Building on discussions at the Bangkok Business Summit 2026, the agenda brings together government, private-sector and international perspectives around a common priority: translating structural reform into investment, productivity and long-term competitiveness, while strengthening Thailand’s readiness for a greater regional economic role ahead of its 2028 ASEAN Chairmanship.

Geopolitical Stability and Macro Benchmarks

As global supply chains fracture and geopolitical tensions reshape risk profiles, Thailand is positioning itself as a neutral, secure haven for multinational capital.

“Global investors are prioritizing economic security alongside operational efficiency,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas. “Thailand presents a timely, stable haven where targeted capital can stimulate short-term activity while permanently upgrading our long-term productivity.”

However, multilateral institutions emphasized that achieving high-income status demands aggressive economic acceleration.

“Thailand must boost its GDP per capita growth from the post-COVID average of 2.2% to 5.4% annually over the next decade,” stated Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, World Bank Vice President for East Asia and Pacific. “Execution must be decisive. Capital must be funneled into seven key growth engines—including smart electronics, EVs, and digital services—while protecting critical infrastructure like the flood-prone Chao Phraya River basin.”

From Dialogue to Delivery: Bangkok Business Summit White Paper
Building on the Summit’s discussions, the forthcoming Bangkok Business Summit White Paper, developed in strategic partnership with PwC, will focus on translating Thailand’s economic ambitions into execution.

The agenda identifies the next 24 months, from 2026 to 2028, as a critical window for strengthening Thailand’s longer-term economic trajectory. It focuses on directing resources towards higher-productivity sectors, reducing regulatory friction and introducing clearer mechanisms to measure progress and accountability.

This execution-focused approach is reinforced by closer public-private coordination across seven target business sectors, supported by key enabling areas including infrastructure, digital technology and AI, energy and finance. The broader objective is to strengthen investment-led growth while ensuring that new investment creates opportunities for domestic enterprises and SMEs to participate in emerging supply chains.

Inclusive Reform and Financial Restructuring

To transition from low-cost assembly to an investment-led economy, domestic leaders are restructuring local financial mechanics and supply chains.

“Assessing our structural reform progress today, we sit at roughly a five out of ten,” noted Payong Srivanich, Chairman of the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB). “We must urgently shift commercial banking liquidity away from stagnant legacy sectors and into future growth engines.”

To prevent technological disruption from worsening structural inequality, Srivanich advocated a “brotherhood” model anchored in the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy. Under this approach, major corporate leaders are tasked with upskilling and reskilling upstream and downstream SME supply chains to ensure balanced growth across the entire value chain.

This emphasis on inclusion extends to connecting new investment and global market opportunities with domestic businesses, enabling Thai SMEs and local enterprises to participate more fully in the new economy and supporting broader distribution of economic opportunities.

Global Governance and Environmental Resilience

Serving as a curtain-raiser for the 2026 IMF-World Bank Group Annual Meetings in Bangkok, hosted under the theme “Thailand’s New Horizons: Empowering People, Building Resilience,” the country is establishing forward-looking global standards. Key priorities include the “Bangkok Blueprint” to tackle cyber fraud and illegal financial flows.

Simultaneously, long-term expansion depends on confronting severe environmental vulnerabilities. The World Bank urged immediate climate-resilient investments in the flood-prone Chao Phraya River basin, which generates 66% of national GDP, alongside scaling solar and clean energy capacity to curb fossil fuel import dependencies.

By aligning domestic productivity and climate adaptation today, and showcasing these priorities at the upcoming IMF-World Bank Group Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand is asserting the economic resilience needed to lead broader regional integration when it takes the helm as ASEAN Chair in 2028.

Hashtag: #JSCCIBFoundation

Demonstrated Full-Licence Advantages, Strengthened Fee Income Capabilities, Expanding into High-End Wealth Management Segment to Forge New Growth Engines, Deepening Trade Finance to Support Government Initiatives, Serving the Real Economy via Financial Services

• As of 30 June 2026, Ping An Digital Bank’s total assets exceeded HK$15.6 billion, while total customer deposits reached nearly HK$13.7 billion, both surging over 130% year-on-year.
• Capitalising on its full-licence advantage, investment commissions have emerged as a new driver for fee income, boosting core profitability with net interest income rising 55% year-on-year to HK$140 million.
• PingAnDB will continue to uphold its “Customer Experience First” vision, providing all retail customers with a user-friendly digital banking service. Meanwhile, the Bank will continuously deepen its wealth services and expand into the high-end wealth management to meet customers’ diversified asset allocation needs.
• Responding to the government’s initiative to “take forward ‘Finance+’ to serve the real economy,” Business Banking remains committed to serving trade SMEs. Leverages fintech and alternative data to strengthen trade finance, PingAnDB empowers trade SMEs and cross-border e-commerce in global expansion.

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 September 2026 – Ping An Digital Bank (International) Limited (“Ping An Digital Bank” / “PingAnDB”) enters its 6th anniversary with strong upward momentum and standout operational performance across key indicators. Total assets and customer deposits both surged over 130% year-on-year, while net interest income rose approximately 55% year-on-year to over HK$140 million. Following the branding revamp and the launch of investment services, Ping An Digital Bank has fully leveraged its full-licence advantages, making investment commissions a new growth engine for service fee revenue. Moving forward, Ping An Digital Bank will continue to uphold its “Customer Experience First” vision, delivering a seamless and all-in-one digital banking solution through a single app. PingAnDB will also elevate its wealth platform by introducing a broader suite of investment offerings and high-end wealth management services, assisting them with diversified asset allocation and management.

Since accelerating its retail banking expansion, Ping An Digital Bank has launched wealth and offline insurance services, driven business scale and strengthening core profitability. As of 30 June 2026, total assets surged 133% year-on-year to over HK$15.6 billion, while total customer deposits reached HK$13.7 billion, increased 131% year-on-year. Following the official launch of wealth services in March this year, PingAnDB has achieved initial success in opening new channels to boost fee and commission income. As of June 30, 2026, fee and commission income grew sevenfold year-on-year to HK$6.5 million, with service fee income expected to gradually become another growth engine of the PingAnDB’s revenue.

Mr. Ronald Iu, Chief Executive of Ping An Digital Bank, said, “Ping An Digital Bank has accelerated the expansion of its retail banking arm recently. As a rising star in retail banking, we adhere to our brand vision of ‘Always with You. Always Ahead.’ By delivering precise product and service strategies, we comprehensively meet customers’ needs, driving significant leaps in asset and deposit scale, with fee income set to become another key revenue driver for us. Furthermore, Ping An Digital Bank is set to elevate its wealth services. Centered on the “Customer Experience First” vision, the Bank will continuously diversify the suite of investment offerings and introduce high-end wealth management services , creating a digital wealth management experience that balances flexibility with professional expertise.”

Mr. Iu, added, “In Business Banking, we remain steadfast in our commitment to trade SMEs. By leveraging fintech and alternative data to strengthen trade finance, we actively respond to the government’s mandate to ‘leverage financial services to support the real economy.’ As of 30 June 2026, our loan assets grew steadily, with total loans reaching HK$4.14 billion. Moving forward, we will continue to navigate global expansion for trade SMEs and cross-border e-commerce, further deepening trade finance application scenarios to serve as a robust pillar for SMEs.”

Ping An Digital Bank’s Retail Banking centers its design on usability with a “Customer Experience First” approach. Backed by Ping An Group’s strengths and its full-licence advantages, PingAnDB actively builds an exclusive financial ecosystem and integrated financial platform. Customers can enjoy a one-stop suite of financial services—including deposits, foreign exchange, cross-border remittances, wealth, and insurance—all via a single app. Additionally, Ping An Digital Bank offers a dual-strength wealth services feature enabling retail banking customers to seamlessly switch funds between investments and savings deposits. US stock trades carry a flat brokerage fee of USD0.88¹ per transaction regardless of transaction value or share count. Combined with a USD savings yield of up to 3.28% p.a.², customers can park liquidity to earn interest and pivot instantly when market opportunities arise. Together with comprehensive online and offline insurance services, Ping An Digital Bank delivers smart financial experiences with a human touch.

While deepening retail financial services, as the first digital bank tailored for SMEs, Ping An Digital Bank extends its financial capability into the business banking sector, comprehensively covering business banking account, cross-border remittance, currency exchange, and loan services. As a core supporter of trade enterprises, Ping An Digital Bank has unlocked the potential of commercial data over the years to revamp account opening and credit assessment process, solving previous pain points of SMEs to achieve fast and accurate evaluations. This fully empowers enterprises to capture global market opportunities and builds a robust digital financial ecosystem.

For the interim report 2026 of Ping An Digital Bank, please visit https://www.pingandb.com/en/financial-report.html

¹ Brokerage fee excludes any custody fee, securities deposit charges, nominee services fee and any third-party transaction charges such as transaction levy, stamp duty and trading fee, handling fee, securities management fee, transfer fee, capital gain tax and SEC Fee, etc.

