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The event will bring together industry participants from digital assets, fintech, payments, Web3 infrastructure, institutional services, and cross-border finance. It aims to provide a face-to-face networking platform for institutions, project teams, infrastructure providers, investors, and professionals. Discussions will focus on digital asset infrastructure, compliant payments, stablecoin use cases, wallet and card services, and how digital assets can enter real-world payment scenarios.

Event Details

Event Name: Token2049 Networking Event with BitGo, HashKey & UstarPay
Date & Time: Wednesday, 7 October, 18:00–21:00 GMT+8
Event Partners: BitGo, HashKey Cloud, UstarPay
Registration: Submit an application through the official Luma event page
Registration Link: https://luma.com/qjgwthvg
Entry: Approved participants may enter with a valid QR code

Please note that this event requires registration approval. All participants must submit an application through the official Luma event page. The hosts will review applications based on applicant background, industry relevance, and event capacity. Once approved, participants will receive an event QR code. Only approved participants with a valid QR code will be admitted to the event. An invitation or shared event information does not constitute official admission credentials.

Stablecoins Enter the Next Stage: From On-Chain Assets to Real-World Payments

In recent years, stablecoins have evolved from a funding tool primarily used in crypto trading into a payment and settlement medium within the global digital economy. As cross-border work, global freelancing, online subscriptions, e-commerce, and international trade continue to grow, the market demand for faster, more flexible, and geographically accessible payment methods has continued to increase.

However, for digital assets to truly enter everyday life, one core question remains: how can the speed of on-chain transactions be connected with the trust, compliance, and settlement systems required by the real world?

In traditional financial and payment networks, every movement of funds must address fundamental questions: who the user is, where the funds come from, whether the transaction is compliant, whether risk can be identified, and whether the settlement trail can be audited. For digital asset payments, these questions do not disappear simply because technology becomes faster. Instead, they become essential conditions for digital assets to move toward broader, scalable adoption.

UstarPay’s role is to build the infrastructure that connects on-chain assets with real-world payment scenarios during this transition.

About UstarPay’s Role in Real-World Digital Asset Use

UstarPay is a PayFi-focused infrastructure platform connecting supported digital assets with real-world spending and transaction use cases. Its core vision is to help digital assets move beyond trading, holding, or investment and become more practical for everyday and commercial use, subject to applicable requirements.

By connecting wallet, card, and related technology infrastructure, UstarPay helps eligible individuals and businesses access card and transaction solutions using supported digital assets. In applicable markets, and subject to supported assets, product settings, and relevant requirements, users may explore stablecoins and other supported digital assets for online shopping, travel and hotel spending, subscription services, cross-border purchases, in-store purchases, and, where applicable, ATM withdrawals.

For enterprises, UstarPay explores modular technology support connected to card applications, risk management, and settlement workflows. Relevant use cases may be considered for eligible platforms and businesses, subject to applicable laws, partner requirements, product scope, and case-by-case assessment.

UstarPay believes the future of digital asset use is not only about whether a transaction can be completed, but also whether relevant activity can be verified, monitored, risk-assessed, reviewed, and settled. Based on this view, UstarPay is exploring “Proof-of-Spend” as part of its digital asset application narrative. By connecting identity verification, AML processes, asset custody, on-chain risk assessment, transaction records, and settlement workflows, UstarPay is exploring how digital asset applications can be supported by more verifiable, monitorable, and traceable process foundations.

From a risk management and traceability perspective, UstarPay considers identity verification, on-chain transaction monitoring, asset custody, and settlement records as relevant components where applicable. The company may work with relevant technical service providers in these areas. This registration does not mean that all products, services, or markets are authorized or available. Relevant services remain subject to applicable laws and regulations, user eligibility, supported assets, product settings, partner requirements, and jurisdictional restrictions.

Guided by “Real Crypto, Real Life,” UstarPay’s long-term direction is to help supported digital assets move from on-chain holdings toward card and transaction applications that can be used in everyday and commercial contexts, subject to product configuration, applicable requirements, supported assets, and regional availability.

Event Significance: Connecting PayFi, Stablecoin Payments, and Institutional Infrastructure

The co-hosts of this event span digital asset custody, institutional infrastructure, PayFi, stablecoin payments, and on-chain yield. This reflects the digital asset industry’s ongoing evolution from single-purpose trading scenarios toward more mature financial and payment infrastructure.

As stablecoins continue to become an important tool for value movement in the global digital economy, the market demand for compliant payment access, secure asset custody, risk control infrastructure, and cross-border settlement capabilities continues to grow. Through this event, UstarPay hopes to engage with more industry participants to discuss how digital assets can enter the real world in a safer, more compliant, and more practical way.

Hashtag: #UstarPay

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About BitGo

BitGo (NYSE: BTGO) is the digital asset infrastructure company delivering custody, wallets, staking, trading, financing, stablecoins, and settlement services from regulated cold storage. Since 2013, BitGo has focused on accelerating the transition of the financial system to a digital asset economy. BitGo maintains a global presence and multiple regulated entities, including BitGo Bank & Trust, National Association, the first federally chartered digital asset trust bank owned by a publicly traded company. Today, BitGo serves thousands of institutions, including many of the industry’s top brands, financial institutions, exchanges, and platforms, and millions of investors worldwide. For more information, visit www.bitgo.com.

About UstarPay

UstarPay is a PayFi-focused infrastructure platform designed to connect digital assets with real-world spending and transaction use cases. By connecting wallet, card, and related technology infrastructure, UstarPay helps eligible users and businesses access convenient card and transaction solutions using supported digital assets.

