Anti-cancer Drugs Approved For Insurance

China has approved 17 anti-cancer drugs for inclusion in its national health insurance system, the government said on Wednesday, part of its efforts to make cancer treatment more affordable as the number of cases increases.

China's State Medical Insurance Administration has been in negotiations with domestic and overseas pharmaceutical companies to lower prices and put more cancer drugs on the list of medicines eligible for reimbursement.

The administration said in a notice that the negotiations were a major part of the government's strategy to make cancer drugs more affordable to the general public. The 17 drugs, which include azacitidine, will remain eligible until Nov. 30, 2020.

China's cancer rates have been soaring, driven by growing numbers of over-60s, heavy smoking among men and exposure to pollution. The National Cancer Center said last year there were 4.29 million new cases every year and 2.81 million deaths.

China has vowed to improve the five-year cancer survival rate by 15 percentage points by 2030. The rate stood at 30 percent in 2015, half the U.S. level.

Prudential Agents Up In Arms

Some 4,000 Prudential agents nationwide turned up at the Prudential Tower in Jalan Sultan Ismail to protest the 30% slash in bonus and commission. 

The protest was organised by Prudential Life Insurance Agency Association Malaysia (PRULIA) as a last resort after a year of fruitless meetings.

PRULIA president Maniraja Chandran said the agents felt the reductions and conditions on them imposed on them since the beginning of the year were unfair.

“As entrepreneurs, agents are not paid any basic salary.

“Our commissions or bonuses were never increased for decades and now to cut the basic commission as well as increasing the target for bonuses is totally unfair,” he said.

Chandran claimed that Prudential was adjusting their sales-based bonus by introducing the Balance Score Card (BLC) which would result in the fixed commission for the agents becoming variable.

The slash in bonuses and commissions is scheduled to be implemented next year.

Sasha Arshad, 47, said she felt disappointed after over a decade of hard work and yet now faced reductions instead of rewards or better commission and bonuses.

“It is not fair for us, especially the junior agents,” she added.

Another agent, Prema Kaur, 60, said the reduction was unnecessary as the new system would affect all the agents equally.

“They should follow how the Singaporeans do it. Hard-working agents should be rewarded with more.

“But whatever we earn, they will hold back the payments until we meet a certain target. It is unfair,” said Prema who has been an agent for 24 years.

In a statement, Prudential Assurance Malaysia Bhd (PAMB) believes the BLC will increase the insurance penetration in Malaysia and is certain to meet the KPIs set by the regulator.

“PAMB is also open to continuing the engagement and discussion,” the company said.

Yemen - On The Brink Of Famine

Thirty-five Yemeni and international NGOs called Wednesday for an “immediate cessation of hostilities” in Yemen, where they warned 14 million people were now “on the brink of famine”.

The joint appeal was signed by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Action Against Hunger, CARE International, Oxfam, Doctors of the World, and Yemeni organisations, according to a statement.

“With 14 million men, women and children on the brink of famine – half the country’s population – there has never been a more urgent time to act,” the statement said.

It called on governments to “secure an immediate cessation of hostilities” and “suspend the supply of arms at risk of being used in Yemen”.

The most impoverished country in the Arab world, Yemen has been gripped by war since 2015, when a regional military coalition led by Saudi Arabia joined the government’s fight against Huthi rebels.

“The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is manmade and a direct consequence of the warring parties’ severe restrictions on access to food, fuel, medical imports and humanitarian aid,” the statement added.

“The collapse of the Yemeni rial and the non-payment of public sector workers is adding to the catastrophe.

“We call on governments to redouble their efforts to guarantee unimpeded access to essential items… including through the lifeline port of Hodeidah, where civilians have been caught in renewed fighting over the past few days.”

Pro-government forces pressed even closer Wednesday to the heart of Hodeida, the Red Sea city controlled by Huthi rebels and under blockade by Saudi Arabia and its allies.

International aid groups have appealed to both the rebels and the alliance to allow civilians to escape the densely-populated city of 600,000 people.

Nearly 10,000 Yemenis have been killed in the conflict since 2015, according to the World Health Organisation.

Unemployment - Poor Communication Skill & Language Proficiency

Poor communications skills and language proficiency are among the key reasons why Bumiputera graduates find it difficult to secure employment, employers have said.

