Saturday 31 March 2018

Salvation Army's RSI launched for reuse, recycle, restore efforts

KUALA LUMPUR, March 30 (Bernama) -- Members of the public can now donate large quantities of stuff including bulk items to The Salvation Army through its social enterprise arm, Red Shield Industries (RSI).

The RSI was launched on Wednesday to look more holistically into efforts to reuse, recycle and restore donations in kind.

The donated items will be resold at affordable prices through The Salvation Army's family thrift stores located in Banting, Melaka, Ipoh, Penang and Kuching.

RSI managing director, Tian Toh Kian said he was excited to create more opportunities for people to give, which would, in turn, give hope to others.

"The warehouse located in Taman Desaria, Petaling Jaya, aims to be highly regarded for excellence in the delivery of a donation in-kind service, which is sensitive and responsive to the needs of the community while meeting the welfare and funding needs of The Salvation Army.

"Income generated through the RSI will go towards funding The Salvation Army's social and community services to help the underprivileged. Donated goods may also be distributed overseas to provide humanitarian aid in times of crisis," he said in a statement today.

To donate used items to help the needy in the community, call the RSI team at 03-7496 5834.

Founded in 1938, The Salvation Army in Malaysia is a non-profit organisation that provides care for the vulnerable and needy.

Its work includes providing residential care for children and the elderly, educational programmes through its kindergartens and day care centres, special programmes for young people with special needs, and various social programmes through its community service centres.

-- BERNAMA

Friday 30 March 2018

GLYCOTOPE SELECTS CROWNBIO AS A PRECLINICAL DEVELOPMENT PARTNER TO ADVANCE THEIR IMMUNOTHERAPEUTIC PIPELINE

SAN DIEGO, March 29 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Crown Bioscience, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Crown Bioscience International (TWSE:6554) and a global drug discovery and development services company providing translational platforms to advance oncology, inflammation, cardiovascular and metabolic disease research, announces that it has been chosen by Glycotope GmbH as a partner to accelerate their immuno-oncology drug discovery pipeline.

CrownBio offers the world’s largest collection of patient derived xenograft (PDX) models and is a leading provider of humanized solutions for immuno-oncology drug development. Leveraging these exclusive capabilities, CrownBio will engraft cell line-derived cancer models as well as PDX models selected by Glycotope into CD34 humanized mouse models. These customized, humanized models will be used to accelerate Glycotope’s innovative immuno-oncology drug discovery pipeline.
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EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS BERHAD DECLARES INCOME DISTRIBUTION FOR EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS ASIAN HIGH YIELD BOND MY FUND



KUALA LUMPUR, March 29 (Bernama) -- Eastspring Investments Berhad today announced the gross income distribution for Eastspring Investments Asian High Yield Bond MY Fund (“Fund”). The Fund is a wholesale feeder fund which aims to maximise income and capital appreciation by investing in the Eastspring Investments - Asian High Yield Bond Fund (“Target Fund”), which invests primarily in Asian high yield bonds.

The distribution rates for each currency class are as follows:
 
Currency ClassGross Distribution
(Respective Currency/Unit)
Dividend Yield (based on net asset value per unit as at 28 Feb 2018)Type of Distribution

AUD Hedged- Class
 

0.0228

4.75%

Quarterly
RM Hedged-Class
 
0.03156.00%Quarterly
USD Class0.01743.50%Quarterly















All unit holders who have maintained their unit holdings in the Fund as at 28 March 2018 will be entitled to the income distribution.

Market Outlook from the Investment Manager of the Target Fund
 
Month-to-date, USD high yield bonds returned -0.93% during the month. At the index level, the top performing sectors were Transportation (-0.13%), Financial Services (-0.34%), and Telecommunications (-0.41%), while the worst performing sectors were Energy (-1.88%), Banking (-1.58%), and Basic Industry (-1.21%).

January seems so long ago. Following a strong opening month of 2018, especially for equity markets, volatility returned in February. The market sold off early in the month on stronger-than-expected wage data (average hourly earnings, followed later by core CPI), leading to speculation around potential effects on overall inflation and the pace of rate hikes. Interest rates also continued to increase. However, the month proved to be more of a rollercoaster – falling precipitously before rebounding somewhat.

The US Treasury curve continued to shift upward in February, but to a lesser extent than January. The curve modestly steepened, somewhat reversing its flattening trend from 2017. 2-, 10- and 30-year yields rose 11 bps, 15 bps and 18 bps, respectively, in February.

High yield funds experienced continued outflows through February, with -$9.1B leaving mutual funds and ETFs as participants fled high yield during last month’s volatility. This brings YTD outflows to -$12.9B, which followed -$17.5B in 2017.

Based on the most recent BofA-ML US HY Market Statistics Report for Q4 2017, aggregate high yield issuer leverage was 4.1, coverage was 3.9 and year-over-year EBITDA percentage change was 26.3%.

ABOUT EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS

Eastspring Investments is a leading asset manager in Asia that manages over USD170 billion assets on behalf of institutional and retail clients as at 30 June 2017. Operating in Asia since 1994 in 10 major markets plus offices in North America and Europe. Eastspring Investments is the Asian asset management business of Prudential plc, one of the world’s largest financial services companies.