With a focus on compliance, transparency, and risk management, UstarPay is developing digital asset experiences designed to support traceability and transparency in supported markets. Guided by “Real Crypto, Real Life,” the company is focused on making supported digital assets more practical and relevant to everyday life, subject to applicable requirements and availability. Relevant services remain subject to applicable laws and regulations, user eligibility, supported assets, product settings, and regional availability.

For more information, please visit www.ustarpay.com.

About HashKey Cloud

HashKey Cloud is the institutional staking and yield infrastructure of HashKey Group (HKEX: 3887). It focuses on providing secure, auditable multi-chain staking and yield services for global institutions, asset managers, and professional investors. Our services include ETF/DAT staking, prime VIP staking, API staking, and prime yield, empowering institutions to manage on-chain assets and returns with efficiency and confidence.

Disclaimer: Relevant services are subject to applicable laws and regulations, user eligibility, supported assets, partner requirements, and geographic restrictions. Not all services are available in all markets.

Houston-based Alpha Energy forms Alpha Energy International to acquire and modernise mature oil fields; Tennor provides $500 million funding facility

HOUSTON, US – Media OutReach Newswire – 2 October 2026 – Alpha Energy, the Houston-based oil and gas upstream company, has formed Alpha Energy International to lead its expansion outside the United States and has sold a 65% stake in the new company to Tennor Global LLC.

Tennor has agreed to arrange Alpha Energy International with a $500 million funding facility, allowing the venture to move quickly on acquisitions in selected countries, including Venezuela. Alpha Energy International will be responsible for all of Alpha Energy’s future activities and investments outside the USA.

The new company will initially target mature producing fields and difficult-to-recover reserves. Alpha’s leadership team will develop the assets and run operations, while Tennor, as majority shareholder, will support the venture through its network of relationships in the target countries.

Lars Windhorst, Founder of Tennor Global, said: “Alpha’s team has a rare track record of turning around mature fields at scale, and we believe that expertise is exactly what many producing countries need today. Tennor’s role is to open doors and provide the capital to move quickly. Together, we intend to build an international oil company focused on getting more from existing fields, working in partnership with host governments and national oil companies.”

Thomas Reed, CEO of Alpha Energy International and founder of Alpha Energy, said: “The combination of Alpha’s technical and operating expertise with Tennor’s financial support and deep knowledge of key international markets provides the basis for a new type of international oil company.

“Our strategy is simple. More oil remains in existing conventional fields than has ever been produced, and since the late 1980s, improvements in technology and engineering have added more recoverable barrels from existing fields than the industry’s total greenfield exploration success. Alpha is on a mission to acquire and modernise these legacy fields. Better recovery of the world’s existing oil and gas resources is Alpha’s fundamental value proposition, and with Tennor we have the reach and resources to act.”

A team built on the Yukos turnaround

Alpha Energy has a thirty-year history of conventional reservoir development and operations across more than sixty fields, primarily on the US Gulf Coast and the shallow-water shelf of the Gulf of America. Its principals have also operated at scale internationally. The company’s COO spent more than a decade in Venezuela, including operatorship of a producing joint venture on Lake Maracaibo at over 100,000 barrels of oil per day.

Mr Reed, who will run Alpha Energy International from Houston, has 35 years of oil and gas experience with Yukos, RusPetro, JKX and Texas Petroleum Investment Company. The COO has 35 years of operations experience with Yukos and Gazprom, among others, most recently with the Venezuelan joint venture. Chris Hopkinson, CTO, has 38 years in the upstream business, including senior positions at Shell, Yukos, BG Group and KazMunayGas.

All three built Alpha’s proprietary Alpha Technical Center on their experience at Yukos, where the same performance engineering techniques added nearly one million barrels per day of production in four years with a net reduction in the total well count. The Technical Center covers subsurface evaluation, reservoir engineering, well design and facilities design.

Alpha Energy International will recover production by optimising asset performance from the wells up, using a value-driven technical limit approach and current technologies. The company works alongside national oil companies, training and handing over to local engineers as it goes.

Hashtag: #AlphaEnergy

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Alpha Energy

Alpha Energy is a Houston, Texas based oil and gas upstream company specialising in conventional reservoir development and operations. Over thirty years it has operated in more than sixty fields, primarily on the US Gulf Coast and the shallow-water shelf of the Gulf of America. Alpha Energy International, its majority-owned international arm, is responsible for all of the company’s activities and investments outside the USA.

About Tennor Global

Tennor Global is a holding and private equity company focused on energy, energy technology and artificial intelligence. It takes majority and minority stakes in public and private companies and invests in public and private debt, targeting special situations where its entrepreneurial approach and sector expertise can create value quickly. Its diversified portfolio also spans technology, industrials, natural resources, media, entertainment and sports, retail and real estate.

PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Company Limited secured 12 awards across international, industry and consumer sectors in 2026, reflecting broad recognition of its vision to link business growth with opportunity, quality of life and a sustainable future for all stakeholders.

BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 2 October 2026 – PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Company Limited (OR), the retail and lifestyle arm of Thailand’s PTT Group, has received 12 awards in 2026 spanning three sectors of recognition: international capital markets, domestic industry and consumers. These include six awards from the 16th Asian Excellence Awards organised by Hong Kong-based financial magazine Corporate Governance Asia, the Thailand Top CEO of the Year 2026 by BUSINESS+ magazine and the Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Thammasat University, and five brand awards from Marketeer No.1 Brand Thailand 2026, each affirming a different dimension of the company’s vision: “Empowering All Toward Inclusive Growth.”

