Pennywise, the world’s creepiest clown, is returns to the screen in HBO Max’s IT: Welcome to Derry.
What started out as an idea for a movie ended up as a nine-part series. As with the films, the inspiration is Stephen King’s…
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Scientists uncover hydrogen’s hidden health role in human gut-Xinhua
MELBOURNE, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) — Scientists have uncovered new insights into hydrogen’s role in gut health, revealing that commonly expelled as flatulence, hydrogen plays a critical part in maintaining digestive function.
Published in Nature…
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WHO sounds alarm over “sharp increases” in HIV cases in Philippines, Fiji, Papua New Guinea-Xinhua
MANILA, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) — The World Health Organization (WHO) in the Western Pacific region has raised alarm about the “sharp increases” in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases in the Philippines, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea in recent…
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‘We are strictly done dancing’ and ‘Stop the show trials’
“We are strictly done dancing” is the headline on the Daily Express, as it leads with the departure of Strictly hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly after 12 years. The duo are quoted as saying “now feels like the right time” to – as the paper… Continue Reading
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FIG, Fujitsu, Acer Medical collaborate to develop health-promoting insurance concept to support preventative care in aging societies
The three parties will carry out a field trial from October 23 to October 24, 2025 at the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Jakarta where local seniors will be able to experience the app.
Furthermore, the three parties will develop a points-based health-promotion insurance concept. This proposed service will convert users’ exercise assessments from the app and participation in health check-ups into points, which can then be used for insurance premium discounts or other benefits. Participating insurance companies will be selected by the parties at a later date.
Through this initiative, FIG aims to promote the widespread adoption of gymnastics programs for seniors and accelerate its contribution to extending healthy life expectancies through sports, as envisioned by the ASWG. The initial target for this insurance service will be the estimated 30 million worldwide participants in FIG’s Gymnastics for All sports program. FIG will also contribute to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Global Action Plan on the Public Health Response to Dementia [1].
Fujitsu will contribute to promoting the health of seniors through its advanced skeleton recognition AI technology. Furthermore, under its Uvance business model, which addresses societal challenges, Fujitsu will continue to co-create with Uvance Partners to realize advanced health management services through Decision Intelligence powered by data and AI, thereby advancing people’s well-being.
Acer Medical will enhance the abnormal gait pattern detection function in aiGait to meet the growing demand for preventive medicine and smart healthcare in aging societies. Acer Medical is transforming routine movements—like standing, sitting, and walking—into valuable clinical insights. The goal is to help caregivers and clinicians detect subtle changes early, enabling timely intervention and improving patient outcomes.
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Microdramas bank on social ads to drive growth
Key stat: 68% of US ad spending by microdrama apps went to social networks from January to September 2025, according to US ad spend reports from ReelShort, DramaBox, GoodShort, NetShort, and ShortMax, compiled by Sensor Tower.
Beyond the chart:
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Trump’s Russian oil sanctions shake energy markets
US President Donald Trump’s sanctions on Russian oil companies shook energy markets on Thursday, and the US president pardoned Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao. Plus, President Javier Milei’s economic plan rests in the hands of this…
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Trump cancels trade talks with Canada over anti-tariffs advert
Osmond ChiaBusiness reporter
Getty ImagesUS President Donald Trump has said he is immediately ending all trade negotiations with Canada.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that the country had run an advert featuring former US President Ronald…
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Pension funds scoop up ex-private equity executives
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Big pension funds are scooping up private equity professionals seeking refuge from a downturn in the sector that has restricted the carried interest payments that traditionally made up most of their pay.
Professionals from mid-market buyout groups, in particular, have been flooding pension plan recruiters with their résumés in a bid to escape the private equity fundraising squeeze.
“We are finding it easier to attract talent — not super easy, but much easier than three or four years ago,” said Ralph Berg, chief investment officer at the Ontario pension fund Omers.
“I suspect a lot of the private equity firms are struggling to hold on to people or maybe they want to manage . . . headcounts too.”
British Columbia Investment Management Corporation, which manages assets for public sector pensions, hired about 20 people in the past two years from buyout firms due to “fundraising issues” at those groups, a person familiar with the matter said. BCI’s private equity team has 70 people in total, according to its website.
The experience of the Canadian pension plans is the latest sign of how a prolonged downturn, initially ushered in by 2022 interest rate increases, is rippling through the financial sector.
The higher cost of borrowing hampered dealmaking and left firms with less cash to return to their institutional backers. This in turn reduced how much money those backers could recycle into new buyout funds.
Private equity groups raised just $592bn in the 12 months to June, their lowest tally for seven years, data from Preqin shows.
Tougher fundraising has led to lower revenue streams for buyout firms from management fees, leaving them with less cash to hire talent. Smaller firms have struggled the most with fundraising as buyout fund backers have flocked to larger groups which are seen as more reliable.
Berg of Omers said that the red hot mergers and acquisitions market in 2021 had made that a tough year for pension funds to retain staff.
But the more subdued dealmaking environment that has endured since meant that “people — especially juniors — have seen that there [have] been fewer deals to work on”, Berg said, adding that “they fundamentally worry that they are not . . . building up their CVs”.
“All of a sudden,” he added, “those employers that have their own capital and don’t depend on fundraising in order to make new investments and have more sustainable [compensation] structures with a higher level of predictability now look attractive.”
BCI declined to comment.
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Japan’s Kirin to seek buyer for Four Roses US whiskey line
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Japan’s Kirin Holdings has put its Kentucky bourbon brand Four Roses up for sale at a price of $1bn, as the brewer pivots away from the struggling spirits sector towards healthcare.
Kirin has been working with advisers from UBS to test interest from potential buyers in recent weeks, with first-round bids expected as early as next month, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The sale process comes during a tough period for brewers and distillers as they contend with changing habits among younger consumers, who are reducing alcohol consumption. In Japan, beer consumption has dropped, hurting Kirin’s core product.
Kirin and UBS declined to comment.
Kirin, a Japanese conglomerate that generates more than $15bn a year in sales and produces everything from lager and spirits to rare diseases medicines under its Kyowa Kirin subsidiary, has owned Four Roses since 2002.
Tracing its origins back to 1888, Four Roses is produced in a distillery in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, in the heart of so-called Bourbon Country. Four Roses generated about $70mn in adjusted earnings annually and was expected to fetch as much as $1bn, the people said.
After first entering the pharmaceutical sector in the 1980s, Kirin has accelerated its push into healthcare in recent years, as well as shedding non-core beverage assets, such as a soft drinks joint venture in China.
Last year the company bought the skincare and supplements company Fancl as part of the effort. And in 2023 it launched a $1.3bn takeover for Australia’s largest vitamin company Blackmores.
Across 2024, Kirin’s pharmaceutical division generated 23 per cent of the group’s $15.4bn in total revenue, up from 20 per cent in 2020. Shares in Kirin are up 14 per cent so far this year, giving it a market value of nearly $13.6bn as of Thursday’s close.
Four Roses was likely to draw interest from strategic buyers, but some large drinks conglomerates might remain on the sidelines as they grappled with problems with their own product portfolios, the people said.
The S&P food and beverage index is down 4.9 per cent over the past year, whereas the wider S&P 500 index is up 16 per cent over the same period.
There were no guarantees that the sale process would result in a deal, the people cautioned. It is also possible that Kirin may opt to sell off a stake in the business through a joint venture, they added.
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