ACN Newswire

Los Angeles, CA, August 30, 2022 – (SEAPRWire) – Futura Token ($FUTURA), a new form of decentralized finance (DeFi) token utilizing a “smart liquidity pool,” successfully launched and began trading on Uniswap on the 8th of August 2022. Assessing current market sentiment, the company believed this an ideal climate to launch a new form of DeFi token, which adjusts the usage of the transaction fees intelligently, based on live market data. The company believes this “smart liquidity pool” can deliver optimum price performance to investors, even in market volatility. The team has provided numerous updates and revelations in the first week since launch, establishing FUTURA as an investor-focused DeFi project. First-week Chainlink Integration To ensure accurate market information is continuously being assessed, the $FUTURA contract is directly reading Chainlink Price Feed data. This innovative approach to liquidity pool management was developed in partnership with well-r...

HONG KONG, Aug 30, 2022 – (亞太商訊 via SEAPRWire.com) – 中國領先的劇集製作公司 – 檸萌影視傳媒有限公司（「檸萌影視」或「公司」，連同其附屬公司，統稱「集團」，股份代號：9857.HK），公佈截至2022年6月30日止六個月（「報告期內」）的中期業績。 財務摘要︰ — 受項目製作及排播檔期的影響，2022年上半年集团業績同比有一定波動。2022年上半年，集團收入人民幣480.2百萬元，同比下降15.1%；其中版權劇收入同比上升7.1%至人民幣463.3百萬元；2022年上半年海外業務收入超過去年全年水準。 — 2022年上半年，集團版權劇播映權毛利率39.1%，同比下降5.2%，環比上升2.3%。 — 2022年上半年，集團經調整淨利潤為人民幣105.2百萬元，較截至2021年同期減少44.2%。 營運摘要︰ — 2022年上半年，集團製作發行了優質精品版權劇《超越》和《獵罪圖鑑》，其中《獵罪圖鑒》每集平均30天累計有效播放量排名第一。 — 2022年8月，公司新上線了版權劇《膽小鬼》和女性成長系列化劇集《二十不惑 2》，其中《二十不惑2》開播首日獲省級衛視同時段收視率六網第一。目前已開機拍攝中的項目包括《愛情而已》、《赤子之心》和《一念關山 》。 — 集團擴大內容營銷的植入業務範圍，將營銷方案升級為覆蓋全鏈路的營銷體系，主要涵蓋IP植入、IP長尾營銷和IP興趣電商三大業務板塊。 — 集團大力拓展海外業務，堅持IP化和系列化運作，與國際主流媒體平台建立緊密合作關係，截至目前《二十不惑》系列成功在 Netflix和Viu雙平台上線，《膽小鬼》已在一線付費頻道Now TV上線，《超越》、 《獵罪圖鑑》等劇也在韓國、越南、新加坡等地熱映。 — 集團開展與檸萌IP的有效融合，短視頻內容業務實現從0到 1到單集爆款的突破，截至目前已完成拍攝短劇3部，上線1部。其中已在抖音平台上線的短劇《從離婚開始》，單集爆款播放超1.5億。 — 集團擁有多元豐富的IP內容儲備，橫跨當代話題、都市情感、古裝、現實懸疑等一系列題材類別，預期可為公司後續優質劇集的生產提供充足的內容支援；憑藉擁有優質劇集的IP版權，可通過系列化開發、改編翻拍、衍生品授權等方式實現多元變現。 報告期內，集團夯實大眾頭部長劇集及圈層頭部短劇集業務，...