At the heart of OR’s vision is a commitment to ensure that business growth creates tangible value beyond financial returns, expanding opportunity, raising quality of life and building a sustainable future for investors, communities, partners and consumers alike. This vision is executed through four core missions: Seamless Mobility, All Lifestyles, Global Market and OR Innovation, each underpinned by three sustainability pillars: Economic Prosperity, Living Community and Healthy Environment. Also, OR’s Sustainability concept “OR Term Okad Dee Dee Dee” empowering opportunity for three Good Dimension, Good Community, Good Environment and Good Growth.

Under the leadership of M.L. Peekthong Thongyai, Chief Executive Officer, OR has expanded its operations across 10 countries, delivered 2025 EBITDA of 20,357 million baht (approximately USD 623 million), up 15.2% year-on-year, with net profit rising 47.8% to 11,304 million baht (approximately USD 346 million), and grown blueplus+, its lifestyle and membership application, to 9.3 million registered members. These results underpinned both the Thailand Top CEO of the Year 2026 in the retail and wholesale category and Asia’s Best CEO at the Asian Excellence Awards.

The remaining five Asian Excellence Awards reflect the financial and social dimensions of OR’s vision. Asia’s Best CFO, Best Investor Relations Company and Best Investor Relations Professional recognise OR’s structured stakeholder communication, including quarterly analyst meetings, non-deal roadshows and bilingual disclosure for domestic and international investors. The Sustainable Asia Award and Asia’s Best CSR reflect OR’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by more than one third against a 2022 baseline by 2030, progressing towards Net Zero by 2050, alongside programmes such as Thaidet, which supports over 500 local entrepreneurs through OR’s retail network, and Café Amazon for Chance, which creates employment for people with disabilities, senior workers including underprivileged people. OR is also a constituent of the Dow Jones Sustainability Best in Class Indices in the Emerging Markets category for 2026.

At the consumer level, five brands — PTT Station, EV Station PluZ, Café Amazon, PTT LPG and PTT Lubricants — claimed top positions at the Marketeer No.1 Brand Thailand 2026, affirming the All Lifestyles mission through a network serving 3.9 million users daily, EV charging infrastructure covering all 77 provinces, and a Café Amazon footprint of 4,830 domestic outlets and 256 international locations.

“These awards reflect recognition from the people and institutions that matter most to OR — our investors, our industry peers and our customers,” said M.L. Peekthong Thongyai, Chief Executive Officer of PTT Oil and Retail Business Public Company Limited. “Each one affirms that our vision of building an integrated ecosystem, one that creates opportunity, improves quality of life and drives sustainable growth, is delivering results across every dimension of our business.”

Across all 12 awards, each recognition maps to OR’s four missions in action: Seamless Mobility and Global Market through network expansion and digital platform growth; All Lifestyles through consumer brand leadership across energy, food and beverage, and services; and OR Innovation through the digital infrastructure connecting it all. Together, they confirm that OR’s “Empowering All Toward Inclusive Growth” vision is producing measurable, multi-dimensional results across every stakeholder group the company serves.

Hashtag: #OR

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

Richard Yu, Executive Director of Huawei, Director of the Investment Review Board, and Chairman of the Huawei Consumer BG, stated: “The HUAWEI Mate 90 Series is equipped with the flagship Tau chipset across the entire series. Through vertical integration of hardware, software, chips, and cloud, we have achieved a comprehensive evolution in design, performance, imaging, reliability, and smart user experience. Today, we step into a new era of brilliance.”

Between 2007 and the end of 2025, Huawei invested a total of CNY1.8 trillion into R&D. Today’s product breakthroughs are the direct result of long-term R&D investment and a foundation of core technology. Huawei is turning foundational advancements in Kirin, HarmonyOS, and beyond into tangible product experiences that consumers can truly feel.

Meticulously Crafted, Radiant at First Sight

The HUAWEI Mate 90 Series introduces a refined, seamless design, pairing a glossy mid-frame with a matte metal rear cover.

In terms of durability, the Mate 90 Pro and higher models are built on the full-body Kunlun Xuanwu architecture. The camera cover introduces the industry’s first Optical Kunlun Glass, delivering 20x better drop resistance, while the front display is protected by 3rd-gen Kunlun Glass, offering a 50% improvement in impact resistance. The Pro Max Premium Edition and RS ULTIMATE DESIGN go further with upgraded Xuanwu Kunlun Glass, cutting reflections by 70% and boosting scratch resistance by 16x. The entire lineup supports IP68 dust and water resistance up to 6 meters alongside IP69 resistance against high-temperature, high-pressure water jets.

Powered by LogicFolding Tau Chip: A Massive Leap in Performance

At the heart of the HUAWEI Mate 90 Pro Max is the LogicFolding Tau Chip, built on an innovative architecture that drastically compresses critical path latency to enable 5 million signal transmission bonds and an impressive 125 TB/s inter-die bandwidth. The Pro Max Premium Edition and RS ULTIMATE DESIGN are powered by the Kirin 9050 Pro chip, delivering a 31% increase in overall performance. Meanwhile, the Pro model’s Kirin 9035 chip brings a 20% performance boost, and the standard edition’s Kirin 9030 chip offers a 27% gain in performance.

Vertically integrated with HarmonyOS 7 across hardware, software, chips, and the cloud, the Kirin 9050 Pro CPU supports hyper-threading technology for effortless, ultra-smooth operations. Mobile gaming also reaches new heights with hardware-accelerated ray tracing, capable of rendering up to 55 million rays per second.

