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Nov 24 (Reuters) - Manulife Financial Corp (MFC.TO) will outsource its property operations in Canada to focus on its entrepreneurial investment management unit, Canada's biggest life insurer said Thursday. The change to a new structure will result in Manulife Investment Management, which overseas the real estate portfolio, shedding 50 jobs, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday. Among other financial services companies, Canada's biggest lender, Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) and Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) have recently cut jobs in the United States. Manulife Investment Management's real estate arm uses a pool of capital to invest in real estate in 29 cities across the United States, Asia and Canada. According to its annual report, the insurer had about C$13.2 billion ($9.90 billion) worth of real estate investments in 2021.

☆ These 15 people are shaping the office of the future, designing meeting pods, hologram calls, and buildings that actually make workers healthier
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +27 min

These 15 power players are just a handful of the people designing workplaces to balance productivity, interaction, and employee well-being through indoor-air-quality monitoring systems, building amenities, holographic meeting spaces, and more. AftershipCities like Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Raleigh, North Carolina, began offering business-relocation incentives during the pandemic to boost their workforces and help increase occupancy in office buildings. Room's office suite includes a phone booth, a meeting room, an open meeting room, and a focus room. Room also makes a soundproof meeting room that fits two people, a more open meeting booth, and a focus room designed for quiet concentration. "The future of office work needs to be guided by a new, genuine form of flexibility in which the work, not the workers themselves, become even more malleable," Petersen writes.

☆ Aldi is the US's fastest-growing grocery chain and more households earning $50-100K are shopping there. Here are the no-frills tactics that help make it so cheap.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Aldi is the US's fastest-growing grocer for the third year running, the real-estate firm JLL said. Aldi almost always has the lowest prices for core products like bread, milk, and eggs, Monford said. Monford added that consumers "don't mind" that products aren't taken out of their boxes because they're shopping at Aldi for value. Campbell said the Aldi stores near her generally had just four or five aisles. Vadakkepatt said Aldi's stores have fewer employees and shorter hours than at other chains.

☆ One office building is trying a radical new ploy to lure Google and other firms to Brooklyn
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An office building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, is slashing rents and offering flexible leases. At 25 Kent Ave., it's offering 50% off to lure tech and media firms that are attracted to Manhattan. In July 2019, Rubenstein opened an eight-story, 511,000-square-foot office building at 25 Kent Ave. in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Bilyana DimitrovaTarget tenants include Google, Facebook, Amazon, and companies that have over 500,000 square feet of office space in Manhattan. People who work at 25 Kent have access to its fitness center.

☆ The Hong Kong property market is probably expecting some downward pressure, says JLL
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe Hong Kong property market is probably expecting some downward pressure, says JLLJoseph Tsang of the real estate company discusses the city's buyer's stamp duty refund for overseas talent.

☆ India festival spending booms despite inflation worries, global slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Manoj Kumar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The sales would include nearly $15.2 billion offline sales, compared to about $8.5 billion in 2019, according to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). read moreBut economists said the sense in India was that inflation has peaked while economic activity was picking up. The bump in consumer demand is expected to support economic growth of around 6.5% in the fiscal year ending March 2023, the highest among the world's major economies. Credit demand increases Credit demand increasesThe retail boom is also a boon for the government - goods and services tax collections, a barometer of consumer demand, rose 26% year-on-year in September, data showed. "After two consecutive downbeat festive seasons, consumer sentiment and spending appear to have rebounded this year... which may boost economic growth in the current quarter, but may not sustain thereafter."

☆ China's climate push could spawn new global players, even if Beijing falls short on its pledge
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-04 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

China aims to reach peak carbon emissions in 2030. Two years ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping formally announced the world's second largest economy would strive for peak carbon emissions in 2030, and carbon neutrality in 2060. Emerging leader in offshore wind? The U.K. and the rest of Europe are each expected to add about 10 gigawatts of offshore wind power in the next three years, according to IEEFA Research. Overenthusiastic measures to force local areas to cut carbon emissions last year resulted in a power shortage that disrupted factory production.

☆ Aldi says sales are booming amid inflation as even wealthier shoppers trade down
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Aldi says its US sales are rising as inflation-strapped shoppers turn to budget stores, Reuters reported. Aldi is known for its low prices, which are possible because of the range of unusual cost-cutting measures it deploys. Patton said that one million new customers have started shopping at Aldi over the past year, including a rise in middle- and high-income shoppers. Some products, including eggs, butter, and cooking oil, have been much harder hit than others. Customers are trading down by switching to grocery-store private labels — both because of inflation and because shoppers are increasingly brand agnostic.

☆ Planet: Companies are accelerating their investment in combating the climate crisis
▼ + stars: | 2022-03-03 | by ( Bria Overs | Megan Dematteo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Many are now investing in green bonds and other financial instruments to drive change. Green bonds are one way companies are using new financial offerings to drive change. Also called sustainability bonds, they work like regular bonds in many ways and allow companies to raise money for capital projects. Each project it selects aims to support "low-carbon design and engineering, renewable energy, energy efficiency, carbon mitigation, and sequestration," the company said. "People are going to have to start demonstrating what they're doing inside these green bonds," Grainger said.

☆ REITs will continue to see good performance, JLL says
▼ + stars: | 2019-12-11 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailREITs will continue to see good performance, JLL saysRegina Lim of JLL says she foresees more initial public offerings for Singapore and Indian REITs. She also says, in the last 12 months, Singapore REITs have made "very nice strategic acquisitions" that will allow them to deepen their exposure in new markets.

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