The Evening Runway with Hongbin Jeong, Roshan Gidwani and Chua Tian Tian MONEY FM 89.3

Singapore stocks opened weaker today after global markets closed last week mixed.

In early trade, the Straits Times Index (STI) headed down 0.1 per cent to 3,312.92 points after 57.2 million securities changed hands in the broader market.

In terms of companies to watch, we have Seatrium, after the offshore and marine specialist said on Saturday that it has obtained S$11 billion worth of contracts to build two new floating production storage and offloading vessels (also known as FPSOs) for Brazil’s national oil company, Petrobras. 

Meanwhile, from how a group of Great Eastern’s minority holders is resisting the firm’s S$1.4 billion takeover bid from OCBC bank, to Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s meeting with Samsung’s boss – more corporate headlines remain in focus. 

Also in store, what to watch in corporate America this week, and expectations on the latest US PCE price index out later in the week.

On Market View, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian unpacked the developments with Chin Hui Leong, Co-founder, The Smart Investor.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sara, who wants to remain anonymous was wrongly accused of shoplifting after being flagged by a facial-recognition system called Facewatch. Facewatch later wrote to Sara and acknowledged it had made an error. 
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Manchester United's shock FA Cup triumph unsurprisingly headlines Sports Minutes - but will the Wembley miracle be enough to earn Erik ten Hag a stay of execution? Plus, with Singapore's national team in action against South Korea and Thailand very soon - has head coach Tsutomu Ogura made a mistake by omitting Ilhan Fandi from his squad? Tune in as Deepanraj Ganesan from The Straits Times weighs in!

Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us!raushan@sph.com.sg
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matt, the visionary behind Thrive Fitness, peel back the curtain on his journey from personal trainer to being his own boss. On R.I.C.H., Hongbin Jeong and Roshan Gidwani speaks to Matthew Benfell, Founder, Thrive Fitness, to share more about his journey and how he has shaped Thrive Fitness into a beacon of success in the fitness industry.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the feeling on a Sunday night we all have - oh it’s back to work tomorrow, oh I have work tomorrow, making our Monday’s a little more blue. And I have the perfect Korean slang word you can use to say to all your Korean friends on Sunday- or any day when you have work the next day.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Optimus Prime is in the house today as we speak to the company behind the Transformers franchise. 

Founded in 1923, our guest Hasbro actually started out selling textile remnants and pencil boxes before becoming the leading toy and game company it is today. 

Now, the firm aspires to entertain and connect generations of fans through the exhilaration of play. 

Some of the names under the company’s portfolio include Play-Doh, Monopoly, Peppa Pig, Transformers, Dungeons & Dragons, Hasbro Games as well as other premier partner brands. 

The firm had in April reported a smaller-than-expected drop in Q1 sales as leaner inventories and a steady stream of digital gaming revenue bolstered it from softer demand for toys. 

But with Grand View Research valuing the global toys and games market at US$324.7 billion in 2023 and the industry set to grow at a CAGR of 4.3% from 2024 to the end of the decade (2030), how does Hasbro assess its road ahead? Which brands will continue to drive growth?

Speaking of brands, the firm appears to be doubling down on its Monopoly brand, especially after the Monopoly Go mobile game reached US$2 billion in revenue in the first 10 months since its launch. 

For one thing, it had in April this year signed a deal with LuckyChap, the award winning production company headed by Margot Robbie to produce a motion picture movie based on the Monopoly classic board game.  

A Transformers animated movie is also set to release in September. But how far will movie production help Hasbro drive mind-share and profits looking at the success of its competitor Mattel and the Barbie movie? 

On Under the Radar, The Evening Runway’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Bhavesh Somaya, Senior Vice President, Asia Pacific, Hasbro.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.