Second-Generation Linglong Display: A Screen That Truly Stands Out

The HUAWEI Mate 90 Pro introduces the second-generation Linglong Display, reaching an unprecedented peak brightness of 12,000 nits at 1% APL. Built on an enhanced Tandem OLED Architecture, panel lifespan is extended by 138%. The HUAWEI Mate 90 Pro Max and RS ULTIMATE DESIGN debut the Full-color Linglong Display. Leveraging its 12,000-nit ultra-high brightness and full BT.2020 end-to-end color management, over 60 mainstream apps can now upsample P3 content to vibrant, full-color BT.2020 quality. Eye care technology also receives a major upgrade, featuring industry-first ambient light detection and a 1-nit ultra-low brightness eye-comfort mode for a seamless, strain-free viewing experience.

Breakthrough Connectivity & Reliable Outdoor Utility

Connectivity gets a total overhaul. The industry-first Wi-Fi and cellular converged antenna architecture boosts signal gain by 2 dB. The entire lineup supports eSIM, with the Pro Max pioneering four-SIM, three-standby functionality. With multi-device communication sharing, photo and video upload speeds are boosted by up to 40% in congested environments like crowded concerts or remote outdoor areas.

XMAGE True-to-Color Portrait

The entire series comes equipped with True-to-Color Camera 3.0, featuring full-focal-length infrared optical coating for the first time, which advances overall color accuracy by 37% and skin-tone accuracy by 62%. The updated XMAGE True-to-Color Portrait engine introduces four versatile shooting modes: Portrait original, Soft light portrait, Dazzling fireworks, and Starburst, delivering striking, authentic portraits that speak directly to the heart.

The Pro Max features a powerful 18 EV ultra-HDR main camera, a large-sensor 200 MP RYYB telephoto camera, and CIPA 7.5-rated hardware image stabilization, guaranteeing crisp, steady shots even beyond 20x zoom. The lineup also introduces a dedicated live-streaming optimization mode, making it an ideal companion for content creators.

Additionally, the HUAWEI XMAGE Z10 Modular Camera features a 1-inch large sensor, 24–240 mm continuous optical zoom, and a maximum aperture of f/2.0 to f/4.5, providing pristine, studio-quality imagery across every focal length.

HarmonyOS AI: Smarter, Proactive, and Seamless

Powered by the 30B MoE full-modal on-device foundation model on the Pro Max and higher models, next-generation AI features come to life. Celia Memories seamlessly syncs and organizes content from over 50 mainstream apps, while the Celia navigation bar proactively suggests over 30 context-aware actions based on on-screen content. For everyday tasks, Celia Call 2.0 handles automated call answering, call summaries, and real-time translation, while the Celia Gallery Assistant enables intuitive voice- or text-driven photo editing and instant video generation. Furthermore, HarmonyOS Interconnect brings distance-free remote Huawei Share and allows one-tap sharing to multiple HarmonyOS devices simultaneously.

Committed to taking the harder but right path, Huawei provides users and developers with a powerful alternative in HarmonyOS. Today, HarmonyOS 6 and HarmonyOS 7 power over 90 million devices, including smartphones, PCs, and tablets, and are on track to pass the 100 million mark by the end of this year. At the same time, Huawei’s global registered developer community has grown to over 11 million.

ULTIMATE DESIGN: See the Extraordinary

The HUAWEI Mate 90 RS ULTIMATE DESIGN evolves the iconic Star Diamond camera module aesthetic and debuts Dynamic Lenticular Kunlun Glass, elevating high-durability materials into an expression of premium design. The rear cover showcases an all-new Ascending Texture available in Red, White, and Black. Under the hood, it packs the Kirin 9050 Pro chip, Full-color Linglong Display, Tiantong Satellite Communications, BeiDou Satellite Messaging, four-SIM three-standby, and the advanced True-to-Color Camera 3.0 with an 18 EV ultra-HDR main camera, delivering ultimate design, technology, imaging, and experience.

The series starts at CNY5,999 for the HUAWEI Mate 90, CNY6,999 for the HUAWEI Mate 90 Pro, CNY9,499 for the HUAWEI Mate 90 Pro Max, and CNY12,999 for the HUAWEI Mate 90 RS ULTIMATE DESIGN.

Hashtag: #Huawei

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

By Ashok Nilakantan Ayers NEW YORK: It began as a routine flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv. Within minutes, passengers were screaming, a pilot was bleeding inside the cockpit and the aircraft was plunging thousands of feet toward the darkness below.17,000 feet reportedly. For those aboard Flydubai Flight FZ1073 on Wednesday, the question was brutally […]

The article Drama In The Skies: The Flight That Nearly Became A Catastrophe appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).

The Singapore state-owned investment company said on Wednesday that the two offices, subject to statutory approvals, would operate as strategic hubs for Temasek and its portfolio companies. Some portfolio companies are expected to co-locate at the new sites, giving them a base from which to develop business and partnerships in Gulf markets.

Temasek said it sees broad opportunities in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. It intends to increase engagement with institutions in Qatar and other Middle Eastern markets while using the Riyadh and Abu Dhabi bases to improve access to investment opportunities across Central Asia and Africa.

“The Middle East is an important part of Temasek’s global network,” chief executive Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara said. He cited the pace of economic transformation across the region and said its long-term fundamentals remained attractive, with strong alignment between regional priorities and Temasek’s investment focus.

Pillay said Temasek had built relationships in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar over several years through partnerships, co-investments and the activities of its portfolio companies. The planned offices represent a shift from managing those relationships remotely towards maintaining permanent teams in two of the Gulf’s principal financial and investment centres.

The expansion comes as Gulf governments continue programmes intended to diversify their economies, develop infrastructure and attract international capital. Temasek said its investment experience, global networks and partnership-led approach, together with the sector expertise of companies in its portfolio, could support opportunities created by that transformation.

Temasek said the new hubs would also give portfolio companies closer access to local partners and markets, allowing them to collaborate alongside the investor while pursuing opportunities generated by economic diversification and infrastructure spending.