ABOUT EASTSPRING INVESTMENTS BERHAD

Established in 2000 and based in Kuala Lumpur, Eastspring Investments Berhad is one of the leading asset management companies in Malaysia in both institutional and retail, with over RM40 billion in assets under management in the country as at 30 June 2017. It manages unit trust funds, wholesale funds as well as private mandates.

SOURCE : Eastspring Investments Bhd

Thursday 29 March 2018

Lithium Werks acquires A123 systems plants in China

KUALA LUMPUR, March 28 (Bernama) -- Lithium Werks has acquired the original A123 Systems manufacturing plants located in Changzhou, China.

These plants were the first to introduce the revolutionary NanoPhosphate technology in the form of cylindrical cells that have been used globally in a wide array of applications, especially in the industrial market.

Under the acquisition, Lithium Werks has taken over the customer relationships in China, Europe and the United States as well as the operations, staff and product designs associated with the Changzhou business.

"We are confident that this acquisition helps propel Lithium Werks into a leadership position in the lithium iron phosphate market globally," said chairman of Lithium Werks, Knut H. Nylænde in a statement.

Meanwhile, vice-president of Corporate Strategy at A123 Systems, Jeff Kessen commented that A123 Systems is pleased to have concluded the agreement and is confident that their former customers in the industrial market are in great hands with Lithium Werks.

The acquisition also named Lithium Werks as the new owner of the ?POWER. SAFETY. LIFE.' trademark that characterised A123's product portfolio in its early years.

Lithium Werks, a global lithium ion battery company, provides cells, modules, and battery management systems into markets such as material handling, stationary energy storage, medical and commercial marine with production facilities in China and offices in the USA, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Great Britain and Norway.

A123 Systems is a global leader in providing complete energy storage solutions through advanced battery cells and systems for transportation applications.

-- BERNAMA

Wednesday 28 March 2018

ZHONGSHAN'S ANNUAL INVESTMENT FAIR FOCUSES ON BUILDING THE GREATER BAY AREA BY INNOVATION-DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT

ZHONGSHAN, China, Mar. 28, 2018 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--
 
On March 28, the 2018 Zhongshan Trade, Investment and Top Talent Fair and the Fifth Top Talent Networking Zhongshan kicked off under the theme of "Innovation Spearheads Development and Collective Wisdom Shapes Bay Area", drawing 1,000 participants from more than 10 countries and regions.
 
The accumulating innovative elements and collective wisdom have enabled Zhongshan to further contribute to the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, with its competitiveness in geographical location, industries, innovation and living environment.
  
This year, investment attracting was more aligned with the city's core objective -- to steer the economy towards high-quality development driven by innovation. The opening ceremony of the Fair saw the signing of a cluster of projects, including Tianhe Super-computing Pattern Recognition and AI Team, 3D Bio-printing Center for Precision Medicine, Siasun Intelligent Manufacturing Research Institution and HKUST-Zhongshan Joint Innovation Center, signaling new drivers of growth in gathering innovative resources, transforming and upgrading in industrial sectors, and deepening cooperation within the Greater Bay Area.
 
According to Lei Yuelong, vice mayor of Zhongshan, the city aims to build itself into a world-class base for advanced manufacturing, regional transportation hub, industrial innovation center and notable historic and cultural city. The Fair, sticking to those goals, helps bring in teams specializing in technological innovation, carriers for research and development, inspection and testing platforms, and projects of premium productive services and cultural tourism from overseas.
  
The Fair consisted of 20 themed sessions, including Partnering Forum on Zhongshan Intelligent Manufacturing and International Industrial Cooperation, Seminar on Overseas Talent and Technological Project Cooperation, etc., to help increase connectivity among industries, technologies, projects, talents and professional teams.
  
Over recent years, Zhongshan has yielded fruitful results in drawing talents through the signature event of Top Talent Networking Zhongshan and introduction of 18 new talent-oriented policies. Statistics show that the past four talent networking events, with 47 special sessions, drew 23 academicians, 100 figures from China's Recruitment Program of Global Experts and 136,000 global talents. Up to 220 talent cooperation projects were signed, some involving bringing in teams of academicians.
  
By the end of 2017, Zhongshan had been home to a national entrepreneurship park for overseas students, 26 business incubators at city and township levels, 43 working platforms for post-doctorate fellows and 88 cooperation platforms for colleges and universities outside Zhongshan. Beyond that, there are two overseas talent workstations (in Boston and Silicon Valley), ten national innovation platforms and their branches, ten academician workstations and 29 master technician workrooms. Statistics relating to drawing professionals have all hit record highs, demonstrating the city's strong network of high-caliber personnel in its sustained economic and social development.
 
Source: The Organizing Committee of the Zhongshan Trade, Investment and Top Talent Fair  
 
--BERNAMA

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PREFERRED NETWORKS TO LAUNCH "MN-1B" PRIVATE SECTOR SUPERCOMPUTER ADOPTING NVIDIA TESLA V100 32GB GPUS

TOKYO, March 28 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Preferred Networks, Inc. (PFN), a provider of IoT-centric deep learning systems, NTT Communications Corporation (NTT Com), the ICT solutions and international communications business within the NTT Group, and NTT Com subsidiary NTT PC Communications Incorporated (NTT PC) announced today that PFN will launch an expanded version of its MN-1 private sector supercomputer equipped with NTT Com and NTTPC’s next-generation GPU platform by July. The new MN-1b supercomputer will adopt the NVIDIA® Tesla® V100 32GB, that was announced at GTC 2018 on March 27, 2018 (U.S. time).
 