² Applicable only to USD savings deposits between USD 15,000 and USD 60,000 and subject to the “USD Savings Interest Rate Offer” terms and conditions. Interest on USD deposits will be calculated on a daily basis on a 360-day year and is determined at the Bank’s discretion from time to time.

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Ping An Digital Bank

Ping An Digital Bank (International) Limited (“Ping An Digital Bank,” “PingAnDB”) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufax Holding Ltd (“Lufax”) (SEHK: 6623; NYSE: LU) and a member of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (“Ping An”) (SEHK: 2318; SSE: 601318). Ping An Digital Bank was granted a banking licence by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in May 2019 to offer retail banking and business banking services. Backed by Ping An’s advanced technology, Ping An Digital Bank is elevating banking experience, serving customers in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area, establishing itself as Ping An Group’s integrated financial platform in Hong Kong.

2 in 3 Singaporeans expect recovery during their ‘health gap’ year to cost more than $200,000

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 September 2026 – Recovering from a critical illness (CI) can take far longer than many Singaporeans expect, yet few are financially prepared for the journey. A poll by Prudential Singapore (“Prudential”) found that 67 per cent of Singaporeans expect recovery from a severe-stage critical illness to take more than a year. However, only 29 per cent say their savings could cover household expenses for that long if they had no income during recovery.

The findings highlight the challenges of what Prudential terms “health gap years” – the period when individuals may be unable to work while recovering from a critical illness such as cancer, heart attack or stroke, even as ongoing household expenses, caregiving costs and financial commitments continue.

Concerns over the cost of recovery are reflected in the poll as only one in five Singaporeans (20 per cent) are confident they could cover both medical bills and everyday expenses during recovery. More than three in five (64 per cent) estimate they would need more than S$200,000 to cope with the financial impact of a severe-stage critical illness.

The findings are aligned with the Life Insurance Association (LIA) 2022 Protection Gap Study that reported a 74 per cent CI protection gap. This suggests that most people do not have sufficient protection coverage, which leaves them financially vulnerable in an unforeseen event.

Mr Manu Tandon, Chief Health & Protection Officer, Prudential Singapore, said: “Many people recognise that recovery from a critical illness can take a long time, yet they may not be financially ready when it happens. Critical illness is not merely a medical episode. It can have far-reaching emotional, financial and physical implications for patients and their families, long after they leave the hospital. This may include the patient’s loss of income, the strain of additional expenses, and greater demands on caregivers.”

These concerns are reflected in the poll where about half the respondents (46 per cent) cited medical expenses as their primary concern, while 34 per cent were worried about the loss of income and 31 per cent about burdening their family.

Critical illness can impact long-term financial goals

Beyond immediate healthcare expenses, respondents expect CI to affect their long-term financial security. If they run out of funds during recovery, they are most likely to draw on their emergency funds (53 per cent), retirement savings (40 per cent) or sell investments (33 per cent). Almost one in four (24 per cent) would even return to work earlier than planned.

Families with children may face particularly difficult trade-offs. Among respondents with children, 35 per cent identified education fees as a key expense during recovery. If they were unable to work, 24 per cent were likely to pull their children out of enrichment classes and 19 per cent would dip into education funds.

Caregiving costs represent a major blind spot

The poll also found that many Singaporeans may be underestimating the financial impact of caregiving during recovery. For most families, the financial strain will deepen when caregivers leave work to provide care. Almost 3 in 4 (72 per cent) cited financial support as the most important form of support for caregivers, but only 13 per cent believed their household would have enough savings if a caregiver stopped working to care for them.

Respondents also identified caregiving-related costs that could arise during recovery, including costly drugs and alternative treatments (71 per cent), ongoing daily living expenses linked to care needs (67 per cent) and rehabilitation and therapy (59 per cent).

Mr Tandon added: “Ultimately, being prepared for potential health gap years can make a difference between a recovery journey overshadowed by financial stress and one focused on what matters most: recovery and getting life back on track. Building a strong financial safety net to weather a critical illness event is crucial not only for the individual, but the whole family.”

Owning a critical illness (CI) plan does not mean adequate protection

Although more than half (59 per cent) of respondents own a CI plan, only 20 per cent are confident that they have adequate coverage to sustain them through recovery.

CI insurance is designed to provide a lump sum payout that will help policyholders manage income loss and additional expenses, and it supplements hospitalisation insurance that pays for medical bills incurred from hospital stays. Nearly nine in 10 respondents (88 per cent) said a lump-sum CI payout would be important in helping their families manage caregiving expenses and income loss during recovery.

Said Mr Tandon: “This indicates that consumer awareness and ownership of a CI plan do not necessarily translate into a sense of financial security. Closing the protection gap would require consumers to assess if their coverage is enough to support them and their families throughout the health gap years. Besides the sum assured, understanding the breadth of coverage and types of illnesses covered under your plan is important as there are different types of plans available. This is why it is important to do regular reviews with your financial representative to ensure your coverage continues to meet your needs through the years.”

The poll commissioned by Prudential surveyed 1,000 Singapore residents aged 18 to 55+ from June to July 2026. The study explored how prepared Singaporeans are for their potential “health gap years” and examined gaps in financial preparedness, caregiving support and understanding of CI protection.

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About Prudential Assurance Company Singapore (Pte) Ltd (Prudential Singapore)

Markets, not savings, powering the gain

Global financial assets increased by 8.6% in 2025 to a record EUR268.4trn, despite a challenging geopolitical and economic backdrop. Markets did the heavy lifting in 2025, as rising asset prices accounted for roughly 4 out of every 5 euros of new household wealth. Fresh savings fell 5.4% to EUR4.1trn. “Global wealth set another record in 2025, but that only tells half of the story,” said Ludovic Subran, Chief Economist and Chief Investment Officer at Allianz. “Since 2019, nominal financial assets are up 50%, but in real terms, stripped of inflation, they only grew 23%. The situation is worse in Western Europe where financial assets in real terms are up 0.5% compared to 2019. It is 21% in North America and 70% in China.”

Portfolios set the tone

Portfolio composition increasingly determines who captures the gains from wealth creation. Securities increased by 12.4% in 2025, more than twice as fast as deposits (5.7%) or insurance and pensions (5.0%), pushing their share of global financial assets to a record 46.9%. North American households, with 60.7% of their portfolios invested in securities, benefited particularly strongly from rising markets; their region generated 51.4% of the global increase in financial assets. Over the past decade, valuation gains accounted for 71% of North American financial-asset growth, compared with only 36% in Western Europe, reflecting the importance of investing savings over holding them in low-earning accounts.

2026-27: AI as a swing factor amid slowing GDP growth

We estimate that global financial assets could grow by a solid 9% in 2026, but the medium-term backdrop is turning tougher as slower growth, persistent inflation, fragmentation and high public debt weigh on returns. Going forward, AI is therefore the key swing factor: stronger productivity and earnings could sustain asset returns, but the growing reliance on AI-powered markets to drive household wealth also creates vulnerability. With the S&P 500 up around 95% since end-2022, much of the recent wealth boost rests on elevated market valuations and AI expectations. We find that a 25% correction in the S&P 500 would erase around USD27trn of US household wealth in the year of the shock, equivalent to almost 14% of total net worth, weighing on confidence and consumption, and pushing the US economy into recession.

But the AI wealth story is not only about how much wealth is created, it is also about who captures the gains. “AI could become the next great wealth engine, but the key question is who gets a stake in it,” said Katharina Utermöhl, Head of Thematic & Policy Research at Allianz Research. “As AI potentially shifts more value creation towards capital, broader participation in capital returns and policies that help workers adjust will be key to making the AI wealth dividend more widely shared.”

Singapore: The world’s 4th-richest country by net wealth per capita

Gross financial assets of Singapore’s private households increased by 9.1% in 2025 to EUR1.4trn, up from 8.5% growth in 2024, modestly above the global average (8.6%) though just below the average for the surveyed Asian countries excluding Japan and China (9.8%).

Securities grew fastest among all asset classes, up 12.7%, ahead of insurance and pensions (9.3%) and deposits (6.8%). However, due to Singapore’s strong capital-funded pension system, insurance and pension remained the dominant asset class in the average private household’s portfolio, with a share of 47.2%, followed by deposits with 33.2%. Securities accounted for just 19.6% of Singaporean portfolios – well below both the regional average of 30.8% and the global figure of 46.9%.

Adjusted for inflation, Singaporean financial assets grew by 8.1% in real terms in 2025, up from 6.0% in 2024. They have increased by a cumulative 33.3% since 2019 – below the regional average of 39.6%, though well above the global average of 22.9%.

Private households’ liabilities rose by 7.4% to EUR269.9bn, growing more slowly than gross financial assets. As a result, net financial assets increased by 9.5% to EUR1.1trn. With net financial assets of EUR192,840 per capita, Singapore ranked 4th among the world’s richest countries in 2025.

Net financial assets per capita in 2025

The interactive “Allianz Global Wealth Map” can be found here on our homepage:
https://www.allianz.com/en/economic_research/research-data/interactive-wealth-map.html

You can find the study here on our homepage:
https://www.allianz.com/en/economic_research/insights/publications/global-wealth-report-2026.html

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About Allianz

The achievement also exceeded the RM5.0 billion sales target by RM1.78 billion, or 35.5% increase, further reinforcing MIHAS’ role as a key halal marketplace for connecting Malaysian businesses with international markets and translating trade engagements into commercial opportunities.