Chia Song Hwee, chief executive of Temasek Global Investments, was appointed chairman for the Middle East and Africa with effect from September 1. Temasek said he would provide senior leadership and oversight for its engagement and long-term growth in the two regions.

Chia said having teams on the ground would strengthen engagement with partners and improve access to investment opportunities for Temasek and its portfolio companies. He added that the offices would allow the group to bring expertise from across its wider ecosystem into regional markets.

Ankit Khemka will remain managing director for the region and continue to lead Temasek’s strategy and expansion. The leadership arrangements put the Middle East and Africa under dedicated senior oversight as the investor increases its institutional presence beyond its established Asian, European and American locations.

The two offices will increase Temasek’s global network to 15 offices across 11 countries in 2027, from 13 offices in nine countries. Its existing locations include Singapore, Beijing, Hanoi, Mumbai, Shanghai and Shenzhen in Asia, alongside Brussels, London, Mexico City, New York, Paris, San Francisco and Washington.

Temasek’s net portfolio value reached S$518 billion for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, up from S$469 billion a year earlier. Its one-year total shareholder return was 10.5 per cent, while its 10-year and 20-year returns were 7.1 per cent and 6.8 per cent respectively.

The investor’s portfolio remains anchored in Singapore while spanning major global markets. Singapore-based portfolio companies accounted for 43 per cent of the portfolio at the end of the financial year, while direct investments in companies globally represented 38 per cent. The remaining 19 per cent was held through partnerships, funds and asset-management businesses.

Temasek has also been increasing investment activity across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Earlier this week, it acquired a 9 per cent minority stake in the management company of Milan-based private equity group FSI and committed capital to future FSI investment vehicles targeting growing Italian companies.

Century-old Sauce Brand Continues Drive Toward Sustainable Packaging

HONG KONG, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 30 September 2026 – Lee Kum Kee Sauce (“Lee Kum Kee”), the century-old sauce brand, has been honoured with the Gold Award in the inaugural Packaging Reduction Charter by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Recognised for outstanding performance in driving packaging reduction and sustainable development, Lee Kum Kee was among the first signatories to the Charter and is one of the first cohort of food manufacturers to receive the award. The honour reflects its role as a responsible corporate citizen committed to advancing sustainable packaging.

Launched by the EPD on 31 March 2025, the Packaging Reduction Charter encourages businesses to reassess and reduce packaging usage, foster a waste-reduction culture in the commercial sector, and support Hong Kong’s long-term goal of carbon neutrality. To date, over 140 companies across sectors including retail, logistics, electronics, and food & beverage have joined, with Lee Kum Kee being one of the first. Participating companies undergo an annual professional assessment for packaging reduction, recyclability, reuse/recycling, sustainability, and promotion of packaging reduction. Lee Kum Kee demonstrated multiple packaging optimisation achievements during the assessment process, ultimately earning the Gold Award.

Dodie Hung, Executive Vice President – Corporate Affairs at Lee Kum Kee Sauce, said, “This award is a significant recognition of Lee Kum Kee’s long-standing commitment to sustainable packaging transformation. Guided by our value of ‘Si Li Ji Ren’ (Considering Others’ Interests), we are committed to integrating sustainable development into every aspect of our business operations. Through innovative thinking, we continuously optimise packaging design for greater efficiency and recyclability, delivering high quality, delicious and environmentally responsible products to consumers. Moving forward, we remain dedicated to collaborating with the industry to support Hong Kong’s vision of achieving carbon neutrality.”

Lee Kum Kee continuously refines its packaging with reference to the Practical Guides on Packaging Reduction and Management published by EPD and the Golden Design Rules developed by the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), driving packaging weight reduction while enhancing recyclability and circular value. Since 2002, Lee Kum Kee has consistently reduced the weight of its glass bottles; for example, in 2025, it cut the weight of its 32-ounce oyster sauce bottles from 410 to 390 grams, saving 10 tonnes of glass throughout the year. Additionally, the company has saved more than 200 tonnes of carton material annually through improved carton designs. Over 95% of packaging materials, by weight, are recyclable.

Lee Kum Kee’s sustainable packaging was featured in the 2026 Golden Design Rules Case Study Booklet during the CGF China Day in early September, confirming that its initiatives align with both local policy directions and international best practices.

For details on Lee Kum Kee and sustainability, please refer to the Lee Kum Kee Global Sustainability Highlights 2025: https://corporate.lkk.com/en/csr
Hashtag: #LeeKumKee #LKK

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Lee Kum Kee Sauce

Lee Kum Kee Sauce is the global gateway to Asian culinary culture, dedicated to promoting Chinese culinary culture worldwide. Since 1888, it has brought people together over joyful reunions, shared traditions and memorable meals. Beloved by consumers and chefs alike, Lee Kum Kee Sauce’s range of more than 300 sauces and condiments sparks creativity in kitchens everywhere, inspiring professional and home chefs to experiment, create, and delight. Headquartered in Hong Kong, China and serving over 100 countries and regions, Lee Kum Kee Sauce’s rich heritage, unwavering commitment to quality, sustainable practices and “Constant Entrepreneurship” combine to enable superior experiences through Asian cuisine for people worldwide. For more information, please visit www.LKK.com.

The Packaging Reduction Charter was launched by the Environmental Protection Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in 2025. The Charter aims to bring together enterprises and organisations to advance sustainable packaging solutions through collaborations, reduce packaging waste, and contribute to Hong Kong’s long-term goal of carbon neutrality. The Charter assesses signatories against five key areas, packaging reduction, packaging recyclability, packaging reuse, sustainable packaging, and promotion of packaging reduction, to recognise companies with outstanding performance. For more information, please visit: www.lesspackaging.hk

By Ashis Biswas Nearly a month after the shocking glacial slide in the Himalayas close to the China/Nepal border that killed hundreds of people, angry Nepalis are pressing for immediate ‘climate justice’ in well attended rallies at home and abroad. Sadly international response to one of the worst natural disasters the world has seen has […]

The article Nepal Struggles After Tragedy That Killed Over A Thousand appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).

