Daily Debrief: What Happened Today (Jun 26)
Government urges private sector to stop using full, partial NRIC numbers for authentication
Authorities say this will better protects citizens from impersonation and having their personal data accessed by others.
Johor's billion-ringgit property market braces for higher foreign-buyer tax
Foreigners are scrambling to seal property deals in the state to beat the Jul 1 levy hike. Industry players are concerned over the short notice.
Singapore's millionaire inflow to halve in 2025: report
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Meanwhile, Thailand emerges as South-east Asia's new safe haven, while China's outflow of affluent individuals slows.
Singapore's factory output growth slows to 3.9% in May, but beats estimates
Nearly all clusters, including electronics, have recorded increases in production year on year.
Chinatown Business Association seeks over S$77,700 in backdated rent from Nanyang Old Coffee for outdoor refreshment area
It is also demanding that the cafe remove items that have encroached into the space, and pay legal costs of S$5,500.
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Business Times
25 minutes ago
- Business Times
Misspelled names may give brands a Lyft – if the spelling is not too weird
CONSUMERS do not mind when companies use misspelled words – think Lyft for 'lift' or Froot Loops for 'fruit loops' – as their brand names, as long as the alterations are not too extreme and the misspelling makes sense. Those are the main findings of a new peer-reviewed paper I published with fellow marketing scholar Leah Warfield Smith. This builds on previous work which found that using misspelled brand names usually backfires. Misspelled brand names like Kool-Aid, Reddi-wip and Crumbl seem to be everywhere. They are especially common in the names of smartphone apps and in certain industries, like fashion. Companies often do this to stand out or perhaps so they can use the misspelled word as their domain name. Despite their popularity, we know little about how consumers respond to different types of misspelled names, especially when those names deviate significantly from correct or standard spelling. Our study aims to fill this gap. In a series of six experiments, we tested consumer reactions to fictional and several real brand names with varying levels and types of misspellings. Mild misspellings, such as combining two real words such as SoftSoap were perceived just as positively as correctly spelled names. When consumers saw different levels of misspellings – consider the brand names Eazy Clean, Eazy Klean and Eezy Kleen – they reacted more negatively the further the name deviated from the correct spelling 'easy clean.' BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up However, we also found that relevance matters. A misspelled name that aligns with the product or brand identity can still be successful. For example, consumers responded just as well to Bloo Fog – a playful nod to oolong tea – as to the correctly spelled 'blue fog.' In contrast, Blewe Fog – a misspelling without a linguistic connection to the product's name – performed worse. Other experiments showed similar, more positive effects when the name related to the owner's identity, for example Sintymental Moments by Joe Sinty, or a visual cue as in Toadal Fitness with a toad logo. In each case, the misspelling was more acceptable when it made conceptual sense to consumers. Why it matters The findings suggest that two main concepts play a role in how consumers process brand names: linguistic fluency – or how easily a name is pronounced and read – and conceptual fluency – how easily the meaning of a name is understood or how well it aligns with the product. Linguistic fluency decreases with more severe misspellings, resulting in more negative responses. But if the misspelling adds some kind of meaning – related to the product, person or logo – these adverse effects can be easily mitigated. For marketers and brand strategists, the takeaway is that misspellings can work, but only when they make sense. Naming a tea brand Bloo Fog might succeed where Blewe Fog fails, but only if consumers understand the name-product connection. Understanding when a misspelling helps or hurts a brand is crucial to crafting the right brand name; ideally, one that can be perceived positively while reaping the benefits of misspellings, such as increased memorability, uniqueness or trademark acquisition. What still isn't known While this research uncovers how consumers react to different types of misspellings, it leaves open important questions about long-term effects. For example, do consumers still notice the misspelling in a 60-year-old brand name like Kwik Trip, a convenience store chain in the US Midwest? We also do not know how the effects of misspellings play out across different languages, cultures or product categories. THE CONVERSATION The writer is assistant professor of marketing at University of Tennessee
Business Times
25 minutes ago
- Business Times
Russia expects India to keep buying its oil and seeks China-India-Russia talks
