Latest news with #NPI
BusinessToday
5 hours ago
- Business
- BusinessToday
IGB REIT Posts 13% Increase In Net Profit To RM92 Million For 2QFY25
For the second quarter ended 30 June 2025, IGB REIT recorded total revenue of RM160.1 million, an increase of 6.8% compared to RM150.0 million in the same quarter last year. NPI rose 9.5% to RM119.9 million, compared to RM109.5 million in 2Q24. Net profit for the quarter came in at RM92 million against RM81 million in the preceding year's quarter. Year-to-date total revenue rose 6.1% to RM331.5 million, compared with RM312.5 million in the same period in 2024. In line with this, NPI increased by 8.2% to RM253.0 million from RM233.7 million. The group said the growth in revenue and NPI were primarily driven by higher rental income during the quarter and current year-to-date. The Manager had approved a distribution of 97.5% of IGB REIT's quarterly distributable income, amounting to RM102.2 million or 2.82 sen per unit. Based on IGB REIT's unit price of RM2.54 as of 30 June 2025, this translates into an annualised distribution yield of 4.77%. The retail sector is expected to face headwinds from rising cost pressures, including electricity tariff hikes, minimum wage increases, and the mandatory 2% EPF contribution for foreign workers. The expanded coverage of the sales and service tax (SST) is also likely to impact consumer spending. In its 28th Malaysia Retail Industry Report, Retail Group Malaysia has also lowered its full-year 2025 retail sales growth forecast downward to 3.1% from 4.3% due to normalised seasonal demand and rising prices. Despite these challenges, IGB REIT is optimistic of long-term opportunities through its expansion strategy. The proposed acquisition of The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey, announced on 24 June 2025 and targeted for completion in 4Q25, is expected to diversify and strengthen its investment property portfolio, supported by strategic developments such as the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) and the Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link. Cross-border spending, aided by a strong Singapore dollar, further reinforces the positive outlook. Related
Business Times
19 hours ago
- Business
- Business Times
Keppel Pacific Oak US Reit H1 distributable income falls 16.2% to US$19.9 million
[SINGAPORE] Keppel Pacific Oak US Reit (Kore) posted a distributable income of US$19.9 million for its first half of the financial year ended Jun 30, down 16.2 per cent from US$23.8 million in the previous corresponding period. The US office-focused real estate investment trust (Reit) blamed lower cash net property income (NPI) and higher other trust expenses for the drop in distributable income, said the manager in a business update on Tuesday (Jul 29). It posted a positive 0.5 per cent rental reversion for the half. No distribution was declared. The manager had previously said it would suspend distributions for two years from H2 FY2023 to H2 FY2025 as part of recapitalisation plans to address capital needs and leverage concerns. For the first half of FY2025, NPI was at US$40.7 million, down 3.2 per cent from US$42 million before. Gross revenue rose 0.2 per cent to US$74.6 million. 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 The weighted average term to maturity of its debt was 2.0 years, said the manager. Additionally, its full portfolio weighted average lease expiry by net lettable area was 3.5 years. Kore's performance had been sliding for some time with the challenging environment faced by the US office market. It posted a 19.3 per cent drop in distributable income in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the first quarter in 2024. In 2024, for H2 and the full year, its distributable income tumbled due to lower cash NPI and higher financing costs.
Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Science
- Toronto Sun
The eye-opening science of close encounters with polar bears
Published Jul 28, 2025 • Last updated 19 minutes ago • 4 minute read For the last four decades experts from the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) have been keeping tabs on the health and movement of polar bears. Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP Longyearbyen (AFP) — It's a pretty risky business trying to take a blood sample from a polar bear — one of the most dangerous predators on the planet — on an Arctic ice floe. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account First you have to find it and then shoot it with a sedative dart from a helicopter before a vet dares approach on foot to put a GPS collar around its neck. Then the blood has to be taken and a delicate incision made into a layer of fat before it wakes. Scientists carefully approach the sedated bear. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP All this with a wind chill of up to minus 30C. For the last four decades experts from the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) have been keeping tabs on the health and movement of polar bears in the Svalbard archipelago, halfway between Norway and the North Pole. Like the rest of the Arctic, global warming has been happening there three to four times faster than elsewhere. Expedition head Jon Aars changes the GPS collar of a female polar bear off Spitzbergen. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP But this year the eight scientists working from the Norwegian icebreaker Kronprins Haakon are experimenting with new methods to monitor the world's largest land carnivore, including for the first time tracking the PFAS 'forever chemicals' from the other ends of the Earth that finish up in their bodies. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. An AFP photographer joined them on this year's eye-opening expedition. Delicate surgery on the ice Global warming has been happening in the Arctic three to four times faster than elsewhere. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP With one foot on the helicopter's landing skid, vet Rolf Arne Olberg put his rifle to his shoulder as a polar bear ran as the aircraft approached. Hit by the dart, the animal slumped gently on its side into a snowdrift, with Olberg checking with his binoculars to make sure he had hit a muscle. If not, the bear could wake prematurely. 