The groups polled by Malay Mail said that the lacking language skill encompasses all languages, but are especially prevalent when it comes to English ― despite learning it since primary school.

“For example, most of the jobs that are available on the market now requires you to be in touch with the customers or the clients. You often need to convince them that your company’s product or services are the most suitable for them,” Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) executive director Datuk Shamsuddin Bardan said.

“However their inability to communicate well in other languages, be it English or any other prefered medium, would hamper their chances of doing so. This attributes to why it is difficult for them to find jobs,” he said, referring to Bumiputera graduates.

Malaysian Trade Unions Congress president Datuk Abdul Halim Omar also agree that poor communications skills among Bumiputera graduates are a major reason why they are not keen to be employed.

“This is especially true in English, which is a required medium in many companies. Many Bumiputeras did not master this language well among other prefered languages like Mandarin.

However, Halim said there are companies who prefer to hire people who speak their vernacular language, closing the door to other potential graduates.

This comes as the Ministry of Finance’s Economic Outlook 2019 report showed that Bumiputeras with tertiary education recorded the highest unemployment rate in 2017 at 4.6 per cent, far higher than Bumiputeras who did not complete their tertiary education.

When asked if a mismatch of skills was one of the contributing factors to Bumiputera graduates not being hired by employers, Shamsuddin said it was actually prevalent among all graduates, regardless of ethnicity.

But he added that graduates’ inability in adapting to the needs of their professions is a more crucial issue, with the exception of those working in professional fields including accountants and lawyers.

“The mismatch of skills is not the critical issue at the moment, however, it is the adaptability of the graduates to the need of his or her job that is more pertinent,’’ Shamsuddin said.

Halim also attributed the generally high unemployment rate among graduates to the lack of proper exposure to the needs of the job market.

“Most of our graduates excel in academic qualification but have poor knowledge of what is needed on the field.

“That is why when they enter the job market, they find it difficult to adapt to the actual requirements of their jobs,’’ he said.

Halim also explains that ill-exposed graduates often make unrealistic demands in regards to their starting salary and would not compromise on their working hours, which in turn make them very unattractive to potential employers.

Why ToysRUs Failed

"It's a magical place. We're on our way there." - The old Toys R Us jingle has worn thin. Now it's on its way out. The retailer's UK arm has gone into administration, putting thousands of jobs at risk.

It isn't that we have stopped indulging our children's demands. Argos and The Entertainer are still successfully separating children from their pocket money. Disney and Lego are still going strong.

So what went wrong at Toys R Us? 

1. Out-of-town - In 1950s America, when retail was taking off as a leisure activity and baby-boomers were in pushchairs and short trousers, the time was right for a huge, Aladdin's cave of toys, that could overwhelm children with a wealth of choice.

In the 1990s, the model still worked for UK shoppers keen to pick up the latest Furby, Power Ranger or Tamagotchi. At the time, cheaper out-of-town real estate with purpose-built free parking, plus places to eat, offered an easy weekend day out.

"It was ceiling-to-floor toys. It was a destination," says retail analyst Kate Hardcastle from Insight With Passion. These days, out-of-town can mean out-of-sight compared with rival outlets.

We're more likely to pick up a fidget-spinner or some loom-bands on the way to the supermarket till or be lured into a High Street shop as we stroll past by the sight of someone demonstrating a remote-controlled helicopter.

2. New Kids On The Block - "Kids are changing," says Kate Hardcastle.

"An eight-year-old now, they can download an app in 30 seconds to distort their face and make them look like Spiderman. Retail almost can't keep up."

Birthday presents are now tech-related, such as virtual reality headsets, drones or go-pro cameras, she says.

"That wasn't something Toys R Us was able to get into very successfully. They did it in a generic way... it was just another aisle."

And like the rest of us, children are seeking experiences rather than possessions. So a trip to a toy store is competing with trampolining parks, laser tag and go-karting. But the digital ecosystem can be an opportunity as well as a challenge, says another retail analyst, Steve Dresser.

"For my four-year-old, YouTube is the first port of call. And there's a lot going on around there."

It isn't hard, he says, for retailers to spot fashions - like the current trend for making slime - and capitalise on that, he suggests. The Irish chain Smyths has done so. But Toys R Us failed there too.