[NEW DELHI] Russia expects to continue supplying oil to India despite warnings from the US, Russian embassy officials in New Delhi said on Wednesday (Aug 20), adding that Moscow hopes trilateral talks will soon take place with India and China. US President Donald Trump has announced an additional tariff of 25 per cent on Indian goods exported to the US from Aug 27, as a punishment for buying Russian oil, which constitutes 35 per cent of India's total imports compared with a negligible 0.2 per cent before the Ukraine war. 'I want to highlight that despite the political situation, we can predict that the same level of oil import (by India),' Roman Babushkin, the charge d'affaires at the Russian embassy in India, told a press briefing. He predicted India and Russia would find ways to overcome Trump's latest tariffs in their 'national interests'. Trade talks between India and the US broke down over the opening up of India's vast farm and dairy sectors, as well as its purchases of Russian oil. The total tariff announced on Indian goods entering the US is 50 per cent. The Indian foreign ministry did not immediately reply to an emailed request for comment. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up It has previously said the US decision to single out India for Russian purchases was 'extremely unfortunate'. Russia's Deputy Trade Commissioner Evgeny Griva on Wednesday said buying oil from Russia is 'very profitable' for India, which will not want to change its supplier. On average Russia gives a 5-to-7 per cent discount to Indian buyers, he said, adding that Russia has a 'very, very special mechanism' to continue oil supplies to India. In addition, he said Russia had started accepting Indian rupee payments for its goods after the resolution of issues that had trapped billions of US dollars worth of funds in Indian banks. 'Greater Eurasian partnership' As tensions between Washington and New Delhi rise, high-profile visits from New Delhi and Beijing in recent weeks have raised hopes on the part of the Asian neighbours that ties damaged by a 2020 border clash can be repaired. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to visit China for the first time in over seven years later this month. The planned visit was reported by Reuters last week, even as other high profile exchanges, including Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's two-day visit to New Delhi, concluded. At the same time, Russia is trying to revive long-standing plans for a trilateral meeting with India and China to help them forge a 'greater Eurasian partnership'. 'As far as the trilateral is concerned, we are quite hopeful that this format will be resumed sooner rather than later because its importance is not questioned,' Babushkin said. 'This is closely linked to the Russian initiative of the establishment of the greater Eurasian partnership,' Babushkin said. Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Modi in New Delhi by the end of year, he said. Putin, Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping are also expected to all attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation starting Aug 31. REUTERS
Business Times
44 minutes ago
- Business Times
Japan's exports log biggest drop in 4 years as US tariff impacts intensify
[TOKYO] Japan's exports posted the biggest monthly drop in about four years in July, government data showed on Wednesday (Aug 20), as the impact of US tariffs intensified, raising concerns about the outlook for the export-reliant economy. Total exports from the world's fourth-largest economy dropped 2.6 per cent year on year in July in value terms, the biggest monthly drop since February 2021, when exports fell 4.5 per cent. It was larger than a median market forecast for a 2.1 per cent decrease and marks a third straight month of decline after a 0.5 per cent drop in June. Despite the plunge in the value of exports, shipment volumes have so far held up as Japanese exporters have avoided major price hikes, said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute. 'But they would eventually have to pass on costs to US consumers and that would further hamper sales in the coming months,' he said. Exports to the US in July fell 10.1 per cent from a year earlier, with automobiles slumping 28.4 per cent and automotive components down 17.4 per cent. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up However, automobile exports fell just 3.2 per cent in volume terms, suggesting Japanese automakers' price cuts and efforts to absorb additional tariffs have partly shielded shipments. The US imposed 25 per cent tariffs on automobiles and auto parts in April and threatened 25 per cent levies on most of Japan's other goods. It later struck a trade deal on Jul 23 that lowered tariffs to 15 per cent in exchange for a US-bound US$550 billion Japanese investment package. The agreed tariff rate on automobiles, Japan's largest export sector, is still far higher than the original 2.5 per cent, exerting pressure on major automakers and parts suppliers. Exports to other regions were also weak. Those to China were down 3.5 per cent, the data showed. Total imports in July dropped 7.5 per cent from a year earlier, compared with market forecasts for a 10.4 per cent fall. As a result, Japan ran a deficit of 117.5 billion yen (S$1 billion) in July, compared with a forecast of a 196.2 billion yen surplus. The outcome follows unexpectedly strong growth in gross domestic product (GDP) in the April-to-June quarter, separate data showed last week, fuelled by surprisingly resilient exports and capital expenditure. Economists said the strong exports growth in GDP data reflected differences in how the impact of price changes is factored in. Nevertheless, Norinchukin's Minami said that the Japanese economy has so far avoided the worst. 'As the tariff deal has at least reduced uncertainties, the Bank of Japan is likely to resume rate hikes as early as in October,' he said. REUTERS