Commenting on the outcome, Dato’ Indera Abu Bakar Yusof, Chief Executive Officer of MATRADE, said, “MIHAS 2026 demonstrates that the platform is not only growing in terms of sales, but is also creating greater opportunities for Malaysian businesses, particularly Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), to access international markets. We remain committed to strengthening SMEs and Mid-Tier Companies (MTCs) to expand into global markets especially the emerging and non-traditional markets.”

“The RM6.78 billion in sales achieved at MIHAS 2026 represents valuable opportunities. With the integration of Agentic AI, MIHAS is evolving into a more connected and digitally enabled trade facilitation ecosystem, helping Malaysian companies identify potential buyers, build meaningful business relationships and pursue new export opportunities beyond the exhibition floor. Under the MADANI Digital Trade Platform (MDTP), we shall provide Malaysian exporters with continuous connectivity with global buyers and support them in securing sustainable export opportunities,” he added.

MIHAS 2026 attracted 69,104 visitors from 93 countries, up from 50,340 visitors in 2025 — an increase of 18,764 visitors or 37.3%, the highest since its inception in 2004. The event also brought together participating exhibitors and INSP buyers from 58 countries, further strengthening MIHAS’ international reach and appeal as a global halal trade exposition.

The growth was supported by strong performance across the key components of MIHAS. The International Sourcing Programme (INSP) generated RM4.02 billion, compared with RM3.63 billion in 2025, representing an increase of RM394.5 million or 10.9%. INSP facilitates structured business meetings between Malaysian sellers and international buyers, creating targeted opportunities for sourcing, business matching and potential export transactions.

Meanwhile, the MIHAS Exhibition recorded approximately RM1.99 billion, compared with RM1.89 billion in 2025, an increase of RM103.9 million or 5.5%. Among the top products driving exhibition sales were processed food and confectionery, food technology and packaging, frozen food, and fertilisers and agrochemicals, reflecting the diverse range of halal products showcased at MIHAS.

Creating More Opportunities for Malaysian SMEs

Importantly, the success of MIHAS is also reflected in its sustained contribution to Malaysian SMEs.

At MIHAS Exhibition 2026, Malaysian SMEs generated RM620 million in sales, compared with RM557 million in 2025, representing an increase of approximately RM63 million or 11.3%. This builds on the strong growth recorded over the past six editions, with SME participation increasing from 64 companies in 2021 to 339 companies in 2026, representing a significant 429.7% increase.

The strong performance of Malaysian SMEs comes against the backdrop of Malaysia’s growing halal export sector. Malaysia’s halal exports reached RM68.52 billion in 2025, an increase of 10.9% from RM61.79 billion in 2024. Under RMK13, Malaysia has set a target of RM80 billion in halal exports, highlighting the significant opportunity for Malaysian companies, particularly SMEs, to further expand into international markets.

MIHAS 2026 continues to support this ambition by providing Malaysian SMEs with access to international buyers, business matching, sourcing opportunities and digital tools to expand their market reach and strengthen their export capabilities.

AI Transforming Business Connections

The 2026 edition also marked a significant step forward in MIHAS’ digital transformation through the integration of Agentic AI.

More than 22,000 AI-assisted business appointments were generated during MIHAS 2026, demonstrating how AI is transforming the way businesses connect and pursue new trade opportunities.

Of these AI-assisted appointments, 324 matches reported RM28 million in sales associated with these completed AI-assisted appointments.

Importantly, the AI platform will continue to operate until 2027, enabling participating businesses to continue connecting, engaging with potential buyers and pursuing new trade opportunities beyond the four-day exhibition.

Overall, MIHAS 2026 demonstrates how the trade platform is evolving beyond a conventional trade exhibition — combining strong sales performance, growing international participation, SME development and AI-powered business matching to create a more connected and digitally enabled trade facilitation ecosystem for Malaysian businesses.

Hashtag: #MIHAS2026

Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2026

MATRADE

Forging new Hong Kong–Europe pathways in AI, New Industralisation and smart city innovation with German Industry and Commerce and ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 29 September 2026 – Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), in partnership with German Industry and Commerce (GIC) and ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA, and supported by the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau, InvestHK and HKETO Berlin, led a delegation of eight Hong Kong Science Park companies to Germany and Austria from 21 to 25 September 2026 for a focused programme of business matching, ecosystem exchange and institutional engagement across Munich, Vienna and Graz. Bringing together government, industry, academia and innovation ecosystem partners, the mission deepened engagement with leading stakeholders, created new opportunities for cross-border collaboration and commercialisation in artificial intelligence (AI), new industralisation, and smart city, and reinforced Hong Kong’s role as a preferred platform for innovation exchange between Europe and Asia.

The delegation marked a major step forward in HKSTP’s growing engagement in Central Europe. As HKSTP’s first market-focused mission to Germany, Europe’s largest AI market and a leading enterprise technology hub, it built on earlier collaboration with ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA, including GO AUSTRIA Spring 2025 and 2026 and the renowned ViennaUP Festival, as well as more recent joint efforts with partners in Germany and Austria under Global Connect and the Global Innovation Exchange. The ongoing efforts created practical pathways for Hong Kong companies to explore partnerships, validate demand and expand into key European markets.

A key highlight was HKSTP’s participation in the Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference 2026 (AAIC) in Vienna, Austria, to connect with key industry partners and investors for potential business collaboration. Professor Sun Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, delivered a speech titled “AAIC-Talk: Applied AI in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area: Innovation, Industrial Transformation and Opportunities for Collaboration with Austria”at theAustria’s flagship international AI business conference.He shared Hong Kong has elevated AI into a core industry and is emerging as one of the world’s most dynamic innovation and technology (I&T) centres. He also invited Austria to partner in shaping AI’s next chapter, and highlighting opportunities for collaboration between Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area and Austria. During the Conference, Professor Sun had a brief exchange with park companies from the delegation participating in the Conference to learn about their innovative solutions.

Mr Eric Or, Chief Ecosystem Development Officer of HKSTP, said, “HKSTP is committed to helping innovators scale beyond borders. Our inaugural delegation to Germany and the continuous connection with Austria highlights the value of strategic international engagement in opening doors for park companies to connect with leading industry, academic and investors in Europe. It also reflects Hong Kong’s unique role as a gateway for cross-border collaboration, underpinned by its distinct strengths as a super-connector and super value-adder. As HKSTP continues to expand its global outreach to further strengthen Hong Kong’s innovation links with global markets, and reinforce the city’s position as an international innovation and technology hub.”

The delegation began in Munich, focusing on Germany’s industrial AI and enterprise innovation ecosystem, and engaging institutions including Chamber of commerce and industry for Munich and upper Bavaria (IHK), Siemens AI Lab, and the European Union’s top Technical University of Munich (TUM). Discussions centred on industrial AI, advanced manufacturing, technology translation and cross-border collaboration. The high potential tech firms continued the week-long journey in Vienna and Graz, connected with leading Austrian research, industry and innovation organisations, including the leading Graz University of Technology (TU Graz), Austrian Institute of Technology and more.

Highlighted innovations from the delegation:

• GenAI-Powered Marketing – Amber International Holding Limited introduced MIA, its new agentic AI marketing platform designed to monitor markets, generate on-brand content and support distribution workflows with human approval.
• Let AI run enterprises. Let AI do business – Echronos AI Group, a China-based innovator in industrial-grade AI Agentic OS, leverages the HKSTP ecosystem and Hong Kong’s global connectivity as a gateway for international expansion. The company introduced its flagship JovaAI platform to European industry leaders. Powered by proprietary semantic and multi-agent orchestration technologies, JovaAI coordinates complex enterprise workflows, from inquiry-to-quote orchestration and cross-border customs planning to dynamic production rescheduling.
• End-to-end AI Talent Solution – Neufast offers corporate AI strategy consulting and technical implementation for an agentic AI platform covering candidate sourcing, performance appraisals, and leadership development. It is expanding in Europe through partnerships with SAP SuccessFactors for enterprise business transformation and TÜV Rheinland for ISO27001 certification, with the support of the Austrian government’s Go Austria Plus programme by the Global Incubator Network Austria (GIN) and Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG).

Together, these engagements in Germany and Austria deepened HKSTP’s ties with the regions’ innovation ecosystem and opened new opportunities for collaboration in applied AI, robotics, smart production and commercialisation between Hong Kong and Europe.

