Raphael Stevens

For shoppers of a certain age, Fossil Group was a shopping mall fixture – with its leather belts, handbags, and of course, quartz watches sold in collectible tins. The fashion watch and accessories company was remarkably successful for decades, from its founding in 1984 until, well, just few years after Apple introduced the Apple Watch. And now it is struggling, as the watch market splits into sales of high-end mechanical timepieces from most Swiss makers on the one hand, and smartwatches on the other. Fossil is trying to trim its operations, develop new products, and expand into new markets, especially China and India. It clearly has plans to survive, and thinks its total addressable market will grow. But it could be a pretty tough battle. More

A doctor walks past the banner announcing a Covid-19 vaccination drive in Hyderabad, India on May 28, 2021.Noah Seelam | AFP | Getty ImagesSINGAPORE — Asia-Pacific is struggling to vaccinate its population as Covid-19 infections rise rapidly in many places around the region, some at record-breaking levels.Many Asian governments had problems securing vaccines, said Benjamin Cowling, a professor at The University of Hong Kong’s School of Public Health. Besides, initial success at containing the coronavirus in Asia may have caused people to view vaccination with less urgency, he added.”When we’ve had very few infections in the past year, there’s a perception that Covid’s not such a risk and we could stay at zero (cases) if we just do the face mask, social distancing — no hurry to get vaccinated. So hesitancy has been a big issue,” Cowling, who heads the school’s epidemiology and biostatistics division, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Tuesday.  In short, Asia has gone from a poster child in containment success to a laggard in vaccination rollout.NatixisThe region is now experiencing a renewed surge in infections.India, Nepal, Malaysia, Japan and Taiwan are among those that have broken records in the number of daily cases in the past month — leading authorities to impose new restrictions to try to bring down the cases.Asia’s Covid vaccinationCountries in Asia-Pacific have collectively administered around 23.8 doses of Covid vaccine per 100 people, according to CNBC analysis of data compiled by statistics site Our World in Data as of June 1.That’s far below North America’s roughly 61.4 doses per 100 people and Europe’s 48.5 doses per 100 people, the data showed. Africa is the region with the slowest vaccination drive, and only 2.5 doses were administered for every 100 people, according to the data.  Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsEconomists at French bank Natixis have been tracking vaccine supplies and inoculation progress across Asia-Pacific. They said in a note last month that while supply shortage was a major factor in the region’s slow vaccination, few economies still face that problem currently.  The economists named Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines and Vietnam as those that “still failed to acquire the necessary dosages for mass immunization.””That said, demand remains weak from the public,” said the Natixis report. “Skepticism over the newly developed vaccines seems to be a common reason for the hesitance globally. But it is even more so in Asia where a more effective containment has led to a lower sense of urgency.”Leaders and laggards  Within Asia-Pacific, Mongolia and Singapore are leading with around 97 and 69 total vaccinations per 100 people, respectively, according to Our World in Data.Lagging behind are many frontier and emerging economies such as Vietnam and Afghanistan, the data showed.Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsSeveral frontier and emerging markets in Asia rely on COVAX — a global vaccine-sharing initiative — for Covid vaccines, according to a report by research firm Fitch Solutions.But supply from COVAX is now at risk because India has restricted exports of vaccines, the report said. India is home to vaccine maker Serum Institute India, which is a major supplier of Covid doses to the initiative.If Indian exports are not resumed soon, many low- and lower-middle income countries reliant on COVAX “will see further delays” in their vaccination progress, warned Fitch Solutions.Recovery in Asia vs. WestBased on current vaccination rates, Natixis economists project that only Singapore and mainland China will be able to vaccinate 70% of the respective countries’ population this year — a similar timeline to the U.S. and the U.K.That’s the threshold that some medical experts say is needed to reach “herd immunity,” which is when the virus no longer transmits rapidly because most people are immune, due to vaccinations or after being infected.Asian economies still struggling to get vaccine supplies may not reach that threshold until 2025 or beyond, the economists said.Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsSlow vaccination progress will hit some Asian economies more than others, the Natixis economists said. They said the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia have the greatest urgency for vaccination because of a lackluster handling of the pandemic or big economic exposure to tourism.”In short, Asia has gone from a poster child in containment success to a laggard in vaccination rollout,” Natixis said, adding that social-distancing measures and cross-border restrictions will remain in place longer in the region compared to the West.”The broader economic reopening in the West that is built upon a much faster vaccine rollout, especially for the US and increasingly for the EU, could add to the divergence, making Asia look more fragile on its path to recovery and a less favorable option for investment.” More