The regulated household tariff will fall to 28.59 Singapore cents per kilowatt-hour before goods and services tax for October to December, from 31.91 cents in the July-September quarter, grid operator SP Group said on Wednesday. The reduction amounts to 3.32 cents per kWh.

Families living in four-room Housing Board flats are expected to see their average monthly electricity bill decline by S$12.99 before GST. The overall electricity tariff, covering households and non-household users, will decrease by an average 10.6 per cent, also equivalent to 3.32 cents per kWh.

The cut follows a 17 per cent jump in the household tariff for July to September, when the rate climbed by 4.64 cents per kWh as high natural gas prices fed through to power-generation costs. That increase lifted average monthly bills for four-room Housing Board households by S$17.14 before GST.

SP Group said the fourth-quarter reduction reflects lower natural gas prices between July 1 and September 15, which moved down alongside global fuel prices. Singapore’s regulated tariffs incorporate fuel costs with a lag, meaning the impact of movements in international energy markets is not immediately reflected in household bills.

The Energy Market Authority sets the regulatory framework under which SP Group reviews tariffs every quarter. The energy-cost component is calculated using average daily natural gas prices during the first two-and-a-half months of the preceding quarter.

Imported natural gas accounts for about 95 per cent of Singapore’s electricity generation, leaving domestic power costs sensitive to movements in global fuel markets. Fuel costs are tied to oil prices through commercial gas contracts, while other parts of the tariff cover generation, grid, billing, market administration and power-system operating expenses.

The tariff decline offers some relief after energy costs contributed to stronger consumer-price pressures during the third quarter. Singapore’s overall consumer price inflation rose to 2.3 per cent year on year in August from 2.2 per cent in July, while the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s core inflation measure increased to 2.2 per cent from 2 per cent.

Electricity and gas prices were 8.7 per cent higher in August than a year earlier, according to official inflation data. Authorities said the increase reflected the earlier surge in global energy prices, whose effect was transmitted into the regulated tariff with the usual delay.

The Monetary Authority and Ministry of Trade and Industry expect both core and headline inflation to average between 1.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent in 2026. They have cautioned that the inflation outlook remains exposed to renewed disruptions in global energy supplies, alongside other imported cost pressures.

The latest tariff reduction may therefore temper household utility costs during the final three months of the year, although it does not fully reverse the preceding quarter’s increase. The fourth-quarter rate remains 1.32 cents per kWh above the 27.27-cent tariff charged from April to June.

Piped town gas prices will also decline. City Energy said the household gas tariff will fall 8.6 per cent to 21.45 cents per kWh from October 1 to December 31, compared with 23.48 cents in the third quarter, reflecting lower fuel costs.

Households have several electricity purchasing options. Consumers may remain on SP Group’s regulated tariff or buy from retailers under fixed-price, discount-off-regulated-tariff and time-of-use plans. The regulated rate remains the default option for most households.

The share of households on fixed-price plans rose from 36.6 per cent on February 1 to 38.4 per cent on September 1, while proportion buying from SP Group under the regulated tariff declined from 63.4 per cent to 61.6 per cent.

Initiatives aim to support high-quality development of the GBA, align rules and mechanisms within the region, and promote cross-boundary collaboration.

“The HKSAR Government will continue its efforts in fostering synergistic development of the GBA,” said Mr Lee. “We will strengthen co‑operation in technological innovation, promote ‘hard connectivity’ in infrastructure, foster ‘soft connectivity’ by deepening the alignment of rules and mechanisms, and achieve ‘connectivity of hearts’ among residents of the three places.”

The HKSAR Government will continue to actively participate in the development of the various major co-operation platforms, including Qianhai of Shenzhen, Nansha of Guangzhou, Hengqin of Zhuhai and the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Co-operation Zone, to promote mutual benefits.

In terms of “hard connectivity” the HKSAR Government will support Nansha in its role as a high‑standard gateway for opening up, including encouraging the trade to participate in Nansha’s infrastructure development.

“To promote the co‑ordinated development of rail transit in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, we are pressing ahead with the Northern Link Project and the Hong Kong‑Shenzhen Western Rail Link (Hung Shui Kiu‑Qianhai), with target commissioning in 2034 and 2035 respectively, to fully connect the rail transit networks of Hong Kong and Shenzhen,” Mr Lee said.

Regarding “soft connectivity”, Mr Lee said the HKSAR Government will set up a Task Force to explore ways to advance the alignment of rules and mechanisms within the GBA.

To achieve “Connectivity of Hearts” among residents across the GBA, Hong Kong will strengthen co-operation between its higher education institutions and those in other GBA cities by establishing cross‑disciplinary partnerships, facilitating scientific research, knowledge transfer, and commercialisation, with a view to promoting high‑level research.

Hong Kong’s Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Janice Tse, noted that the First Five-Year Plan clearly states that Hong Kong will participate in the development of the GBA into an international first‑class bay area and a world‑class city cluster with global influence.

“Hong Kong will forge closer alignment and synergy with the nine GBA cities in Guangdong Province and Macao, making full use of our respective advantages to jointly promote the high-quality development of the GBA,” Miss Tse said.

To foster financial development in the GBA, Hong Kong will continue to capitalise on institutional innovation, financial infrastructure upgrading and enhanced regulatory alignment to encourage the orderly flow of financial elements among GBA cities.

