KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 (Bernama) -- Global credit rating agency, AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of ‘bbb-’ (Good) of Asian Reinsurance Corporation (Asian Re) Thailand. According to a statement, the outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. The ratings reflect Asian Re’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its marginal operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM). Asian Re’s balance sheet strength assessment is underpinned by its risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), which AM Best expects to remain at the strongest level over the medium term. Asian Re is viewed to have moderate reliance on retrocession to support its underwriting of large limit risks, as well as to manage accumulation and catastrophe exposures. A significant offsetting balance sheet strength factor is the company’s high risk investment strategy, with it holding a sizeable portion of cash and deposits in offshore countries, one of which is subject to sanctions and the other being currently in default of its sovereign debt. AM Best views this investment strategy as creating increased liquidity and credit risk for Asian Re, as the imposition of existing and future sanctions or deepening of economic crisis in these respective countries may drive a heightened potential for transfer restrictions, which may impact the company’s ability to access its funds in a timely manner. AM Best views the company’s operating performance as marginal. Asian Re’s operating performance has exhibited volatility in recent years, with a five-year average return-on-equity ratio of -0.1 per cent and a combined ratio of 123.6 per cent (2017-2021), as calculated by AM Best. In addition, AM Best views Asian Re’s business profile as limited, given the company’s position as a regional non-life reinsurer, with a modest-sized gross premium base of US$23.5 million in 2021. (US$1 = RM4.387) AM Best considers Asian Re’s ERM approach to be appropriate given the size and complexity of its current operations. The company continues to develop its risk framework and has demonstrated improvements in its risk management capabilities over recent years. More details at www.ambest.com. -- BERNAMA
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KLOOK LAUNCHES A NEW WORKCATION INITIATIVE, ENABLING EMPLOYEES TO WORK AND TRAVEL GLOBALLY21/5/2022 · The workcation initiative allows employees to travel and work from anywhere in the world for up to 30 business days.
· This comes off the back of ‘Revenge Travel’ as more Asia Pacific travelers seek longer travel periods and hyper-focused traveling. KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Klook, a leading travel and leisure e-commerce platform, today announced an all-new workcation initiative that enables its employees to travel and work from anywhere in the world. With international travel steadily returning in full force, this progressive initiative hopes to inspire Klook's employees to become globetrotters after two years of cabin fever. Combining work and leisure, the initiative allows employees to explore their destination of choice in their spare time and immerse in the local culture. Klook’s workcation initiative enables its employees to travel and work anywhere for up to 30 business days without tapping into their personal annual leave. "Many firms are now exploring hybrid working models with a work-from-home and work-at-office arrangement. But at Klook, we don't build a brand tethered to our desks; we do so by exploring the world and seeking inspiration everywhere. At Klook, we are our biggest travel advocates, and that's why I'm thrilled to announce our workcation initiative to allow our employees to travel and work anywhere in the world. Employees will not only continue to get their bills paid, but they will experience first-hand again the joys of traveling the world that many have missed the past two years," said Rachel Tan, General Manager, Klook Malaysia. Many working professionals, especially millennials, have grown accustomed to remote working and seeking respite for their well-being in the past couple of years. Based on Klook’s internal data, outbound bookings grew three times in April compared to February, signaling that the travel bug is stronger than ever, with overseas travel back on the table. Singapore also leads the region in outbound bookings, closely followed by Thailand, and South Korea. Users across the region are also looking at destinations like Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. In line with the burgeoning workcation trend, a 2021 study from Google revealed that in the Asia Pacific, the average length of stay has extended significantly since 2019, from three-and-half days to five days (85% of the respondents), with one in four travelers planning to spend over two weeks. Travelers are also hyper-focused and do not want to travel through multiple countries across Southeast Asia like before the pandemic.¹ Furthermore, a 2021 study revealed that frequent travelers are happier with their lives than people who don't travel at all.² ¹ Know the endemic traveler: longer stays, hyper focused, higher spending (interview with Google), WebInTravel, Oct 2021, Corrine Wan ² Would You Be More Satisfied with Your Life If You Travel More Frequently?, Tourism Analysis Vol 26, No.1, 2021, Chen, Chun-Chu; Zou, Suiwen (Sharon); Petrick, James F. Download the press kit in Malay & Chinese with hi-res photos HERE Source: Hexa Integrated Plt FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Name: Cherry Lui Hexa-Communications Tel: +65 9732 8319 / +6017 622 3906 Email: [email protected] --BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Nippon Express (China) Co Ltd (NX China), a group company of Nippon Express Holdings Inc, recently launched a new intermodal service for transport from various locations in China to Europe via the Caspian Sea.