Malaysia’s government finances are becoming “very constrained” as a surge in Covid-19 infections has once again forced the country into a lockdown, International Trade and Industry Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali told CNBC on Friday.The Malaysian government has announced a new stimulus package worth 40 billion Malaysian ringgit (roughly $9.68 billion) to help businesses and households cope with another round of “total lockdown” that started on Tuesday.That latest stimulus came on top of six prior packages worth a total 340 billion Malaysian ringgit (around $82.31 billion) rolled out over the past year. The government said the additional spending could push 2021’s fiscal deficit above its target of 6% of gross domestic product.People wearing face masks walk in front of the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Jan. 29, 2021.Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images”Certainly this is (putting) a lot of pressure on our fiscal space, but again … we have no other options except to look at various options to support the industries, the SMEs and also the informal sectors so that they can continue with their economic activities,” Azmin told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”During the June 1-14 “total lockdown,” businesses offering essential services will remain open while certain segments of the manufacturing sector can operate with reduced capacity.Azmin and his ministry have been criticized by opposition politicians and the Malaysian public for allowing some nonessential businesses — such as a furniture firm and a brewery — to operate during the lockdown, according to media reports.  In a Thursday statement, Azmin said his ministry is not the only one granting permissions to companies that applied to remain open during the lockdown. He added that only 128,150 businesses — involving 1.57 million workers — had obtained approvals to do so, out of 586,308 that applied for permission, according to the Malay language statement translated by CNBC.     Malaysia’s Covid-19 outbreak has substantially worsened despite the government imposing lockdowns of varying degrees over the past year.Last week, the Southeast Asian country reported five consecutive days of record infections and on Wednesday registered its largest daily death toll since the start of 2020. Overall, Malaysia has confirmed more than 595,000 Covid cases and 3,096 deaths, data from the health ministry showed on Thursday.Malaysian director-general of health, Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah, has urged people to stay at home to break the chain of transmission. A leading figure in the country’s fight against Covid, Noor Hisham warned that the health system could be paralyzed if cases continue to surge.Azmin said the government is accelerating its national vaccination drive. He explained that the strategy is to administer more than 200,000 doses a day by the end of this month, and double that amount next month.”We expect to reach the 80% vaccination target as early as August 2021,” said the minister.But Malaysia’s vaccination progress has been slow. Only 6.2% of the country’s roughly 32 million population have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine, according to data compiled by statistics site Our World in Data. More