Appendix: List of park companies in the HKSTP’s delegation

1. Amber International Holding Limited
2. Cogniser Infotech Ltd
3. Echronos AI Group
4. Haircosys Limited
5. IGRAPH TECHNOLOGY LIMITED
6. Neufast Limited
7. Robocore Technology Limited
8. Westwell Technology (Hong Kong) Limited

Hashtag: #HKSTP

Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation

Third annual forum co-hosted with Mastercard and FTAHK to explore how AI is reshaping financial services

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 28 September 2026 – As artificial intelligence (AI) moves from experimentation to enterprise-wide adoption, organizations across Hong Kong are increasingly exploring how AI can transform customer experience, productivity and decision-making. Against this backdrop, Citi, Mastercard and the FinTech Association of Hong Kong (FTAHK) co-hosted the third edition of Citi’s annual fintech forum under the theme “Beyond AI-Ready: Shaping the Agentic Future of Finance“. The event brought together regulators, financial industry leaders and fintech innovators to discuss how financial institutions can responsibly scale the adoption of agentic AI and unlock its potential across wealth management, banking and payments.

Discussions focused on the opportunities and challenges presented by agentic AI, including customer engagement, advisor productivity, governance, cybersecurity, operational resilience and the future of work. Speakers included representatives from Citi, Mastercard, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Financial Services Development Council (FSDC), Accenture, AlipayHK, Ant International, Google Cloud, Hong Kong Cyberport and NVIDIA.

Vicky Kong, Head of Wealth, Asia North and Australia, Citi, said, “The industry conversation is no longer about whether organizations will adopt AI, but how they can scale it responsibly and effectively. At Citi, we are working closely with regulators and partners to help advance AI adoption across Hong Kong’s financial industry. By investing in data, technology and talent, we aim to equip our advisors with deeper insights and enhance the customer experience, while ensuring that trust, accountability and human judgment remain at the heart of financial services.”

Joe Bonanno, Head of Wealth Intelligence, Citi Wealth, said, “We are entering a new era where agentic AI can transform how financial institutions harness data and intelligence to elevate the colleague and client experience. At Citi Wealth, platforms such as Citi Sky represent a major step forward, bringing together research, superior client service, expertise and advanced AI capabilities on a single platform. By connecting these capabilities more seamlessly, we can provide advisors and clients with faster access to actionable insights based on their financial goals and objectives.”

A key highlight of the forum was the showcase of Citi Sky, Citi Wealth’s conversational AI capability developed using Google Cloud and Google DeepMind technologies. Engineered as an always-on digital companion, the platform is designed to redefine how clients access market insights, identify financial opportunities and engage with their wealth advisors. Built on a secure data foundation and leveraging real-time interactive capabilities, Citi Sky represents a significant step in translating advanced data intelligence into highly personalized and accessible wealth management experiences.

Dr. Peter Robejsek, Executive Vice President, Market Development, Asia Pacific, Mastercard, said, “Asia Pacific is uniquely positioned to capitalize on the opportunities presented by agentic AI. Consumers and businesses are increasingly leveraging AI to enhance discovery, decision making and transactions, shaping the next generation of commerce. At Mastercard, we are committed to providing a safe, secure and intelligent infrastructure that fosters innovation, efficiency and responsible growth across the evolving agentic ecosystem.”

Michele Fung, Board Member, FinTech Association of Hong Kong, said, “Building on last year’s vision of turning Hong Kong into a leading AI-ready economy, we are now entering the next frontier of financial evolution. It is no longer just about preparing our systems for artificial intelligence, but actively shaping an agentic future where intelligent, autonomous technologies drive real-world outcomes. By continuing to unite the collective expertise of regulators, financial institutions, and technology innovators — alongside our AI Strategic Advisory Council — the FTAHK partnering with Citi and Mastercard remains dedicated to pioneering the frameworks that will define this next era. Together with industry leaders, we are moving beyond readiness to ensure Hong Kong leads the global financial ecosystem in responsible, agentic innovation.”

The forum reflects Citi’s continued commitment to supporting Hong Kong’s development as a leading international financial center and fostering industry collaboration on the responsible adoption of emerging technologies.
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About Citi

As the first listed ETF to track the HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index*, the product provides investors with a new allocation tool across the Hong Kong and South Korean semiconductor markets, marking a strategic milestone in technology-focused investing and cross-border financial innovation.

Amid the acceleration of global AI and emerging technologies, demand for semiconductors continues to surge, driving robust industry momentum. On March 31, HKEX and the Korea Exchange (“KRX”) officially introduced the HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index. As the first co-branded index between HKEX and KRX, it provides cross-market exposure to Hong Kong-listed semiconductor companies eligible for Southbound Stock Connect and leading South Korean semiconductor names represented by all constituents of the KRX Semiconductor Top 15 Index.

Peng Zeng, Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Investment Officer, Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., Limited, stated: “We are honored to be the first asset manager to launch the ETF tracking the HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index. The Bosera HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index ETF offers global investors efficient and one-click access to key semiconductor leaders across Hong Kong and South Korea. The launch of this ETF, which tracks the first co-branded index of the two exchanges, marks a major milestone in cross-border financial innovation within Asian capital markets, and highlights Bosera International’s expertise in cross-border asset management. Looking ahead, Bosera International will continue leveraging our strengths to deliver high-quality, differentiated global allocation solutions for investors worldwide.”

HKEX Chief Executive Officer, Bonnie Y Chan, said: “We are delighted to welcome the first ETFs tracking HKEX’s cross-market index series. Their launch marks an important step in our efforts to connect Hong Kong with international markets by working with exchanges and partners across Asia and beyond to broaden investor choice. By bringing together opportunities across different markets and sectors, these benchmarks respond to investors’ growing demand for diversification and reinforce Hong Kong’s role as a gateway connecting the Chinese Mainland with the rest of the world.”

Buyeon Yi, President of KRX Future Strategy Division, Korea Exchange, Inc, stated: “KRX congratulates Bosera Asset Management (International) on the listing of the Bosera HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index ETF. Korean market has contributed 15 leading companies across Korea’s Semiconductor value chain to this first co-index between HKEX and KRX. We hope the ETF will help broaden opportunities for Hong Kong investors to gain exposure to major leading semiconductor companies listed in Hong Kong and Korea.”

This launch further expands Bosera International’s ETF suite across regional strategies, thematic sectors, and cross-border connectivity products. Looking ahead, Bosera International remains dedicated to product innovation and strengthening global exchange partnerships to deliver forward-looking investment solutions aligned with evolving market trends.

Source: HKEX website, as at 24 September 2026

Important Notice:
Investment involves risks. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. Investors should not make any investment decision solely based on the information provided in this material. Investors should refer to the Prospectus and the Product Key Facts Statement of the Sub-Fund for further details, including product features and risk factors before making any investment decision. Bosera HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index ETF(the “Sub-Fund”) is a sub-fund of Bosera ETFs, an umbrella unit trust established under Hong Kong law. The Sub-Fund is a passively-managed ETF falling within Chapter 8.6 of the Code on Unit Trusts and Mutual Funds issued by the SFC (the “Code”).

The investment objective of the Sub-Fund is to provide investment results that, before deduction of fees and expenses, closely correspond to the performance of the HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index (net total return version) (the “Index”).

Investors must pay attention to investment risks, including but not limited to:

• Investment risk – The Sub-Fund is an investment fund. There is no guarantee of the repayment of principal. Therefore your investment in the Sub-Fund may suffer losses.
• Concentration risk – As the Index constituents concentrate in Hong Kong and Korea companies and may concentrate in certain sectors from time to time, the investment of the Sub-Fund may be similarly concentrated. The value of the Sub-Fund may be more volatile than that of a fund having a more diverse portfolio of investments.
• Risks of investing in companies focusing on semiconductor industry The Sub-Fund invests in companies in the semiconductor industry, which may particularly be affected by the intense competition in such industry. The semiconductor sector may be subject to government intervention, sanctions and trade protectionism. Companies in the semiconductor sector are typically dependent on maintaining relationships with their technology partners. The semiconductor sector is also characterised by cyclical market patterns and periodic overcapacity.
• Korea market risk – Investors should be aware of the potential market risks associated with trading in the Korean market, particularly the impact of circuit breakers and daily price limits.
• New index risk – The Index is a new index. The Sub-Fund may be riskier than other exchange traded funds tracking more established indices with longer operating history.
• Financial derivative instruments (“FDI”) risk – The Sub-Fund’s synthetic representative sampling strategy may involve investing up to 50% of the Sub-Fund’s NAV in FDIs. Investors investing in any such Sub-Fund are exposed to a higher degree of fluctuation in value than a Sub-Fund which does not invest in FDIs.
• Passive investments risk – The Sub-Fund is passively managed and the Manager will not have the discretion to adapt to market changes due to the inherent investment nature of the Sub-Fund. Falls in the Index are expected to result in corresponding falls in the value of the Sub-Fund.
• Tracking error risk – The Sub-Fund may be subject to tracking error risk, which is the risk that its performance may not track that of the Index exactly. This tracking error may result from the investment strategy used and/or fees and expenses. The Manager will monitor and seek to manage such risk and minimise tracking error. There can be no assurance of exact or identical replication at any time of the performance of the Index.

The risk factors mentioned above are not exhaustive. Please refer to the relevant offering documents for further details of the Sub-Fund

This material has not been reviewed by the Securities and Futures Commission.