'We fly in quickly,' Oldberg said, and 'try to minimize the time we come in close to the bear… so we chase it as little as possible.' After a five- to 10-minute wait to make sure it is asleep, the team of scientists land and work quickly and precisely. French scientist Marie-Anne Blanchet examines bear cubs on the ice before taking biopsies and blood samples from their sedated mother. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP They place a GPS collar around the bear's neck and replace the battery if the animal already has one. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Only females are tracked with the collars because male polar bears — who can grow to 2.6 metres (8.5 feet) — have necks thicker than their heads, and would shake the collar straight off. Olberg then made a precise cut in the bear's skin to insert a heart monitor between a layer of fat and the flesh. 'It allows us to record the bear's body temperature and heart rate all year,' NPI researcher Marie-Anne Blanchet told AFP, 'to see the energy the female bears (wearing the GPS) need to use up as their environment changes.' The first five were fitted last year, which means that for the first time experts can cross-reference their data to find out when and how far the bears have to walk and swim to reach their hunting grounds and how long they rest in their lairs. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The vet also takes a biopsy of a sliver of fat that allows researchers to test how the animal might stand up to stress and 'forever chemicals', the main pollutants found in their bodies. Belgian toxicologist Laura Pirard with samples of fat taken from polar bears and tested using the new 'slice' method. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP 'The idea is to best represent what bears experience in the wild but in a laboratory,' said Belgian toxicologist Laura Pirard, who is testing the biopsy method on the mammals. Eating seaweed It has already shown that the diet of Svalbard's 300 or so bears is changing as the polar ice retreats. Polar bears are changing their diet and travelling further to eat. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP The first is that they are eating less seals and more food from the land, said Jon Aars, the lead scientist of the NPI's polar bear programme. 'They still hunt seals, but they also take eggs and reindeer — they even eat (sea)grass and things like that, even though it provides them with no energy.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. But seals remain their essential food source, he said. 'Even if they only have three months to hunt, they can obtain about 70 percent of what they need for the entire year during that period. That's probably why we see they are doing okay and are in good condition' despite the huge melting of the ice. A male polar bear attacks a walrus on the sea ice near Spitzbergen. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP But if warming reduces their seal hunting further, 'perhaps they will struggle', he warned. 'There are notable changes in their behaviour… but they are doing better than we feared. However, there is a limit, and the future may not be as bright.' 'The bears have another advantage,' said Blanchet, 'they live for a long time, learning from experience all their life. That gives a certain capacity to adapt.' – Success of anti-pollution laws – This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Kronprins Haakon icebreaker carrying the scientists near Spitzbergen and its glaciers. (Olivier MORIN/AFP) Photo by Olivier MORIN / AFP Another encouraging discovery has been the tentative sign of a fall in pollution levels. With some 'bears that we have recaptured sometimes six or eight times over the years, we have observed a decrease in pollutant levels,' said Finnish ecotoxicologist Heli Routti, who has been working on the programme for 15 years. 'This reflects the success of regulations over the past decades.' NPI's experts contribute to the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) whose conclusions play a role in framing regulations or bans on pollutants. 'The concentration of many pollutants that have been regulated decreased over the past 40 years in Arctic waters,' Routti said. 'But the variety of pollutants has increased. We are now observing more types of chemical substances' in the bears' blood and fatty tissues. These nearly indestructible PFAS or 'forever chemicals' used in countless products like cosmetics and nonstick pans accumulate in the air, soil, water and food. Experts warn that they ultimately end up in the human body, particularly in the blood and tissues of the kidney or liver, raising concerns over toxic effects and links to cancer. Canada Editorial Cartoons Sunshine Girls Relationships Editorials
Time Business News
6 days ago
- Health
- Time Business News
Expert Guidance for Building a Successful Mental Health Practice
The growing awareness and acceptance of mental health care have opened the door to new opportunities for mental health professionals. Starting your own private practice is a significant step toward independence, influence, and impact. However, launching a successful mental health practice takes more than clinical skills—it requires business acumen, strategic planning, and a strong understanding of legal and ethical responsibilities. Whether you're a therapist, psychologist, or counselor, setting up a sustainable and client-centered practice involves careful thought, preparation, and ongoing development. This guide offers expert insights to help you establish, grow, and maintain a thriving mental health practice in today's changing healthcare landscape. Establishing a facility that delivers quality psychological services begins with identifying the mental health needs in your target area. To understand how to start a mental health clinic, begin by creating a comprehensive business plan, which includes your service offerings, ideal staffing model, and financial projections. Secure proper licensing, insurance, and accreditation to comply with local and