and global competitiveness.

    Esteemed Speakers Lead the Dialogue

    The forum features an impressive lineup of distinguished speakers, including:

    • Guy Parmelin – Swiss Minister at the Federal Department of Economic Affairs and Research
    • Martin Schlegel – Chairman of the Governing Board, Swiss National Bank
    • Andrea Maechler – Deputy General Manager, Bank for International Settlements (BIS)
    • Axel Weber – Former UBS Chairman
    • Mike Dragan – Group Chief Operations and Technology Officer, UBS Group
    • Dirk Klee – Head of BlackRock Switzerland

    A Collaborative Effort

    The Point Zero Forum is jointly organized by the Swiss State Secretariat for International Financial Matters (SIF) and the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), an initiative pioneered by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

    As this prestigious gathering brings together top decision-makers, it is poised to inspire actionable insights and collaborative strategies that could reshape the future of the global financial landscape. The outcomes from the forum may significantly influence retail news, consumer trends, and the broader marketplace, ensuring that stakeholders are equipped to navigate the complexities of an ever-evolving financial world.

    Lees ook:

  • World AI Leaders from Dell Technologies, Rolls-Royce and Kryon, among others, discuss AI Strategies in Singapore

    World AI Leaders from Dell Technologies, Rolls-Royce and Kryon, among others, discuss AI Strategies in Singapore

    Given its infrastructure capacity, education system and investor-friendly laws, Singapore has all the right ingredients to nurture a robust AI ecosystem that could be the cornerstone for the small island’s economic upswing. According to a recent report by Accenture, AI could add up to US$215 billion in gross value across 11 industries in Singapore by 2035. With the Singapore government’s vehement efforts to foster initiatives in the AI space, the nation was the ideal location to host the 9th edition of the global World AI Show series that had hit the ground running for the second time in Singapore on 24 July 2019. The show was organised by international business events and consulting firm, Trescon.

    “Singapore is one of the top locations for AI and Robotics investments. Our mission was to fuel Singapore’s AI startup ecosystem by bringing in some of the world’s best AI innovators, solution providers, startups and investors to foster business opportunities for the Singapore government as well as regional and international companies”, said Mohammed Saleem, CEO of Trescon.

    300+ top industry leaders from the AI community came together to share their insights on how AI is transcending as a core enabling technology that can power multiple sectors.

    Top speakers for the event included Dr Terence Hung, Chief of Future Intelligence Technologies, Rolls-Royce Singapore Pte Ltd; Sutowo Wong, Director, Analytics & Information Management Division, Data Analytics Group, Ministry of Health; Dragana Beara, Portfolio Messaging Director, Asia Pacific and Japan, Dell Technologies; Prof Nadia Magnenat Thalmann, Director (IMI), NTU, Singapore and Founder & Director, Miralab of University of Geneva, Switzerland and Guido Jouret, Chief Digital Officer of ABB among other top speakers.

    In her keynote speech, Dragana Beara quoted, “Most of the AI development right now is done to create collaborative AI to augment us and give us an ability to leverage our humanity. Everything tedious, difficult or that we are not good at, like computing or getting insights from huge data sets is something we are going to outsource to the AI system.”

    The show also featured a workshop session from Warren Ledingham from Kryon who took the audience through a technical deep-dive session on ‘How to Save 80% of Your Automation Implementation Time’, and an almost human-like Robot interaction between Professor Nadia Magnenat Thalmann and her female humanoid social robot Nadine, that can remember past conversations.

    The global pitch competition for startups in the future-tech space, Startup Grand Slam, was the highlight of the show. Opu Labs, Inc, a digital solutions provider for skin health analysis won the Startup Grand Slam pitch competition and Trsts as runner-up.

    World AI Show – Singapore 2019 was sponsored by Lead Partner, Dell Technologies Platinum Partner, Kanerika; Workshop Partner, Kryon; Gold Partner, Darktrace, Silver Partner, DDN Storage; Badge Partner, QualityKiosk Technologies, Premier Bronze Partner, ADVANCE.AI

     

    Lees ook:

  • Japanese Summit supermarket open store in Vietnam

    Japanese Summit supermarket open store in Vietnam

    Japan’s Summit supermarket will open first outlet in Vietnam’s capital city Hanoi this month, with two more stores expected to open next year. The Vietnamese Summit stores will be operated by Fujimart Vietnam Retail, a joint venture between Summit parent Sumitomo and real estate conglomerate BRG Group.

    BRG Group says Sumitomo will select the president and send personnel from Japanese unit while BRG will control the company operations.

    Targeting middle class consumers in the city, the stores will following the Japanese model – using the Summit supermarket group’s point-of-sale system and loyalty program to analyse customer shopping habits and plan product ranges.