Disclaimer:
The information is for general reference only and does not constitute any investment advice, offer, or invitation, nor does it constitute an invitation to buy or sell any financial products. Investment involves risks. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. This material has not been reviewed by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong. Issued by and copyright held by Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., Limited.

Index Provider Disclaimer:
HKEX Indices and Benchmarks Limited and Korea Exchange, Inc (“KRX”) (collectively, “Joint Owners”), their respective affiliates, information providers and any other third parties (“Relevant Parties”) involved in, or related to, computation, compilation, publication, dissemination, or provision of HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index do not sponsor, endorse, sell, or promote the Bosera HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index ETF (the “Product”) and make no representation or warranty, express or implied, and shall have no liability to any person including the owners of the Product or any member of the public with regard to the Product including regarding the legality, suitability, advisability of investing in the underlying assets or financial products generally, or in the Product in particular.

The Joint Owners’ only relationship with Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., Limited (if any) is the licensing of HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index and certain trademarks, service marks, and/or trade names of the Joint Owners or their respective affiliates. HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index and such marks and trade names are the exclusive property of the Joint Owners and their respective affiliates. HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index is determined, composed, and calculated by Relevant Parties without regard to the Product or its performance. Relevant Parties may cease to compute, compile or publish HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index and may change its computation from time to time without liability to any person and have no obligation to take the needs of Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., Limited or the investors of the Product into consideration in determining, composing, or calculating HKEX KRX Semiconductor Index.

RELEVANT PARTIES DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, RELIABILITY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF HKEX KRX SEMICONDUCTOR INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN.

RELEVANT PARTIES MAKE NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAWS, SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY OF ANY KIND TO ANY PERSON WITH RESPECT TO HKEX KRX SEMICONDUCTOR INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION (I) THE RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY BOSERA ASSET MANAGEMENT (INTERNATIONAL) CO., LIMITED, INVESTORS IN THE PRODUCT, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF HKEX KRX SEMICONDUCTOR INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN; (II) USEFULNESS, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO HKEX KRX SEMICONDUCTOR INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN; (III) THE ABILITY OF HKEX KRX SEMICONDUCTOR INDEX TO TRACK GENERAL MARKET PERFORMANCE OR GENERAL PERFORMANCE OF ANY UNDERLYING ASSETS, THEIR PRICES OR OTHERWISE.

An investor by subscribing or purchasing the Product will be regarded as having acknowledged, understood and accepted the disclaimer above.

Hashtag: #Bosera

Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., Limited

The 2026 edition marked an important evolution of the MIHAS Awards, with a stronger emphasis on future-ready business practices, emerging technologies, digitalisation, sustainability and inclusive growth. The awards recognised companies not only for what they have achieved, but also for how they are innovating, adapting and creating sustainable value in an increasingly competitive and technology-driven global marketplace.

A total of 13 awards were presented across three core flagship categories, namely the Excellence Awards; Innovation, Sustainability & Digitalisation Awards; and, for the first time, the Women in Export (WiEX) Awards.

Introduced for the first time in 2026, the WiEX Awards recognise exceptional women-led businesses across the Excellence and Innovation, Sustainability & Digitalisation categories, reinforcing MIHAS’s commitment to promoting greater inclusivity and recognising the important contributions of women entrepreneurs and business leaders to the growth and internationalisation of the halal economy.

The 2026 awards placed greater emphasis on innovation, sustainability and digitalisation as drivers of competitiveness. In particular, the assessment recognised businesses that are leveraging digital solutions and emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), to enhance products and services, improve business processes, strengthen market reach, and create new sources of value.

This broader approach reflects the changing nature of the global halal industry, where competitiveness increasingly extends beyond product quality and commercial performance to encompass technology adoption, responsible business practices, innovation capability and the ability to respond to rapidly changing market demands.

The MIHAS Awards 2026 were open to eligible Malaysian and international exhibitors participating in MIHAS 2026. Entries underwent a comprehensive and structured evaluation process, comprising pre-assessment and pitching sessions before an independent panel of judges. The pitching component provided applicants with an opportunity to demonstrate their business achievements, innovation capabilities, sustainability initiatives and use of digital technologies and emerging solutions.

To further strengthen the integrity, transparency and credibility of the awards, an independent external auditor was appointed to observe and validate the evaluation process.

The winners were announced at the official MIHAS Awards 2026 ceremony under the following award categories:

• Product / Service Excellence Awards;
• Product / Service Emerging Star Awards;
• Product / Service Innovation, Sustainability and Digitalisation Awards;
• WiEX Product / Service Excellence Awards; and
• WiEX Product / Service Innovation, Sustainability and Digitalisation Awards.

Chairman of MATRADE, YB Dato’ Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican, said the evolution of the MIHAS Awards reflects the changing priorities of the global halal industry and the need for businesses to remain future-ready.

“The MIHAS Awards are no longer only about recognising excellence achieved today. They are also about recognising the capabilities that will shape the halal industry of tomorrow. This year, we have placed greater emphasis on innovation, sustainability, digitalisation and emerging technologies because these are increasingly important to how businesses compete and create value globally.

“The winners recognised today have demonstrated the resilience, creativity and forward-thinking capabilities needed to navigate a rapidly changing global marketplace. Through the MIHAS Awards, we hope to inspire more companies to innovate, embrace technology, compete internationally and contribute meaningfully to the continued growth of the global halal economy,” he said.

Chief Executive Officer of MATRADE, YBhg. Dato’ Indera Abu Bakar Yusof, said the quality and diversity of entries reflected the increasing sophistication and maturity of businesses within the halal ecosystem.

“The entries received this year demonstrate that businesses in the halal ecosystem are continuously evolving, innovating and adapting to meet the demands of a rapidly changing global market. What stood out this year was the increasing recognition of sustainability, digitalisation and emerging technologies as integral components of business competitiveness and long-term growth”.

“The introduction of the WiEX Awards and the strengthened assessment framework further broaden the scope of the MIHAS Awards, while the independent validation of the evaluation process by an external auditor, reinforces our commitment to credibility and transparency. Congratulations to all the winners and finalists for their outstanding achievements and for demonstrating the dynamism and diversity of the global halal industry,” he said.

Looking ahead, the MIHAS Awards will continue to evolve in line with developments across the global halal ecosystem, with greater recognition for businesses that demonstrate measurable impact, technological adoption, responsible and sustainable growth, innovation and international market potential.

The awards will continue to serve not only as a platform to celebrate achievement, but also as a catalyst for businesses to raise their standards, embrace new technologies, pursue sustainable growth and strengthen their global competitiveness.

The MIHAS Awards 2026 therefore marks more than a celebration of this year’s achievements. It represents a continued commitment to shaping a more innovative, sustainable, digitally enabled and inclusive halal economy – and to recognising the businesses that are helping to build it.

Hashtag: #MIHAS

Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2026

MATRADE

Flagship Halal Showcase Connects Exporters Across 58 Countries, Unifying Global Sourcing, Sector MoUs, and Industry Knowledge Hubs

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA – Media OutReach Newswire – 25 September 2026 – The Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2026 which is organised by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) from 23 to 26 September 2026, moved into its third day on a high note today, as it sets to meet its target number of visitors. This year’s edition which features 2,000 booths alongside 1,700 exhibitors and 450 buyers representing 58 countries remains firmly on track to achieve its total target of 50,000 business visitors. As of day 2, the showcase has already drawn 30,000 visitors, demonstrating sustained local and international interest and poised to be the most attended Halal edition of MIHAS thus far.

Further cementing its role as a premier platform for tangible international partnerships, MIHAS 2026 witnessed the exchange of key strategic agreements, including a milestone Letter of Intent (LOI) between MATRADE and Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM). This strategic collaboration establishes the Halal Development Officer (HDO) Programme under the Malaysia Halal Global Nexus (MyHGN) initiative, empowering MATRADE officers stationed worldwide to guide global industries on Malaysia’s Halal ecosystem, strengthen international certification recognition, and drive Halal exports.

GhaS was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister YAB Dato’ Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on behalf of the Prime Minister of Malaysia, at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC), Kuala Lumpur today. The strategic and inclusive importance of this national platform was underscored by the distinguished presence of key government leaders, from the Ministries and Agencies relating to the Malaysian Halal ecosystem. Their joint attendance reflects the highest level of Government commitment to positioning Malaysia as the premier global Halal hub, seamlessly aligning robust Shariah governance with international trade promotion.

Hosted by the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM), GHaS serves as Malaysia’s flagship platform for global Halal diplomacy, governance, and capacity-building. GhaS brings together Government certification bodies, relevant Government agencies, Islamic scholars, policy makers, and global industry leaders, in one platform to build technical capacity, streamline international compliance, and facilitate seamless market access for Malaysian companies.

Beyond the showcase and business matchmaking, MIHAS 2026 offers a complete enablement ecosystem for Halal enterprises. MATRADE’s Knowledge Hub delivers actionable market intelligence featuring industry leaders from DHL Express Malaysia, UOB Malaysia, and Farm Fresh Malaysia, while the Women in Export (WiEX) initiative showcases 80 women-led booths. Celebrating excellence across the ecosystem, the prestigious MIHAS Awards honours standout industry innovators, recognising exceptional achievements in product innovation, sustainability, and global market expansion.