HONG KONG, Aug 30, 2022 – (亞太商訊 via SEAPRWire.com) – 宏光半導體有限公司（「宏光半導體」，連同其附屬公司統稱「集團」；股份代號：6908.HK）欣然宣佈其截至2022年6月30日止六個月（「2022年上半年」 或 「期內」）的未經審核之中期業績。 業務回顧 集團於期內繼續致力佈局第三代半導體產業鏈，同時穩健發展原有LED燈珠業務。於2022年上半年，疫情對中國經濟的影響持續加大，封城等各項防控措施令供應鏈及製造業構成重大打擊，集團的營運未免受到波及。期內收益減少約42.4%至約人民幣43.4百萬元（2021年上半年：約人民幣75.3百萬元）。由於市場環境欠佳，需求受到抑制，致集團之中國客戶的採購計劃被推遲，繼而令收益減少，故集團期內錄得虧損約人民幣51.5百萬元（2021年上半年：虧損約人民幣41.2百萬元）。每股虧損約為人民幣9.14分（2021年上半年：每股虧損約為人民幣9.70分）。 集團管理層表示，自集團逐步實現戰略性轉型以來，一直致力加快步伐研發及拓展第三代半導體及系統應用的設計製造業務，並提供於系統成本方面具有更高效率及更具競爭力的整體解決方案，銳意成為以半導體設計與製造為核心，集研發、製造、封測及銷售為一體的全產業鏈半導體整合設備生產模式（「IDM」）企業。第三代半導體氮化鎵（「GaN」）在快充領域的大量應用，使其開始滲透進電動車、無線充電、5G基礎設施等領域，未來市場發展潛力巨大。集團將繼續加碼佈局GaN產業鏈，加快實現GaN業務產能落地並邁向投資收成期。   積極佈局新能源汽車及快速充電樁板塊 全速推進GaN業務發展 期內，集團策略性投資境內外多家第三代半導體企業龍頭企業，並積極與多間訂立戰略及框架合作協議，發揮現有平台和資源優勢，加快GaN的密集研發與技術應用。繼去年集團先收購主要從事快速電池充電系統解決方案研發的GSR GO Holding Corporation連同其附屬公司（「GSR GO集團」），後投資專注高電壓新能源汽車領域的以色列GaN 相關產品開發商VisIC Technologies Ltd（「VisIC」），以及專注民用產品領域的加拿大GaN技術領導者GaN Systems Inc.（「GaN Systems」）外，集團於2022年上半年繼續與海內外企業商討Ga...

HONG KONG, Aug 30, 2022 – (ACN Newswire via SEAPRWire.com) – Yeahka Limited (“Yeahka” or the “Company”, Stock Code: 9923), a leading payment-based technology platform in China, is pleased to announce the interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2022 (the “period” or “1H 2022”). Financial Highlights — During the period, the Company’s total revenue reached RMB1,641.8 million, representing a year-over-year (YoY) increase of 17.1%. — Gross profit during the period rose 52.1% YoY to RMB529.3 million, gross margin increased from 24.8% to 32.2%, gross profit contribution from non-payment business was 50%. — Adjusted EBITDA amounted to RMB69.7million, increased by 39.7% compared with the second half of 2021. — Gross profit of in-store e-commerce services reached RMB92.3million, gross margin reached 57.1%, increased by 76.9% and 6.6 percentage points respectively, compared with the second half of 2021. Operational Highlights Number of users and scale of one-stop payment service...

London, UK, Aug 30, 2022 – (ACN Newswire via SEAPRWire.com) – Think RevOps is pleased to announce that its cutting-edge operating model is now helping businesses align and optimize their revenue engines in order to boost potential growth as much as possible. Revenue Operations, or RevOps, is a relatively new term that designates a “system for growing and scaling” a business, according to a company spokesperson. C-Suite leaders and decision-makers are all searching for a savvier way to deliver results and pivot into new opportunities in light of the constantly evolving online customer journey landscape. Their top priority should be implementing RevOps. Businesses can use RevOps as a framework to develop an integrated go-to-market strategy that connects customer success, sales, and marketing from a process and data perspective. Creating a more comprehensive customer experience will be made possible by this, the spokesperson said, adding that it also has a number of cutting-edge featu...

SINGAPORE – The recent crypto market turmoil which claimed US$2 trillion (S$2.8 trillion) in market value and drove investors into panic-selling mode has since forced some crypto firms to halt withdrawals and seek protection from the Singapore courts. Retail investors are now crying foul against these firms for suspending their crypto assets, with some calling on regulators to help them recoup their losses. source https://eastmud.com/latest-news/mas-regulation-should-not-be-seen-as-safety-net-for-retail-crypto-investors/

NEW YORK (REUTERS) – US stocks closed lower on Monday (Aug 29), adding to last week’s sharp losses on nagging concerns about the Federal Reserve’s determination to aggressively hike interest rates to fight inflation even as the economy slows. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said on Friday the US economy would need tight monetary policy “for some time” before inflation is under control, dashing hopes the Fed might pivot to more subdued rate hikes after recent data suggested price pressures were peaking. The S&P 500 recovered from session lows that put it down 1% at the lowest in a month, but the benchmark index still notched its biggest two-day percentage decline in 2-1/2 months. “Friday’s selloff was frankly overdone, I know (Powell) said he was going to play tough with inflation but it is honestly not that much different than what he has been saying for the last several weeks, he was a little more hawkish but I mean, geez, who is surprised by that, really?” said Randy Frederick,...