  • Footwear, leather promotion conference scheduled this week

    Footwear, leather promotion conference scheduled this week

    A footwear and leather export promotion conference will be held in HCM City next week. In 2016, the sector earned an export revenue of US$16.2 billion, representing an year-on-year increase of 8.8 per cent.

    The information was released on Friday by the Viet Nam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (Lefaso), which said this would be an opportunity for the Vietnamese footwear sector in general and Lefaso in particular to promote images and improve prestige and positions in the Asian region and the world.

    The conference will also give an opportunity for local businesses to meet and share experiences with local partners, approach foreign importers and investors and seek co-operation agreements.

    Some 300 firms manufacturing footwear and materials for the industry inside and outside Viet Nam are expected to participate in the conference, which will focus on issues such as footwear planning and related policies, investment environment, impact of free trade deal on the sector, labour relationship management in the labour-intensive sector, and supply chain optimisation to boost competition and sustainable development.

    They will also discuss the state of the industry in Viet Nam in the context of integration, market demand and technical requirements for the industry to benefit from free trade deals.

    Viet Nam’s leather and footwear industry expects to reach a total export value of US$18 billion this year, up 10 per cent from last year, the association said.

    In 2016, the sector earned an export revenue of $16.2 billion, representing an year-on-year increase of 8.8 per cent.

    Of which, $13 billion came from footwear and the remaining was from handbags and leather items, marking respective annual rises of 8.2 per cent and 11.1 per cent.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Asia’s Largest Logistics and Maritime Conference Opens

    Asia’s Largest Logistics and Maritime Conference Opens

    The sixth Asian Logistics and Maritime Conference (ALMC) today (22 November) launched its two-day run at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. More than 70 leaders from the logistics and maritime industries are speaking at the conference. Today’s activities included the plenary session “China’s Grand Initiatives: Where are the Opportunities?” The ALMC is the largest event of its kind in Asia, welcoming industry elites from some 30 countries and regions. The conference is jointly organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

    Speaking at the opening ceremony, Carrie Lam, Acting Chief Executive of the HKSAR, said, “Strategically located at the heart of Asia, Hong Kong has long been the gateway to southern China, and the bridge between the Mainland and the rest of the world. Our infrastructure is world-class, rated first in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report. Our robust economy, trade freedom, regulatory efficiency, and excellent logistics services have made Hong Kong one of the world’s busiest logistics hubs.”

    In her welcoming remarks, Margaret Fong, Executive Director of the HKTDC, said: “The ALMC aims to help the industry navigate choppy economic waters and chart a course towards new business opportunities. The three main themes of ALMC 2016 are the Belt and Road Initiative, China’s 13th Five-Year Plan and cross-border e-commerce. In each case, the logistics and maritime industries are front and centre. In just a few short years, the Belt and Road Initiative has moved from the drawing board into reality, with new ports, roads and railways linking markets along the Belt and Road routes from Asia to Europe via the Middle East and North Africa. In addition to infrastructure, world-class shipping and logistics services and know-how are required to fully realise the potential of the Initiative.”

    China’s grand initiatives

    A highlight of this year’s ALMC was this morning’s plenary session “China’s Grand Initiatives: Where are the Opportunities?” Three high-profile speakers examined key strategies of the Chinese mainland – the Belt and Road Initiative, “Internet Plus” and “Made in China 2025”. The three speakers were HE Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DP World; Zhao Huxiang, Vice Chairman, China Merchants Group; and Joseph Phi, President, LF Logistics.

    Addressing various topics, seven forums were also held today focusing on the Supply-chain Management, Logistics, Air Freight and Shipping sectors. As well as helping the logistics industry analyse the latest market trends, the forums also shed light on how the manufacturing and trading industries can capitalise on the latest logistics solutions to grow their business, lower costs and increase competitiveness.

    The first Supply-chain Management & Logistics Forum “Relocating Your Manufacturing Base – the Pros and Cons”, heard from speakers about the risks and opportunities from a supply-chain management perspective. Speakers included Dr Qu Jian, Vice President, China Development Institute; Dr John Cheh, Vice Chairman and CEO, Esquel Group; Takeshi Kondo, General Director, Yusen Logistics (Vietnam) Co, Ltd; and Tommy Lui, Director & Group Chief Representative – Southern China, Li & Fung Development (China) Ltd.

    Other forums today included “Changing Landscape of Asian Air Cargo”, “Expert Panel: What’s on the Horizon for Liner Shipping?”, “Staying Ahead in Temperature-controlled Cargo Handling”, “Expert Panel: Tanker and Gas Trade Outlook”, “Sustainability – Greening the Supply Chain” and “Expert Panel: Dry Bulk Market Outlook”.