Service features include the transportation of cargo by rail from numerous locations in China to Aktau, Kazakhstan, from there by ship across the Caspian Sea to Baku, Azerbaijan, and again by rail from Baku to Istanbul, Turkey, where it is transshipped to EU railways or trucks for delivery to locations throughout Europe. Other features involve the lead time (example): approximately 50 to 55 days from Xi'an to Duisburg, Germany; service frequency is once weekly; and, the service can be used as a new BCP transport mode in addition to maritime and rail (China Railway Express) transport to Europe. Logistics in China have been heavily impacted by the spread of COVID-19 infections as prolonged lockdowns in Shanghai have resulted in airport and seaport congestion, and trucking in the East China area connecting to Shanghai's suburbs continues to face difficulties. To maintain customers' supply chains, NX China has been offering, in addition to its existing rail transport service on the China Railway Express, an intermodal transport service that combines rail transport in China with maritime transport along two routes it has developed. According to a statement, the routes are a northern route using Qingdao and Lianyungang ports and secondly, a southern route using Ningbo and Wenzhou ports to avoid the congestion at Shanghai Port and Pudong Airport. NX China has also developed a Caspian Sea route for transport from China to various parts of Europe via Kazakhstan to supplement the aforementioned intermodal transport service. This new service can be used as a BCP transport mode for Europe-bound cargo that does not pass through Russia. For more information, visit https://www.nipponexpress.com/ -- BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Statistics from the Department of Commerce of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region show that during the May Day holiday in 2022, a total of 3,344 vehicles entered and exited through Guangxi border highway ports, including 1,601 and 1,743 vehicles leaving and entering Guangxi, respectively. All border ports in Guangxi maximised the capacity of customs clearance under the principle of "open port access to the greatest extent" by minimising impacts by the pandemic. As of May 5, seven highway ports and one railway port with cargo handling capacity were all open for normalised customs clearance. On May 5, the ceremony of the departure of the first special train loaded with Chinese medicinal materials imported from Vietnam was held at the Pingxiang railway port in Guangxi. The train was loaded with 12 compartments (each weighing about 15 tonnes) of suberect spatholobus stem originated from Vietnam. According to a statement, the train will run on a regular basis to help deepen the comprehensive cooperation between China and Vietnam in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. Currently, Guangxi has the Nanning drug import port and the border ports of Dongxing, Pingxiang, Longbang and Aidian for medicinal material import, having gradually turned into a main channel for the import of Chinese medicinal materials from the ASEAN countries. The variety and quantity of Chinese herbal medicines from the ASEAN countries entering China through the Guangxi ports have been increasing by leaps and bounds. Since 2020, the total value of goods has been ranking the first for two consecutive years in the country. Guangxi Youyiguan Port has launched a non-contact verification system through innovation for border inspection to ensure non-contact documents stamping, with the installation of two automatic temperature measuring detectors and high-definition cameras at the customs inspection gate to perform non-contact temperature detection and paperwork verification on designated drivers for cross-border cargoes. The Department of Commerce of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (Port Office) will continue to coordinate with relevant departments to do a good job in the prevention and control of COVID-19 at each port and unblocked customs clearance so as to guarantee the stability of the China-ASEAN industrial supply chain. -- BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Bernama) -- Centrient Pharmaceuticals has announced 100 per cent compliance with the stringent Predicted No Effect Concentration (PNEC) discharge targets set by the AMR Industry Alliance for clean manufacturing of its full oral antibiotics product range.