state regulations. Hire qualified clinicians and support staff committed to ethical and effective care. Invest in HIPAA-compliant systems for record-keeping and telehealth options. With a patient-centered approach and strategic outreach, your clinic can become a trusted resource in the community. Before securing a space or designing a website, take time to define your vision for the practice. Consider the population you want to serve, the types of therapy or services you'll offer, and the values that will guide your work. Are you focused on trauma recovery, family therapy, child and adolescent services, or general counseling? Will your practice be solo, group-based, or part of a collaborative network? Your mission and specialty will shape your brand identity, marketing message, and clinical decisions. Having a clear purpose helps you stay focused and grounded as your practice grows and evolves. Every successful mental health practice must operate within state and federal regulations. This includes ensuring you hold the appropriate license for your profession, maintaining malpractice insurance, and understanding the limits of your scope of practice. You'll also need to comply with HIPAA regulations regarding client privacy, as well as state-specific rules about documentation, telehealth, and informed consent. Depending on where you practice, you may also need to register your business, obtain an NPI number, and set up tax accounts. Working with a healthcare attorney or consultant can help ensure you meet all compliance requirements and avoid costly legal issues down the line. The structure of your mental health practice can greatly impact how it operates. You may choose to operate as a sole proprietorship, limited liability company (LLC), or professional corporation. Each structure has different tax implications and liability protections. In addition to deciding your legal entity, you'll also need to make key decisions about pricing, payment methods, and whether you will accept insurance or offer private pay only. Accepting insurance can expand your reach, but also involves credentialing, billing complexity, and lower reimbursement rates. On the other hand, private pay offers more control but may limit access for certain clients. The right model depends on your goals, location, and client demographics. The physical space where therapy takes place matters deeply. Whether you're leasing a private office, sharing space in a wellness center, or working remotely via telehealth, the environment should promote safety, trust, and calmness. For in-person practices, consider factors like noise control, accessibility, lighting, and furniture that creates a warm, therapeutic atmosphere. For virtual practices, ensure you have a private, secure space that meets confidentiality standards and presents a professional background during sessions. The environment you create plays a powerful role in shaping the therapeutic relationship and the client's overall experience. Behind every successful practice is a set of reliable systems that support daily operations. This includes scheduling, billing, documentation, client communication, and marketing. Electronic health record (EHR) systems can simplify note-taking, track progress, manage appointments, and support compliance. Online booking tools and automated reminders can improve client retention and reduce no-shows. Establishing clear policies for cancellations, payments, emergencies, and boundaries will help set expectations and maintain consistency. Running a practice means balancing clinical work with administrative tasks, so efficient systems are essential for managing your time and reducing stress. Today, most clients find mental health professionals online. Building a professional website that clearly communicates who you are, what you offer, and how to get started is one of the most important marketing tools you can invest in. A simple, user-friendly design, clear contact information, and compelling content will help build trust with potential clients. In addition to your website, consider using directories like Psychology Today or GoodTherapy to increase visibility. Forming relationships with physicians, schools, attorneys, and other therapists can also lead to steady referrals. Trust grows through consistency, integrity, and responsiveness—both online and offline. Clients seek therapy not just for support, but for real transformation. Delivering high-quality care means staying updated on evidence-based practices, participating in continuing education, and seeking supervision or consultation when needed. Whether you're trained in CBT, EMDR, DBT, or other modalities, deepening your expertise helps you serve your clients more effectively. In addition, developing cultural competence and inclusivity ensures you meet the needs of diverse populations. A commitment to lifelong learning strengthens your reputation and builds confidence in your practice. One of the biggest risks in private practice is burnout. As a mental health professional, you give a great deal of emotional energy to others. Running a business adds another layer of responsibility and pressure. To maintain long-term success, it's essential to prioritize your own mental and physical well-being. Establish boundaries around your time, caseload, availability, and work-life balance. Build in time for rest, supervision, and professional support. A healthy therapist is better equipped to help others heal—and creates a model of wellness for clients to follow. Achieving excellence in behavioral health services requires more than clinical expertise—it demands a commitment to quality and accountability. One significant step toward this goal is obtaining CARF accreditation for behavioral health, which signals that your organization meets internationally recognized standards for service delivery. The accreditation process involves a rigorous evaluation of your policies, practices, and outcomes, encouraging a culture of continuous improvement. Organizations that pursue this recognition demonstrate a deep dedication to client-centered care, ethical operations, and measurable results. In turn, this builds trust with clients, families, and payers, ultimately positioning the facility as a leader in the field. Once your practice is established, you may find opportunities to expand. This could include adding clinicians to form a group practice, launching specialized programs, offering workshops, or integrating coaching or consulting services. Others may choose to focus deeply on one niche, such as trauma, anxiety, or couples therapy. Regardless of the direction, thoughtful planning, budgeting, and mentorship can support sustainable growth. Use data, client feedback, and financial tracking to guide your next steps and ensure every change aligns with your vision and values. TIME BUSINESS NEWS