The NASA moon rocket stands ready at sunrise on Pad 39B before the Artemis 1 mission to orbit the moon at the Kennedy Space Center, Aug 29, 2022, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (JOEL KOWSKY/NASA VIA AP) CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida – An engine problem forced NASA on Monday to postpone for at least four days the launch of its colossal next-generation rocketship on a long-awaited debut test flight around the moon and back 50 years after Apollo's last lunar mission. The countdown was halted about 40 minutes before launch time as the 32-story-tall, two-stage Space Launch System rocket and its Orion crew capsule awaited liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The US space agency cited a problem on one of the rocket's main engines, after launch teams had begun filling its core fuel tanks with super-cooled liquid oxygen and hydrogen propellants. Mission engineers struggled to properly condition that engine to the right temperature for launch, the agency said. ...

Right-wing party Brothers of Italy's leader Giorgia Meloni addresses a rally as she starts her political campaign ahead of Sept 25 general elections, in Ancona, Italy, on Aug 23, 2022. (DOMENICO STINELLIS / AP) ROME – In her teens, Giorgia Meloni used to sneak out at the dead of night and help plaster her Rome neighborhood with far-right posters, playing a game of cat and mouse with leftist foes that could easily turn violent. Fast forward 30 years and Meloni no longer needs clandestine sorties to get her message out. Instead, her image adorns billboards across the country ahead of elections on Sept 25 that could crown her as Italy 's first female prime minister. "It has been an incredible journey, but if I win the election, then that is not the end, it is really only the beginning," Meloni told Reuters last week from her parliamentary office that overlooks Rome's historic city center. READ MORE: Italy's conservatives strike deal over candidate for PM T...

This file photo taken on April 20, 2021 shows Moderna vials on a table at a mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Bridgeport, Connecticut. MOGADISHU / BERLIN – Swiss drugs regulator Swissmedic said on Monday that it has approved the first bivalent COVID-19 booster vaccine in the country. Moderna's Spikevax vaccine, which contains mRNA against two coronavirus variants, is authorized for anyone 18 years or older, said Swissmedic.  In this file photo dated March 15, 2021, boxes of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India and provided through the global COVAX initiative arrive at the airport in Mogadishu, Somalia. (FARAH ABDI WARSAMEH / FILE / AP) Somalia Somalia and two agencies of the United Nations on Sunday vowed to intensify efforts to scale up COVID-19 vaccination across the country amid a severe drought that is ravaging several parts of the country. The Somali ministry of health, the World Health Organization, and UNICEF said som...

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (center) delivers a speech at the Charles University on Aug 29, 2022 in Prague, Czech Republic. (MICHAL CIZEK / AFP) PRAGUE – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Monday for an enlargement of the European Union to eventually include Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, and said a gradual transition to majority voting was a stepping stone to growing the bloc. Faced with the Ukraine crisis, Scholz urged the EU's 27 members to "close ranks, resolve old conflicts and find new solutions" and said Germany would keep up its support for Kiev "for as long as it takes". Faced with the Ukraine crisis, Scholz urged the EU's 27 members to "close ranks, resolve old conflicts and find new solutions" and said Germany would keep up its support for Kiev "for as long as it takes" In a speech entitled "Europe is our future", he said "we must bring the clout of our united Europe much more strongly to bear … Eur...

The Artemis I unmanned lunar rocket sits on the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Aug 28, 2022, ahead of its expected launch on Aug 29. (CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP) CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida – NASA 's colossal next-generation rocketship was set for its long-awaited debut launch on Monday on an uncrewed, six-week test flight around the moon and back, marking the first mission of the space agency's Artemis program, successor to Apollo. Although no humans will be aboard, Orion will be carrying a simulated crew of three – one male and two female mannequins – fitted with sensors to measure radiation levels and other stresses that real-life astronauts would experience The 32-story-tall, two-stage Space Launch System rocket and its Orion crew capsule were due for blast-off from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, during a two-hour launch window opening at 8:33 am EDT (12:33 pm GMT). The maiden voyage of the SLS-Orion, a mission dubbe...