The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited’s Core Climate, in collaboration with the Guangzhou Power Exchange Centre, is working towards the pilot trading of national renewable‑energy, green electricity certificates in Hong Kong in 2026.

“On connecting the Chinese Mainland and the world, the HKSAR Government will continue to support green technology development through the HK$400 million (aboutUS$51 million) Green Tech Fund, leveraging Hong Kong’s function as a springboard for green technology and assisting national green technologies and products in going global,” said Hong Kong’sSecretary for Environment and Ecology, Tse Chin-wan. “On the development of hydrogen energy, we have participated in drafting national hydrogen energy standards with a view to helping these standards align with international practice.”

To meet the country’s “dual carbon” targets and fulfil Hong Kong’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality before 2050, the HKSAR Government steered the establishment of a production base for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in Dongguan, leveraging the leading position of Hong Kong enterprises in the international SAF industry.

“By combining technology strengths with industrial foundation, Hong Kong and Guangdong will jointly develop a globally influential green industry,” Mr Lee said.

The HKSAR Government will take forward the construction of an SAF blending facility in Hong Kong to build an end‑to‑end SAF value chain and reduce logistics costs to make SAF prices more competitive. The target is to achieve an SAF consumption ratio of 1% to 3% for flights departing from Hong Kong International Airport in 2030.

Hong Kong’s Five-Year Plan promotes the integrated development of culture, sports, and tourism, to develop the GBA into a cultured bay area.

Under the strategic framework of the Agreement on Strengthening of Sports Cooperation and Promotion of Integrated Development, Hong Kong will deepen co-operation, and strive to co‑organise important regional and international single‑sport events. It will also strengthen cultural exchanges, pass on Cantonese opera and the characteristics of Lingnan culture, and promote the sales and cross‑boundary exhibition of Hong Kong publications.

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The sale of about ¥2.8 trillion of two-year Japanese government bonds attracted demand above its 12-month average, improving markedly from the weak August auction. The result suggested that higher yields are beginning to compensate investors for the risk of additional increases in official interest rates.

The two-year JGB yield was around 1.95% before the auction, close to 2% and its highest region since 1995. Short-dated bonds had gained earlier in the session, tracking an overnight advance in comparable US Treasuries, with the two-year yield edging lower as prices rose.

Demand at the auction was closely watched because two-year debt is particularly sensitive to expectations for Bank of Japan policy. The central bank raised its policy rate to 1.25% in September, the highest level in 31 years, as policymakers confronted persistent inflation pressures, elevated energy costs and the effects of a weaker yen on import prices.

Minutes of the Bank of Japan’s July meeting, released this week, showed policymakers had discussed whether interest rates might need to rise faster if inflation risks intensified. Several board members stressed the importance of anchoring inflation around the central bank’s 2% target, reinforcing market expectations that policy normalisation has further to run.

Those expectations have driven yields sharply higher across Japan’s government bond curve. The benchmark 10-year yield was around 3.09% on Tuesday, near the 30-year high of 3.115% touched last week. Five-year yields have also reached record levels, while yields on super-long bonds remain elevated as investors weigh inflation, fiscal spending and the outlook for government issuance.

Wednesday’s auction nevertheless indicated that the repricing is creating buying opportunities at the shorter end of the curve. Investors receive greater income from newly issued bonds than they did earlier in the year, providing a cushion against the possibility of further price declines if the central bank raises rates again.

The result followed a strong sale of 40-year government bonds on Tuesday. The Ministry of Finance received ¥928 billion of competitive bids for ¥299.7 billion accepted at that auction, producing a bid-to-cover ratio of about 3.1. The highest accepted yield was 4.125%, according to ministry data. Demand for the longest maturity was the strongest in several years.

The two auctions offered evidence that elevated yields can draw buyers back even as Japan’s bond market adjusts to a markedly different interest-rate environment. The Bank of Japan has been reducing the scale of its government bond purchases, leaving private investors to play a larger role in determining prices after years of exceptionally heavy central-bank intervention in the market.

The adjustment has been accompanied by unusually large moves in yields. Japan’s 10-year yield crossed 3% this month for the first time since 1996, while the two-year yield has climbed substantially during 2026 as traders repeatedly brought forward expectations for monetary tightening.

Inflation remains central to those calculations. Higher oil and other commodity costs linked to the Middle East conflict have added pressure to import prices, while the yen’s weakness has increased the local-currency cost of goods purchased overseas. Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda has said currency movements can have a significant impact on the economy and prices.

Global bond markets have also been under pressure from persistent inflation concerns, heavy government borrowing and expectations that major central banks may keep interest rates higher for longer. Rising US Treasury yields have at times amplified moves in JGBs, particularly as investors reassess relative returns between Japanese and overseas debt.

Japan’s Finance Ministry had announced the two-year auction for Wednesday as part of its regular issuance programme. The previous two-year sale in August produced substantially weaker demand, with its bid-to-cover ratio falling below the preceding 12-month average as investors positioned for a September Bank of Japan rate increase.

Under the partnership, a selected range of funds offered by Kenanga Investors and its Institutional Unit Trust Adviser partners will be available to Cashku users with no sales charge and from a minimum investment starting from RM10.

For investors, the effect is practical: investors can review fund information, open an account, set their investing goals, invest and make additional investments within a single application, with suitability assessed at the point of investment and monitored continuously thereafter.

Cashku has rebuilt the advice layer of wealth management around agentic AI; software that does not simply answer questions, but carries out risk profiling, goal-based portfolio construction, suitability assessment and ongoing portfolio monitoring, under the oversight of licensed human advisers and within the SC’s regulatory framework. That architecture, for which Cashku received a DIGID award for data-driven advisory under the SC’s Digital Innovation Fund in 2024, is what allows the platform to reach investors at a materially lower cost to serve.