Since its inception in 2004, MIHAS has generated more than RM35.0 billion in export sales and drawn over half a million business visitors from around the world. Now in its 22nd edition, the showcase continues to chart new frontiers in positioning Malaysia at the heart of the global Halal economy.

Hashtag: #MIHAS

Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2026

MATRADE

Source: KOF Swiss Economic Institute

Zürich, 25 September 2026, 9:00h CEST

The economists surveyed by the KOF Swiss Economic Institute expect gross domestic product (GDP, adjusted for major sporting events) to grow by 1.7% and 1.6% in 2026 and 2027 respectively. They thus significantly revise their June forecast upward. Investment and exports are also expected to rise more sharply, while expectations regarding unemployment, consumer prices, and exchange rates remain virtually unchanged.

Macroeconomic forecast

The participants of the KOF Consensus Forecast have revised their forecasts for GDP growth in the current year significantly upwards. The consensus figure in September stands at 1.7% (unadjusted for major sporting events: 2.1%); in June, it was still at 0.9% (unadjusted for major sporting events: 1.1%). The forecasts for economic growth in the coming year and in five years’ time have also been revised upwards: forecasters now expect growth rates of 1.6% and 1.7% respectively (June: 1.5% and 1.6%).

Economic experts expect a stronger increase in real fixed investment both this year and next. Forecasts for 2026 have been revised upwards from 0.9% to 1.5%, and those for 2027 from 1.8% to 2.2%. Construction investment has been revised significantly: it is expected to rise by 2.4% this year and by 1.9% next year (June: 1.4% and 1.6%). For investment in equipment, the forecast growth rate averages 1.2% and 2.3% (June: 0.7% and 2.0%). Economists have also significantly raised their expectations regarding developments in foreign trade: compared with the last survey, they have revised their consensus forecast for the current year from 0.5% to 2.5% and for the coming year from 2.0% to 2.3%.

Year-on-year change rate (except unemployment rate)

Inflation and labour market

Compared with the previous survey, the expected inflation rates for all three forecast horizons have been revised downwards. For 2026 and 2027, the participants forecast now average rates of change in the consumer price index of 0.6% and 0.7% (June: 0.7% and 0.8%). In five years’ time, they expect a rate of change of 0.8% (June: 0.9%). The outlook for the Swiss labour market remains virtually unchanged. The unemployment rate is again expected to reach 3.1% for the current year, 3.0% for 2027 and 2.9% in five years’ time.

Financial markets

Survey respondents expect the short-term interest rate to fall in the coming months (note: the survey ended before the SNB’s interest rate decision). For the three-month period, the average response is 0.03%. The average expected value of the SARON in twelve months’ time is 0.23%; accordingly, a majority of the economic experts surveyed expect an interest rate move within a year. As regards the yield on a 10-year Swiss Confederation bond, economists expect a figure of 0.51% in three months’ time and 0.57% in one year’s time.

According to the Consensus Forecast, the exchange rate of the Swiss franc against the euro, which has risen over the past two months, is likely to remain roughly at this level in the coming months. The forecast figures stand at 0.93 CHF/EUR for a three-month horizon and 0.92 CHF/EUR for a twelve-month horizon. A slight decline is expected in the Swiss franc’s exchange rate against the US dollar. On average, the experts forecast an exchange rate of 0.81 CHF/USD for three months and 0.80 CHF/USD for twelve months from now.

Compared with the results of the previous survey in June 2026, respondents to this survey wave are more cautious in their assessment of the short-term outlook for the Swiss stock market. Forecasters expect the Swiss Performance Index (SPI) to stand at around 19’725 points in three months’ time, which is slightly below the current level. In twelve months’ time, the index is expected to stand at 20’633 points, meaning that the SPI is likely to gain significantly in value in the medium term.

Detailed results

Veränderung gegenüber Vorjahr in Prozent (ausser Arbeitslosenquote)

Participants

Seventeen economists participated in the KOF Institute’s 123rd Consensus Forecast. The survey was conducted from 3 to 23 September 2026. Participants report their forecasts for the years 2026, 2027, and 2031 regarding macroeconomic variables (GDP growth (both adjusted and unadjusted for sporting events), construction and equipment investment, exports, price levels, and unemployment rate) as well as financial market indicators (short- and long-term interest rates, exchange rates, and stock market performance). The Consensus Forecast is derived from the averaged responses. The Consensus Forecast draws on the expertise of economists from the business sector, government, and academia to forecast economic developments. The expert survey should not be confused with the KOF Institute’s economic forecast. The KOF Institute publishes its next economic forecast on 30 September 2026.

Economists from the following institutions participated in the 123rd Consensus:

For further information on the KOF Consensus Forecast, please visit the KOF Consensus Forecast website.

Official release: KOF Swiss Economic Institute.

Three-phase roadmap prioritizes photonics, power semiconductors, and sensors to advance the “Made in Thailand” chip initiative, targeting over 230,000 new jobs.

BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 September 2026 – Thailand has approved its first national strategy for the semiconductor and advanced electronics industry, establishing a long-term framework to build an integrated domestic ecosystem spanning chip research and design, front-end manufacturing, conventional and advanced assembly, packaging and testing, and high-value electronics applications.

Approved on Thursday by the National Semiconductor and Advanced Electronics Policy Board, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Mr. Ekniti Nitithanprapas, the strategy targets about $80 billion in cumulative investment and about $150 billion in annual industry revenue by 2050. It also aims to create more than 230,000 new jobs under Thailand’s long-term “Made in Thailand” chip initiative.

“This is Thailand’s first comprehensive national framework for building semiconductor capabilities and moving the country into higher-value activities across the global supply chain,” said Mr. Ekniti. “It gives investors a clear view of our technology priorities, infrastructure commitments and workforce-development plan through 2050.”

The roadmap will be implemented in three phases. By 2030, Thailand will reinforce its established assembly and testing base, scale advanced packaging capabilities and lay the foundations for front-end wafer production. By 2040, it will seek more anchor investors in upstream activities, including chip design, wafer fabrication and advanced-technology manufacturing, to fill gaps in the supply chain. By 2050, Thailand aims to have a complete domestic supply chain. Thai companies are expected to grow into local champions that co-develop innovation and hold key positions in the chain.

The strategy identifies three priority technology platforms aligned with Thailand’s industrial strengths and global demand: photonics for artificial intelligence, data centers and high-speed communications; power semiconductors for electric vehicles, energy-storage systems and power grids; and sensors, building on Thailand’s micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) capabilities, for connected devices, automation, automotive, smart devices and medical applications.

Implementation will be supported through five coordinated mechanisms: tax incentives, grants and low-interest financing; high-skilled workforce development with industry and academic partners; upgraded research and chip-design infrastructure and partnerships between foreign and Thai companies; investment-ready infrastructure, including cluster sites, reliable water and electricity, clean energy and disaster-resilience systems; and regulatory reform and business facilitation for foreign investors and Thai suppliers including a broader market access through FTAs.

The board also approved a workforce program under the national strategy coordinated by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation with universities, research institutes, industry and international partners. By 2030, the program aims to develop 86,600 people, including 84,900 highly skilled personnel and approximately 1,700 advanced researchers, through specialized curricula, industry placements, overseas training, and programs for faculty members, researchers and technical instructors.

The strategy builds on strong investment momentum. From 2023 through the first half of 2026, the BOI received investment-promotion applications for 879 semiconductor and advanced electronics projects worth about $27.2 billion (909 billion baht). The projects span chip production at various stages, printed circuit boards (PCBs), hard disk drives, AI servers, networking and power-management equipment, and electronic parts for vehicles and office equipment.

Infineon Technologies, the world’s largest maker of power semiconductors and automotive chips, will open its first Thai factory in Samut Prakan on Oct. 1. The facility will produce and package advanced power modules for electric vehicles, energy storage, clean energy and advanced electronics. Infineon also plans to establish an R&D center, develop joint curricula with Thai educational institutions and employ more than 5,000 people in Thailand at full operation.

Thailand’s expanding ecosystem also includes Foxsemicon Integrated Technology in semiconductor-equipment supply, Analog Devices in analog and mixed-signal chips, Zhen Ding Technology in printed circuit boards, Terahop in optical communications, and Malaysian Pacific Industries (MPI) in semiconductor assembly, packaging and testing.

“The ‘Made in Thailand’ chip initiative will bring together the country’s technology, infrastructure, investment and talent through a strong, coordinated and comprehensive national plan to turn this ambition into reality,” said Mr. Narit Therdsteerasukdi, Secretary General of the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI). “For semiconductor investors, specialized talent is as critical to site selection as infrastructure and incentives. The strategy is also designed to provide a dependable workforce pipeline for faster ramp-up and long-term expansion.”