SINGAPORE – Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s tough talk of inflicting “some pain” on households and businesses in order to bring down stubbornly high inflation had its intended impact on the markets last Friday (Aug 26). The huge thud heard from Wall Street is likely to reverberate through global markets this week as stock investors flee to the sidelines amid the prospect of a 75 basis point hike in the key Fed funds rate next month. source https://eastmud.com/latest-news/more-pain-ahead-for-markets-after-fed-chairman-powells-stark-warning/

Interest rate hikes and geopolitical tensions have caused great market volatility. However, thanks to high credit ratings and low correlation with other asset classes, US municipal bonds could potentially offer investors a way to mitigate risk and sail through the current turbulent times. US municipal infrastructure bonds are issued by US states, cities or local government bodies. Their history can be traced back more than a century when the first recorded US municipal bond was issued by the New York City government in 1812 1  for the construction of a canal. Today, the US municipal bond market has become a large and mature market that serves as a major source of funding to back public projects. There are currently 56,248 issuers on the market, representing almost US$4 trillion 2  in lending, and supplying around 80% of the capital needed for US infrastructure maintenance and development. Some of the projects backed by such bonds concern airports, mass transit, water suppl...

Sustainable investing has faced some roadblocks over the past year. Part of this has to do with rising concerns about greenwashing, or the act of leading consumers and stakeholders into believing that a company’s practices, products or services are more environmentally friendly than they really are.  For investors looking to do good with their money while still reaping financial returns over the long term, it has become increasingly important to engage a credible asset manager with a good track record in sustainable investing. Sustainable or responsible investing is an approach that incorporates non-financial considerations, such as a company’s carbon footprint and environmental practices, into financial analyses and investment decisions. This is used alongside conventional financial analyses to assess investment opportunities and risks.  The approach can be carried out in various forms: ·   Eliminating companies and sovereigns with the worst ESG (environment...

Heat waves in cities across North America and Europe; raging wildfires in California and the Mediterranean; deadly floods in parts of Australia, China and India. Such extreme climate events have become more common in recent years, yet the road to net-zero carbon emission is now more challenging than ever.  The World Meteorological Organization said in a report published in May that there is a 50-per-cent chance that the increase in average global temperature would temporarily cross 1.5 deg C above pre-industrial level in the next five years. This is a critical threshold beyond which the effects of global warming will become increasingly harmful for the planet.   But mitigating the effects of climate change is a challenge that will take decades, not years. It will require massive investments to transform economies, including switching to renewable energy sources, increasing recycling capacity, as well as funding smart energy infrastructure and new technology.  In...

BALI, INDONESIA, Aug 28, 2022 – (ACN Newswire via SEAPRWire.com) – PT Bank Maybank Indonesia, Tbk (Maybank Indonesia) announced the winners of the World Athletics’ ‘Elite’ road race, the Maybank Marathon 2022, as the contest concluded its 10th anniversary run in Bali today (8/28). With close to 10,000 runners from 50 countries, Maybank Marathon 2022 crowned Hassan Toriss, BIB 004 from Morocco, as champion of the Marathon Open Male category, with a recorded finish time of 2:15:38, and Immaculate Chemutai with BIB 025 from Uganda as champion of the Marathon Open Female category, with a recorded finish time 2:42:32. Each received a cash prize of Rp200,000,000, symbolically handed over by Maybank Marathon Project Director Widya Permana. In the Marathon National category, Rikki Marthin Luther Simbolon was named champion for the Marathon National Male category with a recorded finish time of 2:34:49, while Odekta Elvina Naibaho came as the champion for th...

Kenya's defeated presidential candidate Raila Odinga reacts to supporters as he arrives to hold a press conference at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi on Aug 22, 2022, after filing a petition to the country's top court challenging the result of the Aug 9, 2022 election that handed victory to his rival William Ruto.  (YASUYOSHI CHIBA / AFP) NAIROBI – Kenyan veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga has assured the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of a peaceful settlement of electoral disputes in the country. The 77-year-old Odinga who has challenged in court the presidential election results announced by the electoral body on Aug 15 where his main competitor in the race, the sitting Deputy President, William Ruto was declared the winner, told Guterres in a telephone conversation on Friday night that he will respect the ruling of the Supreme Court. Odinga appreciated UN chief Antonio Guterres's call, saying it reflected the hi...

Former US president Donald Trump speaks at a rally on Aug 5, 2022, in Waukesha, Wisconsin. (MORRY GASH / AP) WASHINGTON – The US intelligence community will assess the potential risk to national security of disclosure of materials recovered during the Aug 8 search of former president Donald Trump's Florida residence, according to a letter seen by Reuters. The letter dated Friday from National Intelligence Director (DNI) Avril Haines to House Intelligence Committee chair Adam Schiff and Oversight Committee chair Carolyn Maloney also said the Justice Department and DNI "are working together to facilitate a classification review" of materials including those recovered during the search. The Justice Department on Friday disclosed that it was investigating Trump for removing White House records because it believed he illegally held documents including some involving intelligence-gathering and clandestine human sources – among America's most closely held secrets Schi...