PFN plans to enhance MN-1 by adding 512 NVIDIA Tesla V100 32GB GPUs and have them up and running by July, with the added GPUs having a theoretical peak performance of about 56 PetaFLOPS1, a massive 56,000 trillion floating-point operations per second, based on a mixed precision floating-point operation2 used in deep learning. This means the expansion alone will contribute to a roughly threefold increase from the current peak.

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31540

MELAKA FRAGRANT RICE VALLEY TO GET 2,000 HECTARES OF LAND



 JASIN, March 25 (Bernama) – The Melaka state government has agreed to provide 2,000 hectares of land in Sungai Rambai here for the cultivation of fragrant rice as the fragrant rice valley of the state.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Idris Haron said the area in the district would become a centre of fragrant rice as the production of fragrant rice would be carried out in a controlled environment compared to other places.
He said fragrant rice needed to be controlled from planting, harvesting to milling as well as packaging for customers to compete with other rice of the same quality.            
“Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry has approved an allocation of RM2.9 million for the purpose of constructing a fragrant rice drying plant to ensure controlled quality,” he told reporters after a ground breaking ceremony of the Mardi fragrant rice pilot project here, today.  
Parit Penghulu, Sungai Rambai here was selected by Mardi for the fragrant rice cultivation pilot project for the MRQ74 variety and currently more than 40 hectares have been planted with this variety of padi.

-- BERNAMA

Tuesday 27 March 2018

GLOBAL CLOUD XCHANGE WINS 'EXCELLENCE IN DATA CENTER SERVICES AWARD, SOUTH EAST ASIA'; CEO BILL BARNEY HONORED WITH 'DATA CENTER THOUGHT LEADERSHIP AWARD'

SINGAPORE, March 26 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), a subsidiary of Reliance Communications, has scored honors at the prestigious Datacloud Asia Awards 2018 event in Singapore, winning the ‘Excellence in Data Center Services Award, South East Asia’. In addition, GCX Chairman and CEO Bill Barney was honored with the ‘Data Center Thought Leadership Award’ in recognition of his significant contributions to the Data Center industry.

The Datacloud Asia awards, one of the most revered accolades in the technology sector, recognize innovation and excellence in the flourishing Asia digital infrastructure market. Winners of this year’s awards in all categories were chosen by an independent expert panel of Judges from across the Data Center and Cloud industry segments, with the objective of recognizing excellence in Data Centre and Cloud Services and Operations.

"Bill Barney is someone we have observed over many years—an industry veteran with tremendous insight and experience, a brilliant exponent of Cloud, and possessing remarkable depth of insight into the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in the sector. For all these reasons, he was rightly awarded ‘Thought Leader of the Year at Datacloud Asia 2018’,” said Philip Low, Chairman, BroadGroup.


http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31521

TOSHIBA RELEASES SMALL MOSFET WITH HIGH ESD PROTECTION TO DRIVE HEADLIGHT LED

TOKYO, March 26 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation (“Toshiba”) has released a dual MOSFET “SSM6N813R” with high ESD protection positioned for use in automotive applications, including as a driver IC for headlight LEDs, which require a high withstand voltage and a small footprint. Mass production shipments begin in April.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180326005358/en/

A maximum drain-source voltage (VDSS) of 100V ensures that SSM6N813R is suitable for headlight applications requiring multiple LEDs—a capability supported by high ESD immunity. Fabricated using the latest process and housed in a TSOP6F package, SSM6N813R has an allowable power dissipation of 1.5W and low on-resistance. In addition, the footprint of the TSOP6F package is 70% smaller than that of an SOP8 package.

Applications
  • Automotive headlight LED driver
Features
  • Small package
  • High ESD protection
  • Low RDS(ON)
 
Main Specifications
(@Ta=25℃)
Items
(Ta=25℃)
 SSM6N813R
Absolute maximum ratings Drain-source voltage
VDSS (V)
 100
 Gate-source voltage
VGSS (V)
 +/-20
 Drain current
ID (A)
 3.5
Electrical Characteristics Drain-source on-resistance
RDS(ON) max
(mΩ)
 VGS=10V 112
  VGS=4.5V 154
 Input capacitance
Ciss typ. (pF)
 242
Package TSOP6F 2.9mm×2.8mm; t=0.8mm
 
Follow the link below for more on Toshiba’s latest small low-on-resistance MOSFETs.
https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/product/mosfet/small-mosfet.html

Customer Inquiries:
Small Signal Device Sales & Marketing Department
Tel: +81-3-3457-3411
https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/contact.html

*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 combines the vigor of a new company with the wisdom of experience. Since becoming an independent company in July 2017, we have taken our place among the leading general devices companies, and offer our customers and business partners outstanding solutions in discrete semiconductors, system LSIs and HDD.

