Mori Building lays foundation for urban regeneration project in Tokyo

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 (Bernama) -- Japanese urban landscape developer, Mori Building Co Ltd, has commenced a massive urban regeneration project to revitalise a large area of central Tokyo.

The ‘Toranomon-Azabudai District Category 1 Urban Redevelopment Project’ is set to be completed by March-end 2023.

The project is designed to provide a safe city that will allow people to carry on living and working, even during a major disaster on the scale of the Great East Japan Earthquake.

With ‘Modern Urban Village’ core concept, it is a unique neighbourhood that will combine the sophistication of a megalopolis with the intimacy of a small village in the heart of Tokyo.

It will cover an area of approximately 8.1 hectares, similar to that of New York’s Rockefeller Center, and feature extensive greenery measuring 24,000 sq metres, which includes a 6,000 sq metre central square.

Total floor area will be 860,400 sq metres, including 213,900 sq metres of office space and about 1,400 residential units.

About 20,000 office workers and 3,500 residents will work and live there, with 25 to 30 million people expected to visit this totally new city-within-a-city annually.

The electricity supplied will be from renewable sources, which will meet the targets stipulated in the RE100 international environmental initiative, led by the United Kingdom’s Climate Group.

More details on the project at www.mori.co.jp/en

-- BERNAMA

InMoment, Minor DKL to present at Forrester´s CX Singapore 2019

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- InMoment, the leader in Experience Intelligence (XI) will host a session with Minor DKL Food Group on Aug 28, at Forrester’s CX Singapore 2019.

Minor DKL Food Group is a leading food franchisor and owner of several brands including The Coffee Club, Ribs & Rumps Restaurants, and Coffee Hit franchises, totalling 450 restaurants throughout 11 countries, according to a statement.

The session will present ‘The Real Work of Turning CX Insights into Results’, bringing together some of the world’s best customer experience thought leaders, technology providers, and professionals.

Minor DKL chief operating officer, Stephen Hazard will explain how Minor DKL has successfully operationalised key CX insights that led to impressive business results.

“Minor DKL truly, is an incredible example of not only being customer-minded, but actually taking action on the intelligence it uncovers,” said InMoment chief marketing officer, Kristi Knight.

“It’s proving to be a leader both in the competitive restaurant industry, as well as in the realm of CX as a whole.”

InMoment helps organisations deliver more beneficial and memorable experiences in every moment. More information at https://www.inmoment.com.

-- BERNAMA

Foundation Life (NZ) Limited affirmed with excellent rating - AM Best

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of ‘a-’ of Foundation Life (NZ) Limited (FLNZ) in New Zealand.

With stable outlook on these credit ratings, it reflects FLNZ’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best has categorised as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

The company’s balance sheet strength assessment is underpinned by risk-adjusted capitalisation that was at the strongest level as of fiscal year-end 2018, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio.

A partially offsetting balance sheet factor remains the company’s moderate-sized absolute capital base, which exposes capital adequacy to volatility in the event of stressed scenarios, including sudden and severe movements in interest rates.

FLNZ has a track record of reporting adequate operating performance, with post-tax profits reported in each of the past five years (fiscal years 2014 to 2018), according to a statement.

AM Best views the company’s business profile as limited, given its position as a run-off life insurer and its moderate scale of operations in New Zealand.

AM Best is a global rating agency and information provider with unique focus on the insurance industry. More information at www.ambest.com.

-- BERNAMA

Global fashion, textile companies safeguard planet via 'Fashion Pact'

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 -- Thirty-two global fashion and textile companies have signed the Fashion Pact, committed to achieve practical objectives in areas of climate, biodiversity and oceans.

The companies include Kering, Nike, Chanel, Ralph Lauren, Karl Lagerfeld, Puma, Salvatore Ferragamo, Giorgio Armani, H&M Group, Prada Group and Burberry.

The objectives draw on the Science-Based Targets (SBT) initiative, which focuses on stopping global warming, restoring biodiversity and protecting the oceans.

SBT initiative aims to match companies’ objectives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions with the data provided by climate science.

The Fashion Pact will be presented to heads of state during the three-day G7 meeting at Biarritz, France, beginning Aug 24.

Representatives of these companies have been invited to the Elysée Palace by French President, Emmanuel Macron.

Last April, Macron gave Kering chairman and chief executive officer, François-Henri Pinault a mission to gather leading players in fashion and textiles, with the aim of setting practical objectives to reducing the environmental impact of their industry.

The Fashion Pact is open to any company to fundamentally transform the practices of the fashion and textile industry and meet the environmental challenges of this century.

-- BERNAMA

CORRECTING AND REPLACING AM BEST AFFIRMS CREDIT RATINGS OF PING AN HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY OF CHINA, LTD.

HONG KONG, Aug 27 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) --

Please replace the release dated August 23, 2019 with the following corrected version.

The corrected release reads:

AM BEST AFFIRMS CREDIT RATINGS OF PING AN HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY OF CHINA, LTD.

AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” of Ping An Health Insurance Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Health) (China). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect Ping An Health’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best categorizes as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management. The ratings also reflect the implicit and explicit support that the company receives from its two major shareholders, Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Group) and Discovery Limited, with respect to financial flexibility, distribution channels and operations.