3. Priced Out - When it comes to toys, brand loyalty is to the manufacturer. You want to buy a box of Playmobil, a Barbie doll or a Scalextric set - it doesn't matter who you buy from. That makes the market on and offline fiercely price-competitive.

Hamleys, Woolworths and Hawkins Bazaar all suffered from the onslaught of internet shopping, plus the discounters and supermarkets before them, but Toys R Us didn't learn from their example.

"They had price promise," says Kate Hardcastle. "John Lewis does well because of its Never Knowingly Undersold promise. I don't think anyone knew Toys R Us had one. Even in clearance now, trying to turn things around, they've been undercut by discounters and big brands like WH Smiths and The Entertainer."

4. Lack Of Drama - "For a magical place, it's not very magical," says Ms Hardcastle. If you can't compete on price, you can at least compete on theatre. If I walk into the Lego store in Meadowhall in Sheffield, the first thing I look for is not the products piled up, but the huge benches of Lego to play with.

"And the team members are there waiting to build with me. That's very exciting for a child."

In comparison, she says, a trip to Toys R Us was mundane and lacking in inspiration. Retail analyst Nick Bubb agrees: "The main problem is simply that the stores are too big and unwelcoming," he says.

"They have tried a few smaller, mall stores, without much success, perhaps because the store format was too boring."

5. Lack Of Imagination - But in the end, they just needed to do something, anything to update what they were offering.

Geoffrey the giraffe - the 1990s cartoon character on the company's logo - should have gone long ago, says Ms Hardcastle. They should have put children's experiences front and centre.

"It didn't feel like a kids' place," she says.

Even if they didn't want to give over their stores to the kinds of hands-on experience that you get in Hamleys or a Lego store, they should have done more to keep customers happy, been less functional, more on-trend, agrees Mr Dresser. They just needed some buzz.

"The general feel isn't one of fun, it's one of tiredness," he says.

"I stumbled on one in York - it was quite sad. The first sign you see is that they reserve the right to check your bags as you leave. That's a horrendous message in a toy shop. As a customer, you don't really feel valued.

"That shouldn't be what a toy shop is. It should be a place of joy."

Toys R Us' demise was not inevitable, he argues. They just weren't dynamic enough.

"They signed their own death warrant."

Why 7-Eleven Failed In Indonesia

7-Eleven convenience stores looked like a success in Indonesia when they began popping up in 2009. The stores stayed busy and local operator Modern Internasional began to gradually expand the chain's reach outward from Jakarta.

But come Friday, 7-Eleven's famous 24-hour operations will go to zero: Modern is closing its remaining 130 or so outlets after a 1 trillion rupiah ($75 million) deal to sell the chain to conglomerate Charoen Pokphand came undone in early June, just six weeks after it was first announced. Charoen Pokphand's CP All Unit runs Thailand's 7-Eleven network, the world's second-largest after that of Japan, but it will not be adding Indonesia to its empire after all.

Nongkrong At 7-eleven - The sudden turn of events is no big surprise for Arifin, a parking attendant at a 7-Eleven on the outskirts of Jakarta: "The stores were always crowded, but the customers never bought much. They came to hang out and to enjoy the Wi-Fi. They would bring their laptops and stay for hours but only buy a single drink."

Ultimately, that was not enough for Modern, especially in the face of fierce competition on one side from Alfamart and Indomaret, locals chains each with a longer history and bigger network in the country, and on the other from street food stalls with faster customer turnover.

"The income from [7-Eleven] sales does not cover operational costs like electricity, lights, Wi-Fi and overhead," said Reza Priyambada, a retail analyst at Bina Artha Securities in Jakarta.

Both Alfamart and Indomaret had initially reacted to 7-Eleven's early outward success with imitation. The two had long operated as minimarkets, a format in Indonesia with a greater emphasis on fresh groceries than convenience stores and less stress on serving food or selling alcohol.

In an echo of Modern's franchise from Japan's Seven & i Holdings, Alfamart made a deal with Japan's Lawson convenience store chain while Indomaret created a convenience store sub-brand called Indomaret Point. Japanese convenience store chains FamilyMart and Ministop also signed up eager local franchisees.

Modern itself had originally prospered as the operator of Indonesia's Fujifilm photo printing network. It turned to 7-Eleven with retail photo developing in steep decline, converting some locations to the new business.