    Cross-border E-commerce

    Tomorrow’s plenary session will be on the topic of “Cross-border E-commerce: Who Will Rule the Game?” The HKTDC has invited Dr Guo Dongbai, CTO, AliExpress; Zheng Changqing, Senior Director, eBay Inc; Andrey Zatsepin, Head of International Logistics, Ozon.ru; and Haruko Takachi, CEO, Japan Post International Logistics Co, Ltd. to discuss the latest developments in cross-border e-commerce.

    The rapid development of digital technology is disrupting the retail industry, prompting the HKTDC to enrich this year’s ALMC programme for supply chain management and logistics. Tomorrow’s forums include “Omni-channel Strategy: Navigating the Future of Retail”, which will showcase outstanding examples of multi-channel retailing and examine online-to-offline (O2O) integration and ways to improve the customer experience. Expert speakers include Pieter Paul Wittgen, Co-Founder and COO, Grana.com; Filippo Gori, Business Development Director, International Brands, Vip.com; and Malcolm Monteiro, CEO, Asia-Pacific, DHL eCommerce. The trio will discuss the impact of omni-channel retailing on supply chain management and logistics.

    Other forums tomorrow include “New Opportunities for Modern Logistics Industry in the PRD Region and Zhuhai from the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge”, “Big Data, the Cloud and Your Business”, “Dalian Development Area – Core of Liaoning FTA, uprising International Financing, Logistics and Shipping Centre of Northeast Asia” and “Linking North America and Asia: Transpacific Trade back on Track”.

    Exhibition and business matching sessions

    To help industry professionals gather the latest market intelligence and services, and promote Hong Kong’s advantages in logistics, the HKTDC is once again organising an exhibition alongside the conference. Nearly 100 exhibitors are showcasing their e-logistics solutions and logistics, maritime and related services. The HKTDC is also arranging more than 150 one-on-one business matching sessions to help participants foster new business partnerships.

    This year’s ALMC is supported by the Hong Kong Logistics Development Council (LOGSCOUNCIL) and the Hong Kong Maritime and Port Board. It is also a flagship event of the Hong Kong Maritime Industry Week.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • DoCoMo to provide 375Mbps LTE-A at Mt Fuji summit

    DoCoMo to provide 375Mbps LTE-A at Mt Fuji summit

    Japan’s NTT DoCoMo has announced plans to deploy LTE-Advanced at the summit of Mount Fuji, Japan’s highest and most famous mountain.

    The company will provide mobile services with maximum downlink speeds of 375Mbps as well as 3G service during the climbing season from July 10.

    The company will also offer a maximum downlink of 337.5Mbps on the four most heavily used routes on the 3,776 meter summit, the Subashiri, Gotemba, Fujinomiya and Yoshida trails.

    DoCoMo will also deploy Wi-Fi hotspots at some cabins on the slopes, and make shared tablets available in some cabins that support video streaming, translation app Hanashite Hon’yaku and other value-added mobile services.

    “Going forward, DoCoMo will continue to ensure that Mount Fuji climbers enjoy high-quality mobile services as part of its initiative to enhance the quality of mobile communications in expanded coverage areas around Japan,” the operator said in a statement.

    Mount Fuji is the 35th most prominent – or highest – mountain in the world and a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.

    Lees ook:

  • “Wonderful Indonesia” promoted on sidelines of OIC Summit

    “Wonderful Indonesia” promoted on sidelines of OIC Summit

    Indonesias Tourism Ministry promoted “Wonderful Indonesia” brand on the sidelines of the Fifth Extraordinary Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held at the Jakarta Convention Center on March 6-7.

    The ministry extended support for conducting the summit, the ministrys spokesman Billy Iqbal Alamsyah said here on Monday.
    “We provided support in several forms, including by providing souvenirs, etc.,” he said.
    The summit was also a strategic forum to promote “Wonderful Indonesia” brand as a total of 605 delegates from 57 countries and two international organizations were present in the meeting, he said.

    While the OIC leaders held a closed-door meeting, the ministry showed a video on Indonesias top tourist destinations at the media center set up to facilitate some 500 national and foreign journalists.

    Heritage and Wonderful Indonesia stands presenting the Indonesian Beauty Pageant were set up in front of the media center.
    Widayanti Bandia, head of the tourism business partnership department of the Tourism Ministry, said the ministry, in cooperation with Mustika Ratu, offered free spa treatment to delegates.

    “The spa that we offer here is halal and in accordance with Syariah (Islamic laws),” she said.

    Lees ook: