Is Volatility the Name of the Game for the Remainder of 2019?

Months of protests in Hong Kong. Escalating tensions in the Middle East. A seemingly never-ending trade war between the US and China. A possible no-deal Brexit. Fears of a global recession. A more assertive Russia on the world stage. And an upcoming federal election in Canada where the winner will need to re-balance relations with China. Is volatility the name of the game for the remainder of 2019?

You are invited to join us to hear insights from a guest panel of experts on these prevalent topics that are creating widespread uncertainty. We will hear how these events are not only affecting individual countries but also creating a knock-on effect on the rest of the world.

We are pleased to have BBC World News Producer and Presenter, Sharanjit Leyl, moderating this event. As well as guest panelist, Michael Bociurkiw, Global Affairs Analyst and CNN Opinion contributor, joining us from Canada. Michael spent a week in Hong Kong covering the protests and continues to follow the the situation as the events unfold. He also comes with the latest on the Canadian federal election. We will be hearing from guest panelist, Chi-Jia Tschang, Senior Director, BowerGroupAsia, Hong Kong, who will share her perspective on the Hong Kong protests and where they are heading, as well as the US-China trade war that has been shaking up the world. Mitul Kotecha, Director, Senior Emerging Markets Strategist at TD Securities, will also be joining us to provide us with some insights into current markets and the looming threat of a global recession. 

Location: Pan Pacific Singapore, Level 1, Pacific Ballroom 1

7 Raffles Blvd, Singapore 039595

Time: 6:30pm-9:00pm

Canapés & Free Flow Wine, Soft Drinks

$55 Members (AmCham, CanCham, FCA, LatAmCham, NZ Chamber, SBF, SICC)

$55 Special Price for "Member Guests" (must be registered by an AmCham, CanCham, FCA, LatAmCham, NZ Chamber, SBF or SICC Member)

$75 Non-Members

Complimentary - Working journalists (FCA)

CanCham is grateful to event sponsor:

TD Securities

Event Partners:

American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore

Foreign Correspondence Association Singapore

Latin American Chamber of Commerce

New Zealand Chamber of Commerce, Singapore

Singapore Business Federation

Singapore International Chamber of Commerce

Guest Panelists: 

Chi-Jia Tschang, Senior Director, BowerGroupAsia, Hong Kong

Chi-Jia Tschang is a senior director in BowerGroupAsia’s Hong Kong office.  She is responsible for managing, maintaining and expanding regional client relationships as well as serving as BGA’s Hong Kong market lead and permanent presence.

Chi-Jia has over a decade of experience in international affairs and crisis management. Prior to joining BGA, Chi-Jia worked at Goldman Sachs for nearly 10 years, where she oversaw the company’s Asia-Pacific internal crisis management and geopolitical risk programs. In addition to responding to developments, she worked with a team to monitor, investigate and report on risk issues across the Asia-Pacific region as well as develop relationships with experts on regional issues.

Before moving to Hong Kong, Chi-Jia worked in the Beijing office of International Crisis Group (ICG), an independent, non-profit research organization committed to providing independent analysis and advice on how to prevent, resolve or better manage deadly conflict.  Her research focused on Chinese foreign affairs and its regional relationships and she interacted with government officials and academics on these issues to understand China’s perspectives and bring them to a wider audience through the ICG reports. Chi-Jia founded the Hong Kong chapter of Young China Watchers in 2012, and remains involved in the chapter’s activities.

Chi-Jia earned a bachelor’s degree in government from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and a master’s degree in international relations from

Michael Bociurkiw, Global Affairs Analyst and CNN Opinion Contributor

Michael Bociurkiw is a global affairs analyst, writer, speaker, and moderator. Michael writes today from a lifetime of experience of news-gathering in some of the most dangerous and difficult regions of the last quarter of a century – on the frontline of history. His writing encompasses geopolitics, global health challenges, the humanitarian sector, the environment, and developments in technology.  

Michael’s interview roster is impressive including presidents and prime ministers from Canada, Lithuania, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Ukraine, and, he was one of the few journalists to have been granted interviews with the founder of modern Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew.