Our 19,000 employees around the world share a determination to maximize the value of our products, and emphasize close collaboration with customers to promote co-creation of value and new markets. We look forward to building on annual sales now surpassing 700-billion yen (US$6 billion) and to contributing to a better future for people everywhere.
Find out more about us at https://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/ap-en/company.html

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180326005358/en/

Contact

Media Inquiries:
Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation
Chiaki Nagasawa, +81-3-3457-4963
Digital Marketing Department
semicon-NR-mailbox@ml.toshiba.co.jp

Source : Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation

--BERNAMA

Monday 26 March 2018

VISTAJET CONNECTS CUSTOMERS AND THEIR PASSIONS WITH THE GLOBAL BRITISH POLO DAY TOUR




Customers to join the most prestigious worldwide polo tournament

LONDON, March 22 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- VistaJet, the first and only global private aviation company, will be offering customers the opportunity to enrich their passion for polo as the company partners with British Polo Day for the 2018 worldwide tournament, following a successful inaugurate partnership last year.

The sport is a key interest for many of VistaJet’s customers, both as spectators and riders, and is in line with 39% of the world’s animal-loving Ultra High Net Worth population having a passion for horses*. VistaJet continuously develops and offers exceptional experiences for its customers inspired by their true passions, including art, sport and travel, across all cultures worldwide. Its global partnership with British Polo Day will offer customers an exclusive opportunity to enjoy one of their most cherished interests by watching some of the sport’s top players, including the world’s number one player Adolfo Cambiaso, in the most spectacular and iconic settings, such as the enchanting Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur.

“Our customers expect the most extraordinary experiences at the highest standards,” explains Ian Moore, Chief Commercial Officer at VistaJet. “Our customers’ passions become our passions and supporting them is a cornerstone of the VistaJet brand. In partnering on such opportunities with British Polo Day, we are able to continue to deliver second-to-none events to our community.”

Originating in ancient Persia, polo has been played for over 2,600 years with the modern game beginning in Northeastern India in 1859. From there, polo spread as widely as its enthusiasts across Europe, South America, Asia and Australia. On a trip to England, the publisher James Gordon Bennett Jr. experienced his first polo match, and upon returning to his native New York in 1876, the game soon spread across North America. 

Thursday 22 March 2018

RECIPIENTS FOR 12TH GATSBY CREATIVE AWARDS DECIDED

One of the Largest Festivals for Student Creative Work in Asia!

OSAKA, Japan, March 21 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Mandom Corporation (Headquarters: Osaka)(TOKYO:4917) held the final judging for the 12th GATSBY CREATIVE AWARDS on Saturday, March 10th, in Shibuya, Tokyo. These awards are among the largest to honor student creative work in Asia.
A total of 2,333 projects were submitted from students in twelve countries and regions throughout Asia. As the finalists in each category came together, they offered each other creative stimulation, and as the exchanges among them deepened, the expert panel of judges in each field, including Terry Ito among them, selected the number one student creator, taking audience votes into consideration as well, from among the seven sponsored categories.
See the official website at https://award.gatsby.jp/12/ for more information.

The 12th GATSBY CREATIVE AWARDS
Provided by "GATSBY," a men's cosmetic brand with a strong presence throughout Asia, the GATSBY CREATIVE AWARDS initially began as the "GATSBY Student CM Awards" in 2006 from the company's desire to provide a forum for students to express and display their creative talent. Now in the twelfth year, the event involves participants from twelve different countries and regions in Asia, making it the largest ever in its history.

Winners in Each Category
COMMERCIAL: ISLAM LUTHFI SYAIFUL (Indonesia)
ART: LEUNG SZE YAN (Hong Kong)
DANCE: Takumi Kuwahara (Japan)
MUSIC: Ren Shimonagane (Japan)
FASHION: Aya Sato (Japan)
SMART PHONE: Hazumi Tsuchiya (Japan)
HAIR STYLE: Ryo Matsuoka (Japan)

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31497

NEW DOCUMENTARY RAISES GLOBAL WATER CRISIS AWARENESS AS 844 MILLION PEOPLE STILL LACK ACCESS TO CLEAN DRINKING WATER

P&G and National Geographic Documentary Shows How Lives Transformed with Clean Water

Most Americans underestimate impact of global water crisis new research shows

CINCINNATI, March 20 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) non-profit Children’s Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) Program and National Geographic are raising awareness about the global water crisis with the release of a new documentary and national survey in conjunction with World Water Day. The documentary, titled “The Power of Clean Water,” follows the lives of three women and their families, providing a first-hand perspective on the daily challenges of accessing clean drinking water. As the film progresses, viewers witness how P&G’s Purifier of Water packets, distributed by partners ChildFund in Indonesia, CARE International in Kenya and World Vision in Mexico, have helped transform these communities.
 
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180319005689/en/


Global awareness of the water crisis is growing, but in the U.S., many are still unaware of how many people struggle with the daily reality of not having access to clean water, something P&G sought to explore by commissioning a new survey to be released along with the documentary. Survey findings show that most consumers are concerned about the safety of their drinking water, but do not know that approximately 1 in 10 people around the world lack access to clean drinking water. In addition, one-in-four underestimate the number of people who die each year because of waterborne illnesses.

Survey findings further highlighted that Americans are largely unaware of the progress that has been made to date to address the global water crisis. Nearly 70 percent of respondents believe that the crisis has stayed the same or gotten worse, with almost one in four saying that the problem has become much worse. In reality, the global effort to solve the crisis is working. 2.6 billion people have gained access to clean water in the last 25 years but there are still 844 million people yet to reach.