This standard covers both Centrient’s sites and its suppliers’ sites, an achievement positioning the company as a frontrunner in the industry with the delivery of responsibly-produced antibiotics, which minimise the possible contribution to antimicrobial resistance. According to a statement, the PNEC discharge target is the concentration of an antibiotic in water at which there is unlikely to be a risk of adverse environmental effects or of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) developing. These scientific, risk-based targets were developed by the AMR Industry Alliance and cover around 120 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) used in antibiotic manufacturing. Each individual antibiotic has a corresponding PNEC value, published in the AMR Industry Alliance table of Recommended PNECs for Risk Assessments (updated periodically). High concentrations of antibiotic residues in factory wastewater can create hotspots of resistant bacteria which may lead to AMR. While manufacturing is just one of the contributors to the emergence of AMR in the environment, its impact cannot be overlooked. AMR is a major threat to global public health as well as to the healthcare industry. Many standard medical procedures such as organ transplants, chemotherapy, and surgeries such as caesarean sections become much more dangerous without effective antibiotics to prevent and treat infections. “At Centrient Pharmaceuticals, our commitment to Sustainability is in our DNA – we ensure that the way in which we produce pharmaceuticals has the lowest environmental impact and does not contribute to AMR. “We are proud of our PureActives® enzymatic low-carbon technology, ISO 14001 certification of all our sites, and Board positions at the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Initiative and AMR Industry Alliance,“ said Rex Clements, CEO at Centrient Pharmaceuticals. -- BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Bernama) -- SMART Modular Technologies Inc (SMART), a division of SGH and a global leader in memory solutions, solid-state drives, and hybrid storage products announces its new SMART Kestral™ PCIe Optane™ Memory Add-in-Card (AIC) which is able to add up to 2TB of Optane Memory expansion on a PCIe-Gen4-x16 or PCIe-Gen3-x16 interface independent of the motherboard CPU. SMART’s Kestral AICs accelerate selected algorithms by offloading softwaredefined storage functions from the host CPU to the Intel FPGA on the AIC. SMART’s Kestral memory AICs are ideal for hyperscale, data centre, and other similar environments that run large memory applications and would benefit from memory acceleration or system acceleration through computational storage. “With the advancement of new interconnect standards such as CXL and OpenCAPI, SMART’s new family of SMART Kestral AICs addresses the industry’s need for a variety of new memory module form factors and interfaces for memory expansion and acceleration,” said Mike Rubino, SMART Modular’s vice president of engineering in a statement. “SMART is able to leverage our many years of experience in developing and productizing controller-based memory solutions to meet today’s emerging and continually evolving memory add-on needs of server and storage system customers.” Among key benefits are more memory per server at lower cost per gigabyte; field upgrades for new algorithms and protocols; and seamless upgrades for existing servers with custom memory solutions; and, support for multiple memory technologies and protocols, including Intel Optane DIMMs, DDR4 RDIMMs, and LRDIMMs. For more information, visit smartm.com. -- BERNAMA Comprehensive assessment of key functional parameters enabled, but with minimal investment needed
KAWASAKI, Japan, May 19 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation ("Toshiba") is strengthening the support it can offer to motor control design projects through its ecosystem of technology partners further. Thanks to the cooperation expansion with MikroElektronika (MIKROE), customers are now able to utilize a new evaluation platform. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220518005506/en/ The MIKROE Clicker 4 development board for Toshiba’s M4K MCU combined with the Clicker 4 Inverter Shield is a simple to use and cost-effective solution for experimenting with BLDC motor control scenarios. The Clicker 4 for TMPM4K has an on-board debugger - avoiding the need for an external debugger. It includes four mikroBUS™ sockets for the connection of a wide range of different MIKROE Click boards™, enabling further functionality to be added. There are also extension connectors, JTAG/SWD debug ports, LED indicators and push buttons. This board is accompanied by the Clicker 4 Inverter Shield, which features six MOSFETs for motor driving, a switching power supply that is used to regulate the motor supply voltage of up to 48V, with a 5V regulated power source, which can be used to power the external controller board. Its flexible interfacing allows positioning feedback to be obtained from Hall sensors and incremental encoders. Over-current protection has been incorporated for assured reliability. The M4K MCUs are already widely used throughout the industry, proving popular in next generation motor control implementations. These devices each rely on an Arm® Cortex®-M4 processor core with floating-point unit (FPU) and have memory protection units (MPUs) too. They can deliver 160MHz operation and have advanced-programmable motor driver (A-PMD) functionality, along with advanced vector engine plus (A-VE+) capabilities for vector control purposes. Their memory resources comprise 256kBytes of code flash, as well as 32kBytes of data flash. The Clicker 4 for TMPM4K and the Clicker 4 Inverter Shield are supported by the MCU Motor Studio software available through the Toshiba website. It is a simple, well-structured, and versatile software featuring two main components: a Motor Control PC Tool that allows parameter configuration, drive control, and real-time logging and diagnostics via high-speed UART as well as the scalable, fully configurable Motor Control Firmware for the M4K MCU. About MIKROE MIKROE is a producer of hardware and software tools used to develop embedded systems. The company produces various boards for interfacing microcontrollers to peripherals such as sensors, motor drivers and more. Find out more about MIKROE at: https://www.mikroe.com/ Additional details on the Toshiba M4K MCUs for motor control can be found here: https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/semiconductor/product/microcontrollers/txz4aplus-series.html * mikroBUS and Click boards are trademarks of MIKROE. * Arm and Cortex are registered trademarks of Arm Limited (or its subsidiaries) in the US and/or elsewhere. * TXZ+™ is a trademark of Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation. * Other company names, product names, and service names may be trademarks of their respective companies. * Information in this document, including product prices and specifications, content of services and contact information, is current on the date of the announcement but is subject to change without prior notice. About Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation, a leading supplier of advanced semiconductor and storage solutions, draws on over half a century of experience and innovation to offer customers and business partners outstanding discrete semiconductors, system LSIs and HDD products. The company's 23,000 employees around the world share a determination to maximize product value, and promote close collaboration with customers in the co-creation of value and new markets. With annual sales now surpassing 850-billion yen (US$7.5 billion), Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation looks forward to building and contributing to a better future for people everywhere. Find out more at https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/top.html View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220518005506/en/ Contact Customer Inquiries: MCU & Digital Device Sales & Marketing Dept. Tel: +81-44-548-2233 https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/contact.html Media Inquiries: K.Tanaka, E.Sugizaki Corporate Communications & Market Intelligence Group Strategic Planning Div. Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation Tel: +81-44-548-2122 Mail: [email protected] Source : Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation --BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 (Bernama) -- Zenas BioPharma, a global biopharmaceutical company has announced the submission of an investigational new drug (IND) application to the China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for the initiation of a Phase 1/2 clinical study of ZB001 for the treatment of Thyroid Eye Disease (TED).
