High level panel on threats challenges and change

MANILA, Philippines — As the United Nations faces the COVID-19 pandemic, — its “biggest test” since World War II — President Rodrigo Duterte called on the international body to implement reforms to better address the challenges presented by the worldwide medical crisis. “The invisible enemy that is COVID-19 has brought about an unfamiliar global landscape and unleashed a crisis without precedent. It is the biggest test the world and the United Nations faced since World War II,” Duterte said in a pre-taped speech aired Wednesday at the UN General Assembly. “While the United Nations has brought relief and hope to so many countries and peoples around the world, it now finds itself saddled by a virus that has taken many lives and wrecked economies and social order,” he added. The President challenged the UN and its member states to reassess whether they had been true to the international organization’s principles and ideas. While the United Nations remains to be “humanity’s … [Read more...] about Duterte calls for UN reforms to address challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline The Supreme Court has made it more challenging for the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gases and fight climate change, as justices ruled Thursday in favor of Republican-led states and coal companies that asked the court to limit how much the EPA can control emissions from power plants. Key Facts The court ruled 6-3 along ideological lines that the EPA does not have the authority under the Clean Air Act to create caps for greenhouse gas emissions and create “generation shifting” requirements (the method by which power plants can reduce emissions). GOP-led states and coal companies had sued the Biden administration to limit how much the EPA can regulate emissions from power plants, even though the administration hasn’t actually come up with a rule for those emissions yet. The challengers wanted the Supreme Court to preemptively decide how far the Biden administration can go … [Read more...] about Supreme Court Curbs EPA’s Power To Regulate Emissions And Fight Climate Change

This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on June 20, 2022 - June 26, 2022. - A + A ALL eyes are on RHB Banking Group’s newly minted group managing director (MD) and group CEO Mohd Rashid Mohamad as he steers the fourth-largest banking group by assets forward in a tough operating landscape. “It’s very challenging, especially now in a fast-changing market environment, and as we face potential risks such as geopolitical and inflationary,” acknowledges Rashid in his first exclusive interview as group MD/CEO. Competition has intensified, given new entrants into the market, which are not just new banks but also technology companies that compete for the same pie. Rashid adds that this has partly affected the profitability of the industry, along with many other factors. He notes that banks globally no longer see “high ROEs” as before. For RHB Bank Bhd, its return on equity (ROE) in the past 10 financial years hit a high of 13.4% in FY2012 before … [Read more...] about Cover Story: RHB’s Game Plan in ‘fast-changing’ new normal

Pesident Rodrigo Roa Duterte at the Reception hall of Malacañan Palace before the presentation of credentials of Ambassadors from Bangladesh, Vietnam and Egypt. INQUIRER PHOTO/JOAN BONDOC Despite earlier misgivings, President Duterte signed on Tuesday the Paris Agreement detailing commitments to deal with climate change. Mr. Duterte submitted to the Senate the instrument of accession, dated Feb. 28, for ratification. “After examining the text thereof, I find it advisable to accede to the Paris Agreement and seek the Senate’s concurrence thereto,” he said. The Paris Agreement aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the global average temperature rise this century to well below 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. The pact also seeks to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 C above preindustrial levels. The Philippines earlier pledged a 70-percent cut in emissions by 2030. On Wednesday afternoon, … [Read more...] about Duterte finally signs Paris Agreement on climate change

Mahesh Patil, chief investment officer at Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, shares his market outlook with CNBC TV18 and talks inflation cycles as well as slowing economic growth. Moreover, Patil sheds light on sector performances and the spaces that seem fairly valued even under inflationary pressure. Here are edited excerpts from his interview: What are your views about the market and where is the cycle now evolving? Has the focus moved from inflation to global growth slowdown? The markets are at a point where we have seen them reacting to all the negative news - interest rate increases, policy tightening and the correction in the P/E (price to earnings) multiples after witnessing excessive liquidity rally seen last year. Now what is to be seen is to what extent will the interest rate rise and policy tightening impact growth and, in turn, earnings growth of companies. Close The latter part is still low as we haven’t seen an earnings cut so far this fiscal … [Read more...] about Interview | Room for auto sector to move up before hitting pre-pandemic levels: Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC’s investment chief