Michael Bociurkiw reported from the Soviet Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine, from the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square massacre, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines, the handover of Hong Kong from the UK to China, the Football World Cup in South African 2010, and, the Tahrir Square uprising in Egypt’s Arab Spring of 2011 - and most recently, the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests. He has worked as an emergency spokesperson and communications expert with numerous relief organizations in more than fifteen countries affected by war and disaster, including Burundi, Egypt, Lesotho, South Sudan, Pakistan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan, Nigeria, Turkey, Tajikistan, Ukraine,  and Laos. In 2014, while serving as spokesperson for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Michael was part of the first team of international observers to reach the crash site of MH17 in occupied eastern Ukraine - at the time described as the biggest open crime scene in the world. 

Michael is a regular guest on BBC World Television, BBC World Service Radio, CNN, Bloomberg Radio and TV, CBC and CTV. He has covered recently the elections in Ukraine, the battle for global polio eradication, the political scandal surrounding Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau, and the plight of the Rohingya people.

Michael has served on staff and written for major publications including the South China Morning Post, Asia Times, Forbes, MSNBC, the Globe and Mail and the Los Angeles Times. He writes regularly now at CNN Opinion and his recent topics range from elections in Ukraine to the crash of the Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max.

Michael is a two-time TEDx speaker. He studied mass communications and TV news at Carleton University and Columbia University. 

Michael's most recent articles: 

• The timing couldn't be worse for Trudeau's brownface photo
• Hong Kong is Having a Leadership Crisis 
• Hong Kong’s protesters will not back down – which shows just how badly Beijing bungled the situation 

Mitul Kotecha, Director, Senior Emerging Markets Strategist, TD Securities

Based out of Singapore, Mitul Kotecha is a TD Securities Senior Emerging Markets Strategist with a wealth of experience. His career as a strategist and economist extends over 25 years and across offices in London, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Prior to joining TD Securities, Mitul held the position of Head of FX and Rates Strategy for Asia-Pacific at Barclays, and prior to that, served as Head of Global FX Strategy and Head of Asia Research at Credit Agricole CIB. Mitul has developed strong client relationships across the region focusing on Asian macro strategy and global emerging markets. His coverage of financial products spans bonds, interest rates, equities, and foreign exchange. 

Mitul has been highly ranked in various FX research and forecasting polls including FX Week, Bloomberg, Reuters, and Asiamoney. He is a frequent speaker at various economic and financial global conferences, is regularly consulted by the media for views on markets and economies, has given a TEDX talk, and authored the book Chronology Of A Crisis. Mitul has appeared on business channels such as CNBC and Bloomberg TV and is regularly quoted in the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Bloomberg, Associated Press, and Dow Jones. 

Mitul holds a Masters of Science Degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Warwick and an Honours Degree in Economics. 

Moderator:

Sharanjit Leyl, Presenter and Producer, BBC World News

Sharanjit is an experienced broadcaster with more than 20 years of experience covering international business, finance and politics. She's anchored Asia Business Report and Newsday from the BBC's Singapore studio for sixteen years. Sharanjit has anchored several BBC World News programmes in London, filed reports for radio on the BBC World Service and written for BBC news online.

She's reported for domestic BBC programmes such as Breakfast, the One and Six 'clock news and regularly anchors live on location for on breaking stories in the region.

A Singaporean native, she's presented and produced documentaries on BBC World News including the hour long 'Singapore at 50' and 'Secrets of Singapore', which featured interviews from  former leaders and pioneers who helped make it one of the 20th century's economic success stories.

Noteworthy interviews, many of which she also arranged and produced, include the Prime Ministers of Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Pakistan, Malaysia, Singapore, the Presidents of the Philippines, East Timor, the World Bank and the IMF, and chief executives and chairpersons from various Fortune 500 companies ranging from Microsoft to Walmart.

Sharanjit is now such a familiar face for viewers in Asia that she is regularly invited to moderate high level debates for the United Nations, the World Bank, the IMF, the ADB and other NGOs. She's been nominated twice in the best presenter category at the Asian TV Awards and was highly commended as best presenter. An episode of Newsday she presented went on to win Best News Programme in 2017.

Sharanjit joined the BBC in 2003 and was previously with Bloomberg TV in Tokyo and Bridge Information Systems financial news service before that. She began her journalist career with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 1997 after earning her degree in Journalism and English Literature from The University of Maryland College Park (Washington DC) and her Masters degree in English Literature from the University of British Columbia.