eNCA
6 days ago
- Science
- eNCA
The eye-opening science of close encounters with polar bears
LONGYEARBYEN - It's a pretty risky business trying to take a blood sample from a polar bear -- one of the most dangerous predators on the planet -- on an Arctic ice floe. First, you have to find it and then shoot it with a sedative dart from a helicopter before a vet dares approach on foot to put a GPS collar around its neck. Then the blood has to be taken and a delicate incision made into a layer of fat before it wakes. All this with a wind chill of up to minus 30C. For the last four decades experts from the Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI) have been keeping tabs on the health and movement of polar bears in the Svalbard archipelago, halfway between Norway and the North Pole. Like the rest of the Arctic, global warming has been happening there three to four times faster than elsewhere. AFP | Olivier MORIN But this year the eight scientists working from the Norwegian icebreaker Kronprins Haakon are experimenting with new methods to monitor the world's largest land carnivore, including for the first time tracking the PFAS "forever chemicals" from the other ends of the Earth that finish up in their bodies. An AFP photographer joined them on this year's eye-opening expedition. - Delicate surgery on the ice - With one foot on the helicopter's landing skid, vet Rolf Arne Olberg put his rifle to his shoulder as a polar bear ran as the aircraft approached. Hit by the dart, the animal slumped gently on its side into a snowdrift, with Olberg checking with his binoculars to make sure he had hit a muscle. If not, the bear could wake prematurely. "We fly in quickly," Oldberg said, and "try to minimise the time we come in close to the bear... so we chase it as little as possible." After a five- to 10-minute wait to make sure it is asleep, the team of scientists land and work quickly and precisely. AFP | Olivier MORIN They place a GPS collar around the bear's neck and replace the battery if the animal already has one. Only females are tracked with the collars because male polar bears -- who can grow to 2.6 metres -- have necks thicker than their heads, and would shake the collar straight off. Olberg then made a precise cut in the bear's skin to insert a heart monitor between a layer of fat and the flesh. "It allows us to record the bear's body temperature and heart rate all year," NPI researcher Marie-Anne Blanchet told AFP, "to see the energy the female bears (wearing the GPS) need to use up as their environment changes." The first five were fitted last year, which means that for the first time experts can cross-reference their data to find out when and how far the bears have to walk and swim to reach their hunting grounds and how long they rest in their lairs. The vet also takes a biopsy of a sliver of fat that allows researchers to test how the animal might stand up to stress and "forever chemicals", the main pollutants found in their bodies. AFP | Olivier MORIN "The idea is to best represent what bears experience in the wild but in a laboratory," said Belgian toxicologist Laura Pirard, who is testing the biopsy method on the mammals. - Eating seaweed - It has already shown that the diet of Svalbard's 300 or so bears is changing as the polar ice retreats. The first is that they are eating less seals and more food from the land, said Jon Aars, the lead scientist of the NPI's polar bear programme. "They still hunt seals, but they also take eggs and reindeer -- they even eat (sea)grass and things like that, even though it provides them with no energy." But seals remain their essential food source, he said. "Even if they only have three months to hunt, they can obtain about 70 percent of what they need for the entire year during that period. That's probably why we see they are doing okay and are in good condition" despite the huge melting of the ice. AFP | Olivier MORIN But if warming reduces their seal hunting further, "perhaps they will struggle", he warned. "There are notable changes in their behaviour... but they are doing better than we feared. However, there is a limit, and the future may not be as bright." "The bears have another advantage," said Blanchet, "they live for a long time, learning from experience all their life. That gives a certain capacity to adapt." - Success of anti-pollution laws - Another encouraging discovery has been the tentative sign of a fall in pollution levels. With some "bears that we have recaptured sometimes six or eight times over the years, we have observed a decrease in pollutant levels," said Finnish ecotoxicologist Heli Routti, who has been working on the programme for 15 years. "This reflects the success of regulations over the past decades." AFP | Olivier MORIN NPI's experts contribute to the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) whose conclusions play a role in framing regulations or bans on pollutants. "The concentration of many pollutants that have been regulated decreased over the past 40 years in Arctic waters," Routti said. "But the variety of pollutants has increased. We are now observing more types of chemical substances" in the bears' blood and fatty tissues. These nearly indestructible PFAS or "forever chemicals" used in countless products like cosmetics and nonstick pans accumulate in the air, soil, water and food. Experts warn that they ultimately end up in the human body, particularly in the blood and tissues of the kidney or liver, raising concerns over toxic effects and links to cancer.