- A + A (June 30): It was an unusually frigid December weekend when Cheng Wei summoned his inner circle to his Beijing office. The founder of Didi Global Inc, dressed entirely in black, told his lieutenants to slash spending by a fifth in 2022 and begin layoffs after staff return from Lunar New Year vacations. He delivered his bombshell flanked by a giant Powerpoint slide that read: “Don’t live with illusions. Face reality.” “We had a tough year,” said the reserved billionaire known as Will, who that day seemed even gloomier than normal, according to people briefed on the gathering. “But next year will be even tougher.” That sombre gathering encapsulated what many in the room already suspected — the ride-hailing champion once feted for running Uber Technologies Inc out of China was no more. In its place was a defeated shell worth a fifth of its value at the peak, bleeding users, blocked from raising funds for cherished projects — and whose executives were constantly … [Read more...] about Inside Didi’s US$60b crash that changed China tech forever

Commodity stocks including metals, miners and energy names have seen profit booking in the recent months even as supply problems are far from over while prices of commodities have been choppy. Nifty Commodities index, comprising names like Reliance Industries, ONGC, UltraTech cements, Vedanta and 26 others, has fallen about 23 per cent from 52-week highs hit in April –  at the height of Russia-Western World tensions. Commodity stocks – especially from metal and energy sectors – were among the biggest gainers in the recent boom in prices led by burgeoning demand after the pandemic. However, as the demand is plateauing, prices have also decreased for many commodities. Does that mean the super cycle in these names are over and investors should taper their expectations from now on, thus exiting the space? Not really, said analysts, who believe there could be another round of buying as the situation remains precarious. “Commodity stocks have already fallen from their recent … [Read more...] about As stocks trade off highs, is the rally in commodities over?

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin More is not necessarily better when it comes to new and emerging technologies designed to help drivers. Many consumers have a strong interest in partially automated driving systems, but prefer those that require them to keep their hands on the wheel, stay engaged and have attention safeguards. Those are the highlights of a new survey conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety , a nonprofit financed by the insurance industry. “Automakers often assume that drivers want as much technology as they can get in their vehicles,” Alexandra Mueller, a research scientist at the Insurance Institute and the survey’s primary designer, said in a statement. “But few studies have examined actual consumer opinions about partial driving automation.” For the nationwide survey, which was released on Thursday, more than 1,000 drivers were asked about three common systems: lane centering, automated lane changing and … [Read more...] about ‘No Thanks’ To Hands-Free Driving, Consumers Say

High up in the Andes mountains, 12,000 feet above sea level, lies one of the world’s most unique ecosystems. Known as Páramo, the landscape is responsible for 70% of Colombia’s fresh water; in part, thanks to moss species that trap moisture from the fog, rain, and melting glaciers; store it in the soil; then release it gradually to the lowlands. When the water passes through the moss, it’s so clean it’s considered safe to drink for about 40 million people across Columbia, Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador. But the moss can filter a lot more than dirt and pollutants: It can also filter microplastics. advertisement advertisement MustGo , the project just won the annual Biodesign Challenge Summit . Still in its early stages, the concept joins the ranks of many filters designed specially to filter microplastics, albeit not with natural materials. a study from the César Vallejo University in Peru suggesting that moss can filter microplastics. Their mission … [Read more...] about This revolutionary moss filter could capture microplastics before you drink them

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Sourcing funding for diverse emerging managers of venture funds is a struggle. As a result, you have to think outside the box, as Lisa Morales-Hellebo and Brian Laung Aoaeh, general partners and cofounders at REFASHIOND Ventures, have. Their fund invests in early-stage innovations that refashion global supply chains . The pair are using AngelList's Rolling Funds , which is designed to solve several friction points that diverse emerging managers face when raising funds. A rolling fund enables fund managers to accept new capital by auto-renewing quarterly commitments, rather than having to raise a significant portion of their fund before investing can begin. Rolling funds allow fund managers to quickly and continually raise capital as they build a track record, enabling them to increase the fund size overtime. For a deeper analysis , read Laung Aoaeh's article. To attract investors (limited partners), diverse … [Read more...] about A Rolling Fund May Be Just What Women And BIPOC Venture Capitalists Need To Raise Funding