The partnership arrives as Malaysia’s fund management industry reaches record scale. Assets under management rose 6.9% to a record RM1.14 trillion in 2025, with unit trust funds forming the largest single category at roughly half of that total. The SC’s Capital Market Masterplan 2026–2030 targets a capital market of over RM6 trillion by 2030 and names an inclusive capital market for all Malaysians as one of its four strategic themes — an agenda that depends on reaching the Malaysians who are not investing today. Individual participation in the capital market currently stands at 25%, and the Masterplan finds that around 60% of non-investors are under the age of 40.

“Malaysia’s problem has never been the quality of its funds — it has been access to the advice that helps people use them well. Financial planning has traditionally been reserved for those wealthy enough to pay for it, which is why most households have never had a plan at all. Cashku exists to change that: to give every Malaysian a plan built around their own goals. Partnering with managers like Kenanga Investors is how that gap closes.”

— Raevendren Ramachandran, Chief Executive Officer, Cashku

“Digital distribution is a natural extension of the Group’s own digitalisation agenda. Working with a licensed platform such as Cashku allows us to reach investors who are starting earlier and investing in smaller amounts than traditional channels are built to serve, without compromising the standards of suitability, transparency and governance our clients expect.”

— Datuk Wira Ismitz Matthew De Alwis, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, Kenanga Investors.

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About Kenanga Investors Berhad 199501024358 (353563-P)

Kenanga Investors Berhad is a licensed fund management company regulated by the Securities Commission Malaysia and a wholly owned subsidiary of Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad. It provides investment solutions spanning collective investment schemes, portfolio management services, alternative investments, and wills and trusts for retail, corporate, institutional and high net worth clients through a multi-distribution network.

The LSEG Lipper Fund Awards 2026 recognised four funds under the Malaysia Provident Funds category; Kenanga Growth Fund was named Equity Malaysia (5 Years), Kenanga Growth Fund Series 2 was awarded Equity Malaysia Diversified (3 Years), Kenanga Malaysian Inc Fund was awarded Equity Malaysia Diversified (10 Years) while Kenanga Managed Growth Fund was recognised with the title Mixed Asset MYR Balanced – Malaysia (10 Years).

The Hong Kong-based Asia Asset Management’s (“AAM”) 2026 Best of the Best Awards awarded Kenanga Investors under the following categories, Malaysia Best Impact Investing Manager, Best Impact Investing Manager in ASEAN, Malaysia Best Equity Manager, Malaysia CEO of the Year (Co-Winner), Malaysia CIO of the Year, Malaysia Best House for Alternatives and Malaysia Best ESG Engagement Initiative.

At the AAM ETF Awards 2026, Kenanga Investors received an accolade under the category Malaysia Leverage and Inverse ETF of the Year for the Kenanga KLCI Daily (-1x) Inverse ETF. The IFN Investor Awards 2025 awarded the Kenanga Islamic Balanced Fund under the categories of “IFN Investor Best Balanced Mixed Assets Fund in Malaysia — MYR 2025”, “IFN Investor Best Balanced Mixed Assets Fund in Asia Pacific 2025”, and “IFN Investor Best Global Balanced Mixed Assets Fund 2025”.

For the ninth consecutive year, we were affirmed an investment manager rating of IMR-2 by Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad, since first rated in 2017. The IMR rating on reflects the fund management company’s well-established investment processes and sound risk management practices.

INNSBRUCK, AUSTRIA – Newsaktuell – 29 September 2026 – MED-EL, a global leader in hearing implant technology, today announced the launch of TICI UNICO, the world’s first and only commercially available totally invisible cochlear implant. Designed for people with severe-to-profound hearing loss, TICI UNICO enables continuous hearing 24 hours a day while remaining completely beneath the skin. It has received CE Mark approval and is being introduced in European markets.

Cochlear implants have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide to hear. TICI UNICO expands hearing implant options by combining continuous hearing with complete invisibility and freedom from external audio processors. Users can hear while sleeping, exercising, showering, swimming and charging the device.

“TICI UNICO is a new chapter in the history of hearing,” says Dr. Ingeborg Hochmair, co-founder and CEO of MED-EL. “For the first time, invisible hearing with a cochlear implant is possible. This is a milestone for people with hearing loss and the result of decades of research and innovation at MED-EL.”

Key benefits of TICI UNICO:
· Completely invisible
· 24/7 access to sound
· No external equipment to wear, remove, or maintain
· No concerns about losing or damaging external devices
· Hearing performance comparable to established cochlear implant solutions

Long-Held Vision becomes Reality

Capturing sound through the skin has long been one of the greatest challenges in developing a totally invisible cochlear implant. MED-EL successfully developed an innovative microphone technology designed to deliver high-quality sound while remaining completely beneath the skin.

Prof. Philippe Lefèbvre, Head of the ENT Department at CHU Liège, and Prof. Joachim Müller, Associate Professor for Otology and Cochlear Implants at LMU University Hospital Munich, highlight the significance of TICI UNICO: “Twenty-four-hour, invisible hearing opens the door to a completely new generation of hearing implants.”

For recipients, the impact extends to the freedom of hearing. Thomas, one of the first TICI UNICO recipients, says: “I wake up hearing, fall asleep hearing, and can enjoy everyday moments without having to think about my hearing device.”

TICI UNICO is intended for people with severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss who may benefit from a cochlear implant. More information: http://go.medel.com/tici.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About MED-EL

Users in 142 countries hear with a MED-EL device. www.medel.com