P&G’s Chief Brand Officer, Marc Pritchard, shared the survey findings today in advance of the first screening of “The Power of Clean Water” on March 21. “In some parts of the world, we take for granted the availability of clean water. People in countries like Mexico, Indonesia and Kenya struggle with finding clean water to drink. And without clean drinking water, it’s much harder to keep their children healthy, have them get an education and provide a better life for their families,” Pritchard said. “Our goal, in partnering with National Geographic, is to share these stories about the power of clean water and to inspire others to make a difference and become a part of the solution.”

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31486

A.M. BEST WITHDRAWS CREDIT RATINGS OF MACAU LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED

HONG KONG, March 21 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- A.M. Best has removed from under review with developing implications and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb” of Macau Life Insurance Company Limited (MLIC) (Macau). The outlook assigned to these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. Concurrently, A.M. Best has withdrawn the ratings as the company has requested to no longer participate in the A.M. Best’s interactive rating process.

The ratings reflect MLIC’s balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, very limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

On June 2, 2016, Dah Sing Financial Holdings Limited and Macau Insurance Company Limited announced that they agreed to sell 100% of MLIC’s shares to Thaihot Investment (Bermuda) Company Limited (Thai Hot) (Bermuda). The acquisition was completed on Nov. 9, 2017. A.M. Best expects MLIC to maintain its current distribution relationship with Banco Comercial de Macau, S.A. after the closing of the transaction, while MLIC’s pension fund management business was excluded from the transaction.

MLIC is well-capitalized to support its risk profile, which is highly concentrated on investment risk. The company is one of the smallest players in Macau’s life insurance market in terms of gross premium written in 2016 and mainly distributes long-term products designed by its affiliate, Dah Sing Life Assurance, which also was acquired by Thai Hot in June 2017.

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 A.M. 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 A.M. 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 A.M. Best press releases, please view Guide for Media - Proper Use of Best’s Credit Ratings and A.M. Best Rating Action Press Releases.

A.M. Best is the world’s oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2018 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/20180320006584/en/

Contact

A.M. Best
Vivian Cheung, +852 2827 3421
Senior Financial Analyst
vivian.cheung@ambest.com
or
Christopher Sharkey, +1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159
Manager, Public Relations
christopher.sharkey@ambest.com
or
Christie Lee, +852 2827 3413
Director, Analytics
christie.lee@ambest.com
or
Jim Peavy, +1 908 439 2200, ext. 5644
Director, Public Relations
james.peavy@ambest.com

Source : A.M. Best

--BERNAMA

Wednesday 21 March 2018

OXFORD NANOPORE ANNOUNCES £100 MILLION ($140M) FUNDRAISING FROM GLOBAL INVESTORS

OXFORD NANOPORE ANNOUNCES £100 MILLION ($140M) FUNDRAISING FROM GLOBAL INVESTORS

McDonald's leads work towards 36 per cent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030

KUALA LUMPUR, March 20 (Bernama) -- McDonald's has announced it will partner with franchisees and suppliers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions related to McDonald's restaurants and offices by 36 per cent by 2030 from a 2015 base year in a new strategy to address global climate change.

Also, McDonald's has committed to a 31 per cent reduction in emissions intensity (per tonne of food and packaging) across its supply chain by 2030 from the 2015 levels.

This combined target has been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

SBTi is a collaboration between WRI, WWF, CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) and the United Nations Global Compact, which helps companies determine how much they must cut emissions to do their part to address climate change.

"To reach the target, McDonald's will work across its supply chain, offices and restaurants to be more innovative and efficient through improvements such as using LED lighting and energy-efficient kitchen equipment, sustainable packaging, restaurant recycling, and by elevating and supporting sustainable agriculture practices," the company said in a statement today.

Additionally, it will prioritise action on the largest segments of its carbon footprint: beef production, restaurant energy usage and sourcing, packaging and waste, which account for approximately 64 per cent of McDonald's global emissions.

Through these actions, McDonald's expects to prevent 150 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from being released into the atmosphere by 2030, which is the equivalent of taking 32 million passenger cars off the road for an entire year or planting 3.8 billion trees and growing them for 10 years.

The target will enable McDonald's to grow as a business without growing its emissions.

McDonald's president and chief executive officer, Steve Easterbrook, who announced the plan in a video released by the company, said to meet the goal, the company would source its food responsibly, promote renewable energy and use it efficiently, and reduce waste and increase recycling.

"As one of the best known brands on the planet, McDonald's is well positioned to lead, and its ambitious new climate target will inspire innovation, collaboration, and most importantly critical greenhouse gas reductions across the company's global operations and supply chain," said president of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), Fred Krupp.

The launch of the science-based target is the latest step in McDonald's journey to drive meaningful change and use its Scale for Good.

McDonald's is the world's leading global foodservice retailer with over 37,000 locations in 120 markets around the world. Over 90 per cent of its restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local business men and women.

-- BERNAMA 

SOLARWINDS PLACES HIGHEST ON THE ABILITY TO EXECUTE AXIS IN 2018 GARTNER MAGIC QUADRANT FOR NETWORK PERFORMANCE MONITORING AND DIAGNOSTICS

SOLARWINDS PLACES HIGHEST ON THE ABILITY TO EXECUTE AXIS IN 2018 GARTNER MAGIC QUADRANT FOR NETWORK PERFORMANCE MONITORING AND DIAGNOSTICS

Tuesday 20 March 2018

Samsung's Galaxy S9, S9+ with advanced camera features now available

KUALA LUMPUR, March 20 (Bernama) -- Samsung Electronics America, Inc. has announced that the new, award-winning Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones are now available for purchase at the United States (US) wireless network providers and retail stores.