For young Indonesians, 7-Elevens offered a hip recreational space. Their street-side locations and affordable hot meals give them the feel of a traditional eatery while comfortable seating areas, air-conditioning and free Wi-Fi resembled the facilities of a modern cafe. About half the average store's space was dedicated to providing fresh food and drink.

Revenues reached a peak in 2014 of 971.77 billion rupiah as the store network count hit a high of 190.

Out Of Beer - The good times were not to last. In April 2015, the government banned alcohol sales in convenience stores and minimarkets. At the time, alcohol accounted for about 15% of 7-Eleven's revenues.

Although the national government relaxed the policy five months later, allowing local authorities to decide on implementation, Jakarta, among other big cities, kept the sale restrictions in place.

Meanwhile, 7-Eleven might have been constrained in reorienting its focus by permitting issues, according to Tutum Rahanta, deputy chairman of the Indonesian Retailers Association. The trade department in 2012 issued a warning letter to 7-Eleven for selling retail goods without appropriate business permits, according to local media reports at the time.

Amid the alcohol ban, 7-Eleven's sales for 2015 dipped 8.8% to 886.84 billion rupiah and Modern itself dropped into the red with a net loss of 54.76 billion rupiah.

Alfamart and Indomaret both shrugged off the alcohol ban and posted revenue gains that year. The two, which each operate more than 13,000 stores, have been selling groceries and snacks in the country for more than two decades.

They have been increasingly leveraging their broad reach to offer other services, including bill payment and travel bookings. Nomura, the investment bank, estimated in a report last month that such services accounted for a 15.3% share of Alfamart's earnings before interest and tax last year, up from just 1.1% four years before.

Modern began closing 7-Eleven amid the sales slump, shuttering 27 outlets in 2016. Chain revenues slipped a further 23.9% to 675.28 billion rupiah. Modern fell into the red on an operating level, with an operating loss of 764.32 billion rupiah. Early this year, Modern closed about 30 more 7-Elevens.

Ministop's franchisee, which had aimed to open 300 outlets, gave up with less than 10 in operation. Hero Supermarket, a retail group controlled by Hong Kong's  Jardine Matheson Holdings, sold its struggling Starmart convenience store chain to Wings Group, holder of the FamilyMart franchise. Some of the former Starmarts have been converted to FamilyMarts, but that chain's web site lists only 59 outlets versus the 300 it originally targeted to operate by 2015.

Both Alfamart and Indomaret meanwhile saw revenues continue to grow last year, with profits rising too. Both though are also having second thoughts about the suitability of the convenience store format and are instead planning to open more than 1,200 minimarkets this year.

Alfamart has closed a number of Lawson outlets. Finance Director Tomin Widian told Nikkei Asian Review: "We will not be adding any more Lawson stores as yet. We are currently still reviewing its business model."

Modern officials could not be reached for comment. The company's shares, which peaked four years ago at 1,050 rupiah, now trade for 50 rupiah. Without 7-Eleven, the company will be left with a small imaging business, the vestige of its old Fujifilm chain. At 228.7 billion rupiah, Modern's market capitalization is barely a quarter of what Charoen Pokphand was to pay for the 7-Eleven stores.

Eat Cockroaches - Underperforming Staff

 Employees of a home improvement company in Zunyi, China were made to drink urine, eat cockroaches and undergo flogging for failing to meet sales targets, recently. The incident came to light when a staff member posted a video clip of a ‘disciplinary session’ on Weibo, in which a topless man standing in the centre of a room is seen being whipped with a belt, while several people around him drank cups of yellow liquid.

The post also included screenshots of text messages sent by managers of the company, threatening employees with severe punishments for underperforming.

“If the sales goal has not been met by the end of this month, the team leader will have to eat three cockroaches for each failed sale,” one text message read.

The post was deleted shortly thereafter, but news of the incident reached the authorities in Zunyi, a city in southern Guizhou province. Three of the managers were promptly arrested, with two later sentenced to 10 days’ jail, and a third to five days in prison.

Many social media users criticised the staff for not simply quitting their jobs instead of putting up with the abuse and humiliation. But one employee told Pear Video that the company owed them two months’ pay and had threatened to reduce their severance pay were they to resign.