Latest news with #JeffreyLam
RTHK
14-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
SAR 'a good platform for Qatar to expand investment'
SAR 'a good platform for Qatar to expand investment' Executive councillor Jeffrey Lam says Qatar is looking to invest in different places around the world. Photo: RTHK Hong Kong and the mainland are well placed to benefit from its outreach efforts to Gulf countries, executive councillor and lawmaker Jeffrey Lam said on Wednesday, with oil-rich Qatar, for example, seeking to transform its economy. Lam, who recently joined Chief Executive John Lee on his trip to the Middle East, said Qatar is focusing more on the use of renewable energy while looking to invest in different places around the world. "Hong Kong is a very good platform for Qatar," he said. "It is also very interested in the mainland Chinese market. "In turn, Hong Kong, together with mainland firms, can bring our products and services to Qatar and other places in the Middle East." Separately, Lam said a leading French aeronautical services company's plan to establish its Asia headquarters in Hong Kong could strengthen the city's status as an international aviation hub. He also said the firm, Elior Group, is looking to set up a family office in the territory. The French company has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Airport Authority to explore the possibility of providing services such as aircraft dismantling, parts recycling and related training in the SAR.
CNA
09-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Singapore's aviation sector takes off to meet demand, but labour shortage could stall growth
MORE FACILITIES Bellwethers like ST Engineering are looking to do more to meet the demand, such as building additional airframe maintenance hangers in Singapore and abroad. "We plan to open a new engine shop later this year so that we have more capacity for engine overhaul," said Mr Jeffrey Lam, president of commercial aerospace at ST Engineering. The facility will provide MRO services for the LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B engines that power narrow-body aircraft, including the new generation Boeing 737 and the Airbus A320. It is expected to provide 200 engine shop visit capacity annually. The company said these additions will boost its man-hours in Singapore by a third next year – to over 4 million annually. "We're hiring more people – in Singapore in particular – so that we can grow the amount of services that we can offer to our global customers," Mr Lam said. The firm wants to add up to 500 staff to its headcount in the next one to two years, with engineer and technician roles certified in avionics and landing gear among the skill demands, added Mr Lam. STRONG AVIATION SECTOR Singapore contributes about 10 per cent of current global MRO output, making it a leading hub in Asia. Industry players believe the nation is well-positioned to leverage the growth. 'For a small country like Singapore, 10 per cent of global market share is very significant,' said Mr Sia, pointing out the aviation sector has recovered well since the COVID-19 pandemic. Between 2022 and 2024, Singapore bagged over S$750 million in investment commitments from aerospace companies. Last year, Changi Airport handled almost 68 million passengers, which is 99 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. National carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its low-cost arm Scoot flew 39 million passengers the same year, 12.7 per cent more than in 2023. 'Singapore has historically been able to attract very high-quality aviation and MRO players to base their facilities here,' said Mr Joshua Ng, director of Alton Aviation Consultancy. 'We think that Singapore is one of the few countries that are poised to tap on this growing demand in the MRO sector.' MANPOWER SHORTAGE However, industry players said ongoing manpower constraints could ground growth. 'MRO capacity is quite limited, and at the same time, the supply chain is highly constrained and talent is in short supply,' said Mr Sia. 'Fortunately, during the pandemic, we were able to maintain a good proportion of our workforce, which allowed us to ramp up to capture the surge in demand.' He added that challenges remain in ensuring that enough people can access opportunities in aerospace, as well as in upskilling and cross-skilling the existing workforce. Currently, efforts to build a talent pipeline include partnerships with educational institutes and career fairs. ROLE OF AI IN MRO Market watchers said artificial intelligence could help to address the staffing shortages by helping mechanics and engineers with routine and tedious work. AI is driving transformation in the sector, allowing jobs to evolve to provide higher value products and services. 'In the past, repairs will only be done when defects are found. (AI will make the process) more proactive and more service oriented… leveraging data to predict whether maintenance (should) happen,' said Mr Ng. AI makes it possible to predict failures before they occur, by monitoring performance data and identifying patterns of degradation, to avoid situations where planes cannot fly due to faulty parts, he added. 'The role of the human now will be more in terms of sense-making, interpreting the data… doing final quality checks, repairs and sign-offs to make sure that everything is in order for the aircraft to fly,' he explained.
South China Morning Post
07-04-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Lawmakers urge Hong Kong stock exchange to speed up reforms, sharpen edge
Lawmakers have urged Hong Kong's stock market operator to quicken its listing reform and other programmes as a way to enhance its market competitiveness and cope with market upheavals induced by a new round of global trade war. Advertisement Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) should implement changes to its listing rules and other improvement plans as soon as possible, lawmakers said in a monthly financial affairs panel at the Legislative Council on Monday, against the backdrop of a global market sell-off. 'The volatile global markets may provide new opportunities for the Hong Kong IPO [initial public offering] market,' said Jeffrey Lam, a member of the city's Executive Council. 'HKEX should speed up the listing approval process and carry out more listing reforms to attract more new listings from leading companies of different markets.' The Hang Seng Index sank 13 per cent to 19,828 on Monday in the worst rout since October 1997. Other Asian markets slumped by 4 per cent to 8 per cent. Markets crashed after China imposed a tit-for-tat 34 per cent tariff on US goods, following President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' package against all its trading partners. 04:47 US tariff storm disrupts global business expansions, but some see opportunities US tariff storm disrupts global business expansions, but some see opportunities 'The Hong Kong stock market has been very volatile, while we also found the initial public offerings were robust in the first quarter,' Lam said. 'Leading companies on the mainland and some overseas companies may consider listing in Hong Kong as the city's market performance is more stable.' Advertisement Joseph Chan Ho-lim, Undersecretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, said the Hong Kong market was trading smoothly despite the volatility. The HKEX reforms have the backing of the government, he added.