Note: Investment, revenue and job figures are strategy targets. The U.S. dollar equivalent of 909 billion baht is based on an exchange rate of approximately 33.44 baht per dollar.

https://www.boi.go.th/en/index/

Hashtag: #Thailandboardofinvestment #BOI #FDI #Investment

Thailand Board of Investment (BOI)

The collaboration brings together three entities licensed by the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC): Luno, a registered Recognised Market Operator (Digital Asset Exchange), as well as Halogen Capital and Kenanga Investors, both Capital Markets Services Licence (CMSL) holders operating tokenised funds and mandates.

The initiative aims to demonstrate real-time Delivery-versus-Payment (DvP) settlement for fund subscriptions and redemptions, reducing the settlement windows that currently apply on conventional rails.

About the Initiative

UMYR is proposed to be issued by a dedicated, ring-fenced issuance entity within the Luno group, and backed one-for-one by Ringgit held onshore in a segregated account with a regulated banking partner.

Under the proposed initiative:

• Luno (Issuer) will mint and burn UMYR on a strict 1:1 basis against Ringgit received or disbursed, manage institutional onboarding and wallet whitelisting, and provide daily reserve reconciliations supported by independent third-party reserve attestations.
• Halogen Capital and Kenanga Investors (Fund Partners) will participate as use-case fund managers, accepting UMYR for subscription and redemption settlements into their tokenised money market funds, while retaining sole responsibility for fund management, unit registry and investor obligations under their CMSL licences.

The initiative is designed as a closed-loop, business-to-business arrangement among whitelisted institutional participants. No retail clients will be onboarded, involved or served during the stablecoin initiative.

Scarlett Chai, Country Manager (Malaysia), Luno said, “With Malaysia’s digital asset ecosystem moving from foundational setup to institutional capability, infrastructure like UMYR is essential. By providing a 1:1 Ringgit-backed, fully segregated settlement instrument, we are showing how on-chain liquidity and real-time DvP settlement can operate seamlessly and responsibly within Malaysia’s existing regulatory framework alongside licensed industry leaders.”

Hann Liew, Founder and CEO, Halogen Capital, said, “As an early adopter of tokenised funds in Malaysia, testing UMYR as a dedicated settlement instrument aligns perfectly with our vision for modern asset management. Working within a regulated framework alongside SC-licensed partners ensures we can deliver faster, safer fund operations for institutional participants.”

Datuk Wira Ismitz Matthew De Alwis, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, Kenanga Investors, said, “This will further complement our asset tokenisation efforts. Paired with next-generation settlement infrastructure, we believe that the initiative will bring the industry much closer to unlocking the full benefits of tokenisation, building on the foundations we established with the launch of Myrra and Malaysia’s first tokenised funds. As we explore this opportunity, our fiduciary obligations remain unchanged, and we will continue to engage closely with regulators.”

What this means for Malaysia’s Capital Markets

The collaboration marks a step towards testing regulated digital asset infrastructure alongside Malaysia’s existing fund management ecosystem. Key features of the proposed initiative include:

• Faster settlement: Real-time DvP settlement for fund subscriptions and redemptions, compared with conventional settlement windows.
• Full reserve backing: UMYR is designed to be backed 1:1 by Ringgit held onshore in segregated accounts, with daily reconciliation and independent attestation.
• Responsible innovation: By testing UMYR with regulated Parties, it ensures future development of on-chain settlement in Malaysia rests on tested controls rather than untested assumptions.

Building Regulated Digital Asset Infrastructure for Malaysia

The initiative builds on Luno’s track record as the first digital asset exchange regulated by the SC, trusted by over 1 million Malaysians and offering the country’s largest SC-approved list of digital assets. By bringing a fully reserved, Ringgit-backed settlement instrument together with tokenised funds managed by licensed capital market institutions, the Parties aim to show how blockchain settlement can operate within, rather than around, Malaysia’s regulatory framework.

It records the Parties’ commercial intent to collaborate and does not itself constitute a commitment to launch UMYR or the initiative. Participation remains subject to regulatory engagement and the execution of definitive agreements.

The partnership was announced at the Luno Institutional Digital Asset Conference (LIDAC), Malaysia’s flagship digital asset conference for institutions. Held at M Resort & Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, the conference examined the next phase of Malaysia’s digital asset industry, spanning stablecoins, tokenisation, real-world assets, custody and compliance.

Over 500 institutional fund managers, financial advisors, regulators, compliance leaders and Web3 pioneers from across the region gathered to discuss best practices in custody, compliance and risk management. Building on the inaugural edition in 2025, this year’s programme reflected a market moving from establishing foundations to building the infrastructure, governance and institutional capabilities needed for responsible adoption at scale.

For further information, visit Luno Malaysia’s official Facebook and Instagram pages.

Hashtag: #Kenanga #Fintech #Luno #KenangaInvestmentBankBerhad

About Kenanga Investors Berhad 199501024358 (353563-P)

About Luno

Over 4,000 high-impact B2B meetings scheduled to connect local exporters with top global buyers

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA – Media OutReach Newswire – 23 September 2026 – The 22nd Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) opens today at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) in Kuala Lumpur. The showcase commences with its signature International Sourcing Programme (INSP), facilitating over 4,000 scheduled pre-arranged meetings between Malaysian exporters and international buyers from 58 economies.

The INSP will once again serve as the primary growth driver, leveraging high-intensity B2B matchings to convert pre-vetted, high-intent global buyers into immediate export orders for Malaysian businesses. Demonstrating strong international demand, this year’s programme brings together around 450 buyers, including 50 premium buyers.

Participating buyers represent a balanced mix of traditional and non-traditional markets, highlighting the INSP’s global footprint. First-time participating economies, including Comoros and Rwanda, are tapping directly into Malaysia’s established Halal ecosystem to source high-quality products and services. As the global Halal market scales toward USD10 trillion by 2030, the INSP offers local exporters the strategic foothold needed to capture premium market share.

In terms of regional turnout, Northeast Asia and ASEAN anchor the buyer contingents, closely followed by expanding representation from Africa as a key non-traditional growth market. This broad multi-regional footprint underscores the widespread international demand for Malaysian Halal products and reinforces our standing as the premier global Halal hub.

“The INSP represents the core engine and ‘soul’ of MIHAS. With international buyers actively seeking high-quality Malaysian Halal products and services, our local SMEs must take full advantage of this platform. This strategic initiative has always served as a direct catalyst for local businesses, unlocking their access to high-value global trade networks and driving sustainable, long-term export growth”, stated Dato’ Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican, Chairman of MATRADE.

“The commercial calibre of these buyers directly advances Malaysia’s export diversification. With premium buyers representing nearly RM700 billion in combined annual revenue, procurement spans beyond standard F&B into specialised ingredients, biotechnology, Islamic finance, logistics, and education, driving our shift toward services-led exports and deeper global supply chain integration”, he added.

The physical International Sourcing Programme (INSP) takes place today, 23 September 2026, at MITEC, alongside the virtual INSP component running from 1 April to 30 November 2026. Beyond the on-site B2B sessions, up to 150 international virtual buyers will participate remotely to conduct business with local exporters. Visitor registration remains open via the official MIHAS 2026 portal at https://register.mihas.com.my/visitor/register

Hashtag: #MIHAS

Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) 2026

MATRADE

With more than 33 years of experience in Thailand’s life insurance industry, Mr. Sara Lamsam has played a significant role in shaping MTL’s transformation while contributing to the wider development of Thailand’s insurance sector. His leadership philosophy is rooted in continuous learning, cross-domain expertise, and the belief that sustainable growth must ultimately create meaningful value for customers and society. Beyond MTL, his work as Chairman of the Federation of Thai Insurance Organizations has contributed to industry reforms, including the “New Health Standard” and “Digital Face-to-Face” protocols.

Under his leadership, MTL achieved a historic milestone in 2025, recording a net profit exceeding 10 billion Baht for the first time in the company’s history. The company also recorded 10% year-on-year growth in New Business Premium, driven in part by a 249% increase in Investment-Linked products and 24% growth in individual Critical Illness coverage. Its Net Promoter Score rose to 78, while its Capital Adequacy Ratio exceeded 350%, significantly above the regulatory requirement.

MTL’s achievements are supported by a strong focus on customer-centric innovation. Through its “Go Healthier with MTL” strategy, the company is building an integrated health ecosystem that brings together products, digital services, distribution channels, and healthcare partnerships. Initiatives such as D Health Life and the MTL Smile Hospital Network, which now includes 165 participating hospitals, demonstrate MTL’s efforts to make quality healthcare protection more accessible and responsive to evolving customer needs.

Equally central to MTL’s long-term success is its commitment to sustainability and responsible growth. The company achieved an ESG Risk Rating of 19.9 (“Low Risk”) from Morningstar Sustainalytics and has established a clear pathway toward Net Zero emissions by 2030, while continuing to strengthen financial inclusion, health equity, and community well-being.

With a clear ambition to become the “No.1 Most Trusted Partner in Life & Health Planning”, MTL continues to combine technology, sustainability, and human capital development to strengthen its position as a regional life insurance leader. Through Sara Lamsam’s visionary leadership and an organization-wide commitment to excellence, MTL is building a future where protection extends beyond insurance—to healthier, more secure, and more empowered lives.