In three colours, Midnight Black, Coral Blue, and the new Lilac Purple, the phones have been recognised by smartphone reviewers worldwide for their best-in-class display, design and camera.

The Galaxy S9 has a suggested retail price of US$719.99, while the Galaxy S9+ is available for US$839.99. Both unlocked and carrier versions of the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ are also available for purchase on Samsung.com.

"The Galaxy S9 and S9+ are designed for the visual and social generation - the consumers who connect, communicate, and share their stories through pictures and video," said president and chief executive officer of Samsung Electronics North America, Tim Baxter.

"Samsung leveraged its long history of innovation to reimagine the smartphone camera so that users can not only take the best pictures in any light and any environment, but also express themselves in their own unique way," he added.

The phones feature Samsung's most advanced smartphone camera, and come with a dual aperture (F1.5 - F2.4) that works just like the human eye to adjust to different lighting conditions, with DxOMark awarding the Galaxy S9+ its highest-ever score for a mobile camera.

With the Galaxy S9 and S9+, consumers also have a new way to engage with the world around them through Samsung's intelligence platform, Bixby. Built with deep-learning technology, Bixby adds numerous smart functions to the camera, including instant translation of text from one language to another, ability to recognise food and overlay approximate calorie count, and information about nearby landmarks and places.

Owners who purchase the phones on Samsung.com are eligible for a free month of Samsung Premium Care, the only support program that comes to consumers at their home, office or favourite coffee shop.

For more information on the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+, visit news.samsung.com/us/galaxy-s9/.

-- BERNAMA 

Friday 16 March 2018

​GRATOMIC ANNOUNCES GRANT OF EXCLUSIVE PROSPECTING LICENCE



TORONTO, March 14 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gratomic Inc. (“Gratomic” or the “Company”) (TSX-V:GRAT) (FRANKFURT:CB81) (WKN:A2JAP3) is pleased to announce that the Republic of Namibia has granted it an additional Exclusive Prospecting Licence, Number 6710 (“EPL 6710”). Title to EPL 6710 is registered to Luxury Investments Two Hundred and Sixty Four (PTY) Ltd., a Namibian company, of which the Company holds 91%. The remaining 9% is held by a Local Namibian pursuant to the Republic of Namibia’s New Equitable Economic Empowerment Framework (www.opm.gov.na/neeef). EPL 6710 has an initial exclusivity period of 3 years.

EPL 6710 is located immediately east and north of, and contiguous with EPL 3895 that covers the Aukam graphite deposit and the Snyman graphite occurrence. The application for EPL 6710 was submitted in order to cover the potential strike extension of the Snyman graphite occurrence to the east. In addition, EPL 6710 covers additional area prospective for graphite within the “Aukam window” where the rocks hosting the Aukam and Snyman graphite are exposed beneath the regional unconformity at the base of the Nama Group sedimentary rocks. The addition of the new EPL increases the area of prospective geology covered to 63,072 hectares (630 square kilometres).

Gratomic’s CO-CEO Arno Brand stated, “We are very pleased that we have been granted EPL 6710 as not only does it cover the potential extension of graphite mineralization seen at the Snyman occurrence, but it also covers most of the window below the unconformity that is also prospective for graphite.”

Graphite at Aukam occurs as massive graphite veins as well as more widespread disseminated graphite that has been identified at surface over an area of 550 metres east-west (sub-parallel to an electromagnetic anomaly) by 190 metres north-south. Sampling of surface graphite occurrences showed graphite content of 1.96% Cg (carbon as graphite)  to 43.01% Cg from 22 samples (see news release dated September 7, 2017).

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31446\

7-ELEVEN MALAYSIA'S FIRST EVER SALE!

KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 (Bernama) -- The nation’s favourite convenience store chain – 7-Eleven Malaysia, is excited to launch its First Ever Sale! in its stores, consisting of exclusive discounts up to 10%, 30% and 50% off on selected food and non-food items! Shoppers can enjoy a month-long of fabulous deals in Peninsular Malaysia stores excluding Langkawi from 6 March 2018 until 2 April 2018. Save up on beauty products such as Lipice, Nivea, and Sunplay as well as delectable snacks and beverage ranging from brands like Cadbury, Ribena, and many more!

On top of this amazing grand sale, shoppers who spend more than RM15 and above in a single receipt – not including in-store service payments, reloads and gift cards – stand a chance to win cash prizes worth up to RM85,000 with the Have It All Contest. To participate, contestants will have to request for their receipt from the cashier; fill in the contest form with their details and answer two simple questions correctly; attach the contest form with an original copy of their receipt and place their entry into the dedicated contest box in any 7-Eleven store.

The grand prize winner will walk away with RM50,000 cash prize; while 2nd and 3rdprize winners will receive RM20,000 and RM5,000 respectively. On the other hand, 10 consolation prize winners will each bring home RM1,000.

7-Eleven Malaysia will also be hosting a #HaveItAll online contest with equally attractive prizes. Lucky contestants will either win themselves a brand new iPhone X 64GB worth RM5,200; a Sony Playstation 4 worth RM1,200; a G-Shock Watch worth RM500 each or a TGV Movie Ticket worth RM15. Contestants are simply required to snap a creative photo of their most exciting #HaveItAll moment with a caption and post it publicly on their Facebook or Instagram with the hashtags #HaveItAll and #7ElevenMY to stand a chance to win!