Martin Pickard | Moment | Getty ImagesHyperloop, hydrogen-powered trains, and air-taxis. As the 21st century progresses, the way people get from A to B is on the cusp of a significant shift driven by design and innovation.While the above technologies may be a few years off from widespread adoption, that’s not to say change isn’t already afoot.Around the world, national and municipal governments are attempting to slash emissions and boost urban air quality, with many putting their faith in a growing sector: battery electric vehicles. There’s undoubtedly momentum behind the industry. A recent report from the International Energy Agency stated roughly 3 million new electric cars were registered last year, a record amount and a 41% rise compared to 2019.Looking ahead, the IEA says the number of electric cars, buses, vans and heavy trucks on roads — its projection does not include two- and three-wheeled electric vehicles — is expected to hit 145 million by 2030.If governments ramp up efforts to meet international energy and climate goals, the global fleet could increase further still, expanding to 230 million by the end of the decade. A changing world As the number of electric vehicles on the planet’s roads increases, society will need to adapt.Extensive charging networks, for example, will need to be rolled out to meet increased demand and dispel lingering concerns around “range anxiety” — the idea that electric vehicles aren’t able to undertake long journeys without losing power and getting stranded.Another area where we will notice change relates to noise: As well as boasting zero tailpipe emissions, electric vehicles are far quieter than their diesel and gasoline cousins.Read more about electric vehicles from CNBC ProCiti upgrades Nio, says growing EV demand in China can lift stock more than 50%JPMorgan says buy puts in flagging momentum stocks like TeslaThe battery market is booming. One company believes it’s made a key change to how they’re madeThis means less noise pollution in urban areas — clearly a good thing — but also throws up a potential challenge for other road users, especially those with sight problems. “For people who are blind or partially sighted, judging traffic can be really difficult,” Zoe Courtney-Bodgener, policy and campaigns officer at the U.K.-based Royal National Institute of Blind People, told CNBC in a phone interview.Courtney-Bodgener explained that an increasing number of “quiet” modes of transport were now being used, giving the example of bicycles and larger electric and hybrid vehicles.”If you can’t always or reliably use vision to detect those vehicles, then sound is even more important,” she went on to state.”And when the sound is not there, or is not loud enough to be able to reliably detect those vehicles, obviously that presents danger because … you’re not reliably able to know when a vehicle is approaching you.”The law of the land It should be noted that, around the world, legislation and technology have already been introduced in a bid tackle this issue.In the European Union and U.K., for example, all new electric and hybrid vehicles will have to use an acoustic vehicle alerting system, or AVAS, from July 1. This will build upon and broaden previous regulations which came into force in 2019.  Under the rules, the AVAS is supposed to kick in and make noise when a vehicle’s speed is under 20 kilometers per hour (around 12 miles per hour) and when it’s in reverse.According to a statement from the U.K. government in 2019, the sound “can be temporarily deactivated by the driver if judged necessary.”The EU’s regulation says the noise made by the AVAS “shall be a continuous sound that provides information to the pedestrians and other road users of a vehicle in operation.””The sound should be easily indicative of vehicle behaviour,” it adds, “and should sound similar to the sound of a vehicle of the same category equipped with an internal combustion engine.”The RNIB’s Courtney-Bodgener told CNBC that while her organization was “happy” the AVAS directive had been translated into U.K. law, it did not “do all of the things that we want it to do.”She went on to explain how the speed at which the AVAS cuts in perhaps needed to be increased to 20 or 30 miles per hour.”We’re not convinced that if … a vehicle is travelling at, say 13 miles per hour, it would generate, on its own, enough noise for it to be reliably detectable by sound.”Another area of concern relates to older vehicles. “There are already lots and lots of electric and hybrid vehicles that were produced before this legislation came into force and do not have the sound technology on them,” she said.There was currently no provision to retrofit these, she added. “That is a concern because there are already thousands of vehicles on roads around the U.K. that do not have the AVAS technology.” From the industry’s point of view, it seems to be content with the regulations already in place. In a statement sent to CNBC via email, AVERE, The European Association for Electromobility, told CNBC it supported the “current legislative status quo.” “The limit of 20 km/h is sufficient, since at this level other noises — notably rolling tyre resistance — take over and are sufficient for pedestrians and cyclists to hear EVs and hybrids approaching,” the Brussels-based organization added. “In fact, mandating additional noise beyond 20 km/h would rob European citizens of one of the primary benefits of electrification: reduced noise levels at city speeds.”Noise pollution can indeed be a serious issue. According to the European Environment Agency, over 100 million people in Europe “are exposed to harmful levels of environmental noise pollution.” The agency singles out road traffic noise as being “a particular public health problem across many urban areas.”On the subject of older cars needing to be updated, AVERE said: “Only a very small share of EVs on European roads would be subject to retrofitting requirements, given the fact that many existing vehicles have already been fitted with AVAS in anticipation of the new requirements, and that the rules have been put in place in time to support the expected mass uptake of EVs in coming years.”If “additional requirements” were found to be necessary, AVERE said it stood ready to engage with policymakers.The futureDiscussions and debate surrounding this topic look set to continue for a good while yet and it’s clear that a balance will need to be struck going forward.Regardless of whether one thinks the current legislation goes far enough or not, the fact remains these types of systems are set to become an increasingly important feature of urban transport in the years ahead.Robert Fisher is head of EV technologies at research and consultancy firm SBD Automotive.He told CNBC via email that testing conducted by the company had “found AVAS to be quite effective” but went on to add that if a pedestrian wasn’t familiar with the noise, “they may not automatically associate it with the presence of an approaching vehicle.” “Currently, AVAS is mostly hindered by inconsistent legislation and a lack of innovation,” he said, before going on to strike a positive tone regarding the future.”As we move away from the internal combustion engine, this technology has the potential to become a key part of a car’s character, a point of brand differentiation, and has the ability to save lives.” More

Asia has more than 30 cities with populations greater than five million people, yet only two can lay claim to the top bar on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list.Every year since the list’s inception, the continent’s best-ranked bar has been in either Hong Kong or Singapore.The annual ranking is organized by William Reed Media, which also publishes The World’s Best Bars and The World’s 50 Best Restaurants.”Asia’s 50 Best Bars was the first and is currently the only regional 50 Best ranking, with the inaugural list announced in 2016,” said Mark Sansom, the list’s content editor. “Asia has a huge variety of brilliant bars and cities that we felt needed recognizing as some of the leading cocktail capitals in the world.”The ‘best bar’ in AsiaOver the last six years, five bars have topped the 50 Best list. Singapore gained an early edge in total wins, yet Hong Kong has had the “best bar” in Asia twice in the past three years.Here’s the breakdown:Bars that ranked No. 1 Year More