Hashtag: #MuangThaiLifeAssurance

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Empowering global enterprises across software, electronics, logistics, gaming, IT and entertainment to enhance efficiency and accelerate innovation through full-stack cloud and AI solutions.

HANGZHOU, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 23 September 2026 – Alibaba Cloud, a leading global provider of AI infrastructure and the intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, today announced its latest global infrastructure expansion plan at the 2026 Apsara Conference, alongside a series of new AI capabilities designed to help enterprises build, deploy and scale AI applications more efficiently. The technology company has also announced its comprehensive collaboration with global enterprises including Panasonic Digital, Unity China, Lion Parcel, Loomi Entertainment Group and SHAKE to accelerate enterprise innovation via its advanced AI and cloud technologies.

Over the next 12 months, Alibaba Cloud will establish its first cloud regions in Türkiye, Finland and the Netherlands, while expanding its data center footprint in Malaysia, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, France and Hong Kong. The expansion will further increase Alibaba Cloud’s global computing capacity and strengthen its ability to provide localized cloud and AI services to customers across key markets. The cloud leader currently operates 107 availability zones in 31 regions around the world.

“As Alibaba Cloud has advanced from AI-native infrastructure to an Agent-Native Cloud architecture, AI is also moving rapidly from experimentation to real-world deployment, creating demand for both scalable infrastructure and more accessible AI capabilities,” said Dr. Feifei Li, Chief Technology Officer and President of International Business of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. “We are expanding our global cloud footprint to bring computing resources closer to customers and partners, while continuing to evolve our AI technologies to help enterprises deploy models, optimize multi-model workloads and create new AI-powered applications. At the same time, our growing ecosystem of customers and partners demonstrates how these capabilities can translate into tangible business value across industries and markets. We are committed to working closely with our global ecosystem to make AI more scalable, practical and accessible for businesses.”

At the conference, Alibaba Cloud launched three new AI solutions to help international businesses build and scale production-grade applications. Smart Studio, an out-of-the-box product designed to help businesses build dedicated Model-as-a-Service (MaaS) platforms in minutes. It provides everything needed to package, price, meter, and bill model APIs under their own brand. Its advanced inference architecture delivers up to 505% higher throughput than standard open-source frameworks on the same hardware.

Smart Fusion serves as an intelligent engine that helps users and businesses achieve state-of-the-art model performance at low cost through a unified standard model API. The engine supports multi-model collaboration within one task, selecting the best-suited available models to work together by analyzing real-time dimensions. By abstracting multi-model deployment into a single endpoint, it can help reduce token spending by around 50%.

Smart Video is an AI video agent designed for short-drama studios and advertisers to automatically create videos up to one hour long. With a single prompt, creators can turn an idea into a finished cut, while continuously refining it through natural language. The platform supports multiple video models, including Wan, and offers seamless support for more than 20 languages.

Turning AI Innovation into Real-World Impact

Alibaba’s cloud and AI technologies are helping customers and partners across industries address diverse business needs, from digital transformation and enterprise applications to logistics, gaming and AI-powered content creation. Through collaborations with enterprises including Panasonic Digital, Unity China, Lion Parcel, Loomi Entertainment Group and SHAKE, Alibaba Cloud is enabling businesses to enhance efficiency, accelerate innovation and explore new opportunities with cloud and AI.

Panasonic Digital (Shanghai) has partnered with Alibaba Cloud to accelerate its comprehensive digital and AI transformation. Leveraging Alibaba Cloud’s Bailian (Model Studio) to securely access the Qwen models, alongside advanced data management tools like DataWorks, MaxCompute, and Hologres, Panasonic has built a custom capability hub that powers specialized AI agents across manufacturing, supply chain, and corporate functions.
This collaboration has delivered significant operational benefits. It has achieved an 80% reduction in documentation time through automated meeting minutes, a 10-fold increase in contract review efficiency using the “Smart Compare” agent, and enhanced data-driven decision-making by empowering non-technical staff to perform complex inventory analyses using natural language—all while ensuring strict data security and compliance through Alibaba Cloud’s robust governance features.

“We are very grateful for our strategic collaboration with Alibaba Cloud, which has been instrumental in accelerating Panasonic Digital’s enterprise-wide AI transformation. By seamlessly integrating their world-class AI models and robust data infrastructure into our operations, we have successfully moved beyond isolated IT optimizations to build a highly scalable, secure, and unified intelligence platform,” said Yueming Li, Head of GenAI Innovation & Workforce, Panasonic Digital (Shanghai).

Unity China, a leading game engine and real-time 3D development platform that operates the Tuanjie Engine, has leveraged Alibaba Cloud’s Model Studio to deploy Qwen and third-party foundation models for Tuanjie AI-Codely, its AI-native engineering platform. Unity is a leading game engine and real-time 3D development platform. The platform streamlines production-scale game development by automating mission-critical workflows, including code comprehension, real-time editing, and debugging, while supporting cross-team collaboration.
“Game development is becoming increasingly complex, and our goal with Tuanjie AI is to remove technical friction so creators can focus on innovation and gameplay,” said Junbo Zhang, CEO of Unity China. “Alibaba Cloud’s Model Studio and the Qwen model family provide the performance, flexibility, and low latency our developers require. By integrating these advanced AI capabilities directly into the development pipeline, we are enabling studios to debug, iterate, and bring ambitious game projects to life faster than ever before.”

Lion Parcel, a leading Indonesian logistics and delivery provider, has leveraged Alibaba’s Qwen model to improve its finance and document processing workflows. To eliminate time-consuming and error-prone manual data transcription, Lion Parcel deployed the Qwen-VL-Plus model through Alibaba’s Model Studio platform to automate routine workflows. Supported by Alibaba Cloud’s fully managed platform and predictable pay-per-token pricing, Lion Parcel has significantly accelerated processing efficiency, maximized data accuracy, and established a centralized digital repository that boosts overall business scalability.
“Alibaba Cloud’s OCR solution powered by Qwen helped us accelerate Document Order processing in Finance. It’s improving accuracy while saving both time and operational costs,” said Probosetyo Krishna, Head of IT, Lion Parcel.

Loomi Entertainment Group (LEG), a Malaysia-based entertainment company, has partnered with Alibaba Cloud to accelerate the adoption of AI-generated content (AIGC) among creators and businesses in Malaysia and the wider region. LEG has integrated Alibaba ‘s visual generation models, including Wan and HappyHorse through Model Studio, into Imaginary, its proprietary cinematic AI engine. The integration enables high-quality video and visual generation, streamlines content production workflows, and helps reduce production costs. Additionally, the two companies have hosted two AIGC hackathons and trained more than 100 local content creators through online and offline workshops, providing creators with practical exposure to the latest generative AI tools and applications. Alibaba Cloud and LEG are also exploring the use of Wan in Loomi’s micro-drama production pipeline, alongside joint go-to-market initiatives and talent development programmes.
“Alibaba Cloud’s advanced AI models give creators new ways to turn ideas into engaging content more efficiently. Through this partnership, we look forward to bringing AIGC capabilities to more creators in Malaysia and the wider region, while exploring new possibilities for AI-powered content production,” said Ivan Tan, CTO of Loomi Entertainment Group.

SHAKE, a pioneer in agentic resource planning (ARP) for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), is leveraging Alibaba Cloud’s powerful compute resources and Qwen models to expand its services across APAC markets. Through this partnership, SHAKE is building a proprietary AI model based on Qwen to deliver highly optimized ARP solutions. Additionally, SHAKE’s ARP services will be featured on the Alibaba Cloud Marketplace, supporting SMBs across industries to seamlessly transition into and thrive in the agentic era.
“By fusing SHAKE’s pioneer expertise in Agentic Resource Planning with Alibaba Cloud’s world-class compute infrastructure and cutting-edge Qwen models, we are unlocking unprecedented value for our customers. This collaboration serves as a powerful catalyst for our regional growth across APAC and marks a monumental milestone in our journey. Together, we are accelerating our vision to empower SMBs with the intelligent tools they need to thrive and scale in the agentic era,” said Sean Hinton, CEO of SHAKE.

AnyMind Group, a BPaaS company for marketing, e-commerce and digital transformation, has today announced a strategic agreement with Alibaba Cloud to integrate Qwen, a family of large language and multimodal AI models developed by Alibaba, into AnyLive, AnyMind Group’s AI-powered live commerce platform. The integration is designed to improve how AnyLive understands customer questions and delivers accurate, contextually relevant responses in real time. Qwen will be added as one of the models within AnyLive’s multi-model AI architecture, utilized and delivered through lifelike AI avatars. Its language understanding capabilities will help AnyLive better interpret customer intent, including conversational or ambiguous questions, and generate more natural and relevant responses across Asian languages.
Akinori Kubo, Managing Director, Global E-Commerce, AnyMind Group, said: “The quality of a live commerce experience depends on how well brands understand customers and respond to their needs in the moment. Adding Qwen to AnyLive’s multi-model stack will strengthen intent analysis and response accuracy across Asian languages, helping brands create live rooms where customers feel understood and can make more informed purchase decisions.”

Hashtag: #AlibabaCloud