“We are all about providing the best convenience to our consumers, and by offering fantastic deals through our First Ever Sale! and the chance to win amazing cash prizes with the Have It All Contest, we are always striving to bring more savings to our customers and elevate their shopping experience with more rewards like never before!” said 7-Eleven Malaysia Marketing General Manager, Ronan Lee.

For more information, please visit www.7eleven.com.my or Facebook at 7ElevenMalaysia.

Source: 7-Eleven Malaysia

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Name : Ronan Lee

GM Marketing, 7-Eleven Malaysia
Tel  : 03-2142 1136 / 018-311 1230
Email  : ronan.lee@7eleven.com.my

--BERNAMA

DONGFENG RACE TEAM WON THE GRAND CHAMPION OF THE IN-PORT RACE IN AUCKLAND

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, March 15 (Bernama-AsiaNet) -- Six race teams are currently docked in Auckland. The Team of China -- Dongfeng Race Team won the Grand Champion of the in-port race in Auckland. With over half of the race completed, Dongfeng Race Team ranked the second in the total standings. The competition is becoming more and more intense. The teams will depart from the port on March 18 and set off for the seventh leg which will bring double points in terms of standings.


The skipper Charles Caudrelier said that it was not easy. There were many unexpected things during the windy weather of the first leg, but Dongfeng Race Team always focused on the lead during the race and endeavored to find their weaknesses, surpassing them again and again and leaving other teams behind.
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31460

ETHOCA'S INTEGRATED SOLUTION SUITE AIMS TO ERADICATE 90% OF CHARGEBACKS THROUGH PROVEN INDUSTRY COLLABORATION

Led by ground-breaking Eliminator solution, the suite provides a three-layer defence from genuine fraud, friendly fraud and customer disputes, while creating a better experience for customers

TORONTO & AUSTIN, Texas & LONDON, March 15 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Ethoca, the industry standard for collaboration-based technology solutions that enable card issuers and online merchants to increase card acceptance and stop ecommerce fraud and disputes, today announced the launch of its new Integrated Solution Suite. When adopted at full scale across the industry, Ethoca’s suite of products – including Ethoca Eliminator, Ethoca Alerts and Enhanced Representments – can mitigate up to 90% of chargebacks from genuine fraud, friendly (or first-party) fraud and false claims. Even more importantly, it sets the stage for increased card acceptance across the ecosystem.

Today’s ecommerce ecosystem is plagued by a raft of issues that increase friction in the purchase process and create a negative experience for customers. With friendly fraud (whether innocent or hostile) and false claims now reaching 90% of all fraud volumes in sectors like digital goods, card issuers, merchants and customers are all facing a downward spiral of disputes that are having a significant impact on card acceptance. Industry estimates suggest that ‘false declines’ – when good customers are falsely declined due to the risk of fraud – are continuing to increase: for every $1 in confirmed fraud, $13 in legitimate transactions are falsely rejected. Customers experiencing a false decline will elect to abandon purchases at trusted ecommerce web sites, pull out a different payment card or, in 39% of cases, potentially abandon the purchase altogether.¹
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31463

TOMMY HILFIGER ANNOUNCES FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPION LEWIS HAMILTON AS GLOBAL BRAND AMBASSADOR FOR TOMMY HILFIGER MEN'S

As one of today’s greatest sports competitors, Lewis Hamilton will represent the world of TOMMY HILFIGER men’s as global brand ambassador starting Spring 2018.

AMSTERDAM, March 15 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Tommy Hilfiger, which is owned by PVH Corp. [NYSE: PVH], announces that British Formula One racing driver and four-time Formula One® World Champion Lewis Hamilton will appear as the new global brand ambassador for TOMMY HILFIGER men’s, including HILFIGER COLLECTION, TOMMY HILFIGER TAILORED and TOMMY HILFIGER Menswear, Underwear and Swimwear, starting Spring 2018. The partnership reflects Tommy Hilfiger’s strategic commitment to build on its strong menswear heritage and further drive the global growth of its men’s business, bringing the next generation of fans to the brand.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180315005270/en/

“I have always admired Lewis’ incredible endurance during the race, as well as his unique style off the track, which speak to the new generation of Tommy Guys,” said Tommy Hilfiger. “He has built his incredible career as a racing driver with passion, dedication and extremely hard work – values that I embraced when founding my brand. We have a history with Formula One, and this partnership builds on our heritage of collaborations within the world of motor sport.”
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31461

SOLARWINDS SYSTEM MANAGEMENT UPDATES SHARPEN VISIBILITY INTO PHYSICAL AND VIRTUAL INFRASTRUCTURE

Support added for leading all-flash arrays from Dell EMC, HPE Nimble Storage, INFINIDAT and IBM

New functionality creates clear view of server interactions within business applications

AUSTIN, Texas, March 15 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SolarWinds, a leading provider of powerful and affordable IT management software, today announced a pair of product updates that offer broader and deeper performance monitoring capabilities across physical and virtual infrastructures, particularly in hybrid environments. The newest version of SolarWinds® Storage Resource Monitor (SRM) extends support to a wider range of leading all-flash arrays (AFAs), while the latest update to Server & Application Monitor (SAM) permits deeper visibility into interactions between a set of servers running critical business applications.