According to a statement, this study is designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary efficacy of ZB001. “The ZB001 IND submission to the NMPA marks a significant milestone for Zenas. There are currently no approved therapies for TED patients in China,” said Hua Mu, MD, PhD, Chief Executive Officer at Zenas. “Treatment options are limited and often involve high doses of steroids associated with serious side effects or surgical intervention. ZB001 has the potential to change the treatment paradigm for TED patients in China.” ZB001 is a differentiated humanised monoclonal antibody targeting insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R) for the treatment of TED. TED is a debilitating autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and fibrosis within the orbit of the eye, which can cause double vision, pain, and potential blindness. Patients with severe disease often require multiple remedial surgeries to the orbit, eye muscles and eyelids. Zenas BioPharma licensed the exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise ZB001 (Viridian VRDN-001) and other compounds targeting IGF-1R in non-oncology indications in the greater area of China from Viridian Therapeutics Inc (Viridian) in October 2020. In October 2021, Viridian submitted an IND for VRDN-001 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and in December 2021 initiated a Phase 1/2 clinical trial to evaluate proof of concept in TED patients in North America. More details at www.zenasbio.com. -- BERNAMA New technology and capacity help CDMO’s advanced-therapies campus meet growing market demand
SEATTLE, May 18 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AGC Biologics, a leading global Biopharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), today announced it is adding viral vector suspension technology and capacity for the development and manufacturing of gene therapies at its commercial-grade campus in Longmont, Col., USA. These new capabilities, which begin coming online in the third quarter of 2022, complement the campus’ adherent viral vector and cell therapy offerings – enabling AGC Biologics to provide an in-depth variety of end-to-end cell and gene therapy services at this site. North America has historically been home to more advanced therapy and regenerative medicine developers than any other region worldwide. Further, the 2021 Q3 Cell & Gene Therapies Market Outlook report from industry standard research (ISR) revealed viral vectors are the most common thing a drug developer needs from a CDMO. This expansion more than doubles the site’s viral vector capacity, and helps AGC Biologics meet these market demands. “This investment helps AGC Biologics address the needs of gene therapy developers at our new central location in North America,” said Patricio Massera, CEO of AGC Biologics. “When you combine these new capabilities and the technical expertise at our Longmont campus, with our Milan facility’s lentiviral vector platform and its extensive gene therapy CDMO experience, we can now support virtually any viral vector program being developed anywhere in the world.” The viral vector suspension expansion is a part of a more than $30 million investment by AGC Biologics in its new Longmont campus. The new suspension capabilities include a full complement of bioreactor sizes for product development (AMBR, 10L and 50L), and a complete range of commercial manufacturing capacities (50L, 200L, 500L and 2000L), enabling the site to provide support for the entire lifecycle of a product. “The suspension expansion helps us offer the most impactful, efficient and scalable technologies for bringing viral vector-based gene therapy products to market,” said Tony Fraij, General Manager, AGC Biologics Longmont. “This latest investment helps us round out the services we offer at this campus. Now, with a full suite of capabilities and the extensive expertise of our scientists, we can support virtually any type of viral vector or cell therapy development and manufacturing project.” AGC Biologics acquired the Longmont campus in August of 2021 and quickly appointed Fraij, a 20-year veteran with experience leading operations at several global life science organizations. The company previously acquired a cell and gene therapy site in Milan, Italy from MolMed S.p.A. in 2020. The AGC Biologics Milan team’s technical expertise will play an important informative role in launching the new viral vector capabilities in Longmont. In just a few short years the company built a strong global cell and gene therapy network of services, capabilities and scientists. AGC Biologics is one of only a few CDMOs with end-to-end cell advanced therapies on two continents. To learn more about the companies viral vector services visit www.agcbio.com/capabilities/viral-vector; visit www.agcbio.com/capabilities/cell-therapy to learn more about AGC Biologics’ cell therapy offerings. About AGC Biologics AGC Biologics is a leading global biopharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) with a strong commitment to delivering the highest standard of service as we work side-by-side with our clients and partners, every step of the way. We provide world-class development and manufacture of mammalian and microbial-based therapeutic proteins, plasmid DNA (pDNA), messenger RNA (mRNA), viral vectors, and genetically engineered cells. Our global network spans the U.S., Europe, and Asia, with cGMP-compliant facilities in Seattle, Washington; Boulder and Longmont, Colorado; Copenhagen, Denmark; Heidelberg, Germany; Milan, Italy; and Chiba, Japan and we currently employ more than 2,000 employees worldwide. Our commitment to continuous innovation fosters the technical creativity to solve our clients’ most complex challenges, including specialization in fast-track projects and rare diseases. AGC Biologics is the partner of choice. To learn more, visit www.agcbio.com. Attachments
Nick McDonald AGC Biologics 4254193555 [email protected] SOURCE : AGC Biologics GTJAI Successfully Assisted Orient Securities in Issuing the World’s First Euro-denominated Yulan Bond HONG KONG, May 18 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited ("Guotai Junan International", the "Company" or the "Group", Stock Code: 1788.HK) announced that the Company has successfully assisted Orient Securities Company Limited (“Orient Securities”) in issuing the world’s first Euro-denominated Yulan Bond on May 5, 2022. The issuance size amounted to 100 million Euros, with a maturity period of 3 years and coupon rate of 1.75%. The final pricing was MS+68bps, 27 bps narrowed from the initial price guidance. The bond was issued smoothly with rational cost control under the highly volatile Euro market and received positive response from the market. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220510006549/en/ As the only Chinese investment bank with the ability to deliver Yulan Bonds, Guotai Junan International actively communicated with Shanghai Clearing House and Euroclear Bank during this issuance, assisted Orient Securities in the whole registration process of the Yulan Bond and handled various investment instructions from investors to ensure the smooth completion of the delivery. Meanwhile, Guotai Junan International served as the joint global coordinator, joint bookrunner and joint lead manager, helping Orient Securities resume overseas roadshows after three years and escorting the final pricing. In addition, on 14 April 2022, Guotai Junan International, acting as the lead global coordinator and sole sustainable financing consultant, successfully assisted Foshan Gaoming Construction Investment Group Co Ltd. (“Gaoming Construction Investment”) in issuing 3-year US$200 million senior fixed-rate sustainable bonds. It was the first offshore bond and the first sustainable bond issued in Foshan, as well as the largest offshore bond issuance with a standby letters of credit in Guangdong Province. In the future, the Company will continue to implement the managing philosophy of the parent company Guotai Junan Securities – “Finance for the Good” and “Finance for the People”, by guiding global capital allocation to high-quality and sustainable Chinese enterprises through businesses such as investment banking, asset management and private equity, to meet the needs of corporate and institutional clients to transform to low-carbon and sustainable development and support the vigorous development of Chinese enterprise customers with practical actions. About GTJAI Guotai Junan International (“GTJAI”, Stock Code: 1788.HK) is the market leader and first mover for internationalization of Chinese Securities Company as well as the first Chinese securities broker listed on the Main Board of The Hong Kong Stock Exchange through initial public offering. It has also been included in FTSE4Good Index by London Stock Exchange of the United Kingdom. Based in Hong Kong, GTJAI provides diversified integrated financial services. Core business includes seven categories of brokerage, corporate finance, asset management, loans and financing, financial products, market making and investments, which cover three dimensions including individual finance (wealth management), institutional finance (institutional investor services and corporate finance service) and investment management. GTJAI has been assigned “Baa2” and “BBB+” long term issuer rating from Moody and Standard & Poor respectively. The controlling shareholder, Guotai Junan Securities Company Limited (Stock Code: 601211.SH; 2611.HK), is the comprehensive financial provider with a long-term, sustainable and overall leading position in the Chinese securities industry. For more information about GTJAI, please visit https://www.gtjai.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220510006549/en/ Contact Jason Yan, CFA [email protected] +852 2509 5487 Mia Wu [email protected] +852 2509 2138 Source : Guotai Junan International Holdings Limited |
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