Ping An Health’s capitalization was strengthened through capital injections totaling CNY 1.15 billion (USD 174 million) in 2017 and 2018 from its shareholders. The full retention of after-tax net profits of CNY 299 million (USD 45 million) generated from the successful implementation of its turnaround strategy over the past two years also supports the company as a source of internal capital generation. The increase in available capital is supporting Ping An Health’s increased capital requirement for underwriting risk and investment risk due to the fast premium growth under its business transformation and higher asset allocation to alternative investments. AM Best expects Ping An Health’s risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), to remain at the strongest level based on its business plan.

Ping An Health has turned around to profit-making for two consecutive years, as a result of its transformation of business focus to individual health insurance. The company’s operating performance has stabilized, and AM Best expects the company to remain profitable over the medium term. With an increasing base of net premium earned, the company is benefiting from the economies of scale in expense management.

Offsetting rating factors include the low barriers to entry and intense competition in the local health insurance segment from life and non-life competitors. In addition, although the individual health business provides a material contribution to its overall profitability, the company is subject to product concentration risk, as the majority of its premiums come from one single individual health product.

Negative rating actions could occur if Ping An Health’s risk-adjusted capitalization weakens significantly, or if the company’s results materially deviate from its business plan. Negative rating actions also could occur if Ping An Group reduces the level of support given to Ping An Health.

Ratings are communicated to rated entities prior to publication. Unless stated otherwise, the ratings were not amended subsequent to that communication.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Understanding Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper media use of Best’s Credit Ratings and AM Best press releases, please view Guide for Media - Proper Use of Best’s Credit Ratings and AM Best Rating Action Press Releases.

AM Best is a global rating agency and information provider with a unique focus on the insurance industry. Visit www.ambest.com for more information.

Copyright © 2019 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190823005211/en/

Contact

Yizhou Hong
Financial Analyst 
+852 2827 3426 
yizhou.hong@ambest.com

Christie Lee 
Senior Director, Analytics 
+852 2827 3413 
christie.lee@ambest.com

Christopher Sharkey 
Manager, Public Relations 
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159 
christopher.sharkey@ambest.com

Jim Peavy 
Director, Public Relations 
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5644 
james.peavy@ambest.com

Source : AM Best

QUEQI MEDIA CULTURE: DIGITAL ECONOMY IS BECOMING THE TIE CONNECTING THE DESTINIES OF CHINA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA

BEIJING, Aug 26 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- According to report from the Maybank, China’s investment in Southeast Asia has been showing good momentum. In the first half of 2019, China’s investment in Southeast Asia reached USD 11 billion, almost doubling year-on-year. Against the headwind of US trade protectionism, the economic relationship between China and Southeast Asia is still uniquely well, which fully proves the feasibility of the Belt and Road Initiative.
 
The new round of scientific and technological revolution is an important background for China's rapid investment in Southeast Asia. According to statistics, China’s investment in Southeast Asia’s science and technology sector reached USD2.5 billion in the first half of the year, more than the total in 2017. The global commercialization of 5G communications is a major factor driving the outbreak of technology investment in the region. With the active assistance of China, Southeast Asian countries are catching up on the fast lane of 5G communication, and have built and transformed a large number of communication infrastructures, laying a solid foundation for the industrial revolution brought about by 5G.
 
To get rich, first you need to get the road prepared. This experience of China's economic development has undergone some changes. In the era of digital economy, the communication network has become the new roads and bridges, promoting the development of businesses and industries in various countries. China and Southeast Asian countries actively welcome the tide of the digital economy and hope to achieve lane-changing and overtaking and become developed countries the new round of scientific and technological revolution. The goal of the Belt and Road Initiative is also to build these new roads and ties, which will make China and Southeast Asia more closely linked and become a new pole of global economic growth.
 
This new change is taking place in Southeast Asia. According to statistics, Chinese mobile phone manufacturers have been dominating the Southeast Asian market, and the latest market share has jumped to 62%, far exceeding that of other Western countries. Chinese manufacturers' mobile phones are cost-effective and have been customized and optimized according to the habits of users in Southeast Asia. These mobile phones will become the counters and stores of the digital economy in Southeast Asia in the future.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190823005374/en/
 
Contact
 
Yu.Ji 
media.yu@foxmail.com 
www.queqicn.com
 
Source : Queqi Media Culture Co., Ltd
 
--BERNAMA

AM Best affirms South Korea´s HGI credit ratings as excellent

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 (Bernama) -- AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of ‘a’ for Hanwha General Insurance Company Limited (HGI) in South Korea.

The stable outlook of these credit ratings reflect HGI’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best categorised as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

It also reflects various forms of implicit and explicit support the company receives from its parent, Hanwha Life Insurance Co Ltd (Hanwha Life), according to a statement.

HGI’s risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio is assessed as very strong, backed by strong growth of capital and surplus, driven by net profit retention and the issuance of new shares and hybrid bonds in recent years.

Its underwriting and asset leverage, which used to be among the highest in the industry, have improved gradually over the past five years to a level that is now in line with the company’s peers as a result of its improved capitalisation.

Based on its long-term strategic plan, HGI has been focusing increasingly on digital innovation through the use of new technologies. It is also in the process of setting up South Korea’s first digital non-life insurer in 2019.

More details at http://www.ambest.com.

-- BERNAMA