Monday, March 14, 2016
Obama in London
US President Barack Obama will come to London in April and urge British voters to back continued membership of the European Union, The Independent on Sunday newspaper reported.
George Osborne
British finance minister George Osborne said he would announce deeper cuts to public spending this week in order to protect his plan to eliminate the budget deficit from a weakening of the economy.
Unconventional Monetary Policies and IMF
Unconventional monetary policies of central banks in Europe and Japan received an endorsement from the International Monetary Fund on Sunday, even as policymakers from emerging markets warned that such policies were increasing risks for the global economy.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Insurance Purchases from Hong Kong
China is tightening restrictions on the use of third-party payment providers to buy insurance products in Hong Kong as authorities move to stem outflows of the yuan.
Maria Sharapova
Five-times grand slam tennis champion Maria Sharapova hit out at some media accounts of her doping case that she termed "wrong" in an open letter to her fans on Facebook on Friday.
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Smart City in USA
The US Transportation Department and NXP Semiconductors NV are joining forces in a pilot project to use communication technology to reduce congestion and speed traffic, they said on Friday.
The department said in December that it would award up to US$40 million to a mid-size US city to pilot the efforts.
NXP and partner Cohda Wireless will give the winning "Smart City" wireless communication modules that allow cars to securely exchange data like hazard warnings over more than a mile to prevent accidents and improve traffic flow.
EU and Cuba
The European Union and Cuba inked an agreement on Friday to normalize relations, paving the way for the 28-member bloc to establish full economic cooperation and aid with the Communist-run Caribbean island.
Dr Tan Cheng Bock
Dr Tan Cheng Bock - the man who came within a whisker of becoming Singapore's President in 2011 - wants a second shot at the highest office of the land.
Friday, March 11, 2016
Yahoo! Inc
Yahoo! Inc filled out its board, adding two independent directors at a time when the once-dominant Internet company is facing major strategic decisions and pressure from shareholders about how to salvage itself.
Fixit
Finland's parliament must hold a debate on a possible referendum to leave the European single currency euro after receiving a citizen's initiative signed by more than 50,000 Finns on Thursday.
While a eurozone exit is seen as unlikely in financially troubled Finland, the number of signatures means that parliament is legally required to debate a referendum to decide on a possible Finnish exit, dubbed "Fixit" in the media.
SIA and Tourism Malaysia
The two-year partnership, signed at ITB Berlin 2016 on Wednesday, takes effect from April 1, 2016. It will see the two parties jointly explore and implement activities to promote tourist traffic to Malaysia through the Singapore hub from 14 key inbound markets, by way of SIA's and SilkAir's services