The plan to repeal and replace “Obamacare,” more formally known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was put in place by President Barack Obama, experienced a rough week in late March 2017, as more Republican leaders sided with Democrats who are feeling reticent about passing the controversial American Health Care Act (AHCA). The defections come after Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports that the bill would result in higher

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in February 2017 published its monthly Composite Leading Indicator (CLI) with data from December 2016. Growth is anticipated to pick-up in the United States, Canada, Japan as well as Germany and France. In the United Kingdom, there are tentative signs of growth gaining momentum, although the CLI remains below trend and uncertainty persists about the nature of the agreement the UK

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) in March 2017 released its Worldwide cost of living 2017 survey. Using a cost-of-living approach, it compares the price of over 150 items in 133 cities around the world. It found that Singapore is the world’s most expensive city for the fourth year running and 20% more expensive than New York and 5% pricier than Hong Kong, which lies in second place. Asia now

AIA Group in March 2017 announced that its CEO and President, Mark Tucker, will retire from his executive positions with the company and its subsidiaries. Tucker will become non-executive Group Chairman of HSBC Holdings, and Ng Keng Hooi will take over for Tucker at AIA as of 1 September, 2017. Hooi, 62, who joined AIA in 2010 and is currently their regional executive, was previously CEO of Great Eastern