“Finding clarity through the haze of complexity is vital to successfully keep today’s heterogeneous and distributed IT environments running smoothly,” said Christoph Pfister, executive vice president of products, SolarWinds. “With support for more leading-edge storage vendor solutions and deeper visibility into the connection between critical infrastructure resources, our system management updates give IT professionals more powerful tools to overcome complexity and optimize performance in their diverse worlds.”
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31457

Thursday 15 March 2018

NEURALSTEM ANNOUNCES PUBLICATION OF A STUDY IN NATURE MEDICINE SHOWING BENEFITS OF NSI-566 IN A PRIMATE MODEL OF SPINAL CORD INJURY

- NSI-566 shown to have restorative function in primate paralysis model -

- NSI-566 transplantation resulted in measurable improvement in forelimb function -

GERMANTOWN, Md., March 14 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Neuralstem, Inc. (Nasdaq:CUR), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel treatments for nervous system diseases, highlighted the publication of a manuscript in Nature Medicine showing that NSI-566, Neuralstem’s lead cell therapy candidate, provided meaningful improvement in forelimb function in a non-human primate model of acute spinal cord injury. The full manuscript can be found here.

The manuscript, entitled ‘Restorative Effects of Human Neural Stem Cell Grafts on the Primate Spinal Cord,’ involved a study to evaluate the potential benefits of transplanting NSI-566 into rhesus monkeys two weeks after they received a hemisection lesion of the cervical spinal cord. 
http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=31445

Wednesday 14 March 2018

DATACLOUD ASIA AWARDS 2018: SHORTLIST ANNOUNCED

15 Awards to be presented at leading IT infrastructure Awards
 
LONDON & SINGAPORE, March 14 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- The shortlist for the Datacloud Asia Awards 2018 has been announced by the judging panel, recognising innovation and excellence in the flourishing Asian digital IT infrastructure market.
 
In only its 2nd year the Datacloud Asia Awards 2018 is one of the most prestigious events in the data center and cloud industry calendar. The Awards ceremony, which includes a gala dinner, is held on the evening of 22nd March at the Capella Hotel in Singapore after the Datacloud Asia congress.
 
Philip Low, chairman of BroadGroup added: “The judging panel has been overwhelmed by the number of quality nominations put forward and have worked tirelessly to reach this final shortlist. The Asia data economy is thriving with many, from all across the region, demonstrating the ability to grow, innovate, deliver and disrupt. It’s an extremely vibrant and attractive environment for innovators, financiers, technology vendors and enterprises and the 22nd March Awards will be keenly contested affair, celebrating both the rising stars and publicly listed success stories.”
 
The shortlisted nominations are:

Excellence in Data Centre Service Award: Asia
Equinix
ST Telemedia Global Data Centres
PCCW Solutions Limited
Digital Realty
Global Switch Hong Kong
 
Excellence in Data Centre Service Award: South East Asia
SK broadband
Telin-3 Data Centre
SUPERNAP Thailand
Lintasarta
iTech Towers
 
Excellence in Data Centre Service Award: India
Global Cloud Xchange
Pi DATACENTERS
GPX India Pvt Ltd
RackBank Datacenters Pvt Ltd
 
Best Data Centre Energy Solution Award
Munters
SK broadband
AirTrunk
 
Data Centre Location Award
Iskandar Development Region, Malaysia proposed by Iskandar Regional Development Authority
Chonburi Province, Thailand proposed by SUPERNAP Thailand
Indore, India proposed by RackBank Datacenters Pvt Ltd
Greater Bay Area, China proposed by OneAsia Network Limited
 
Excellence in Cloud Service Award Asia
Equinix
Global Cloud Xchange
Pi DATACENTERS
CITIC Telecom CPC
 
Excellence in Cloud Service Award South East Asia
Global Cloud Xchange
CITIC Telecom CPC
Lintasarta

Marketer of the Year Award
Omer Wilson – Digital Realty
Lorain Wong - Global Cloud Xchange
Caren Kang - SingTel
 
Individual Industry Contribution - Ambassador Award
Robin Khuda - AirTrunk
Bill Barney - Global Cloud Xchange
Krupal Raval – Digital Realty
 
The Datacenter & Cloud Leadership Awards will also be presented on the night along with the BroadGroup Awards for Excellence in Data Centre Architecture and Design Award and the Best Programme for Data Centre training and professional development.
 
Datacloud Asia is the premier congress and awards for investing, powering, connecting, building and deploying datacentre, cloud and Edge technologies. It will be held at the Capella Hotel, Singapore where industry leaders and experts will be debating the themes expected to influence the Asia-Pacific IT infrastructure market over the next 12 months and beyond (http://www.datacloudasia.com/).
 
About BroadGroup
 
BroadGroup is an Information Media Technology and Professional Services company. Established in 2002, BroadGroup achieved rapid recognition and growth through delivering quality events internationally, and research and insight in the fast moving datacenter and cloud markets, which has been the main focus of the company. It also owns the widely acclaimed Data Economy online and offline global news source and investor forums provider for the tech sector. BroadGroup is now a member company of FTSE 250 firm Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC. www.broad-group.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180314005373/en/

Contact

Press contact
BroadGroup
Julia Vockrodt, +44 07710 942943
 
Source : BroadGroup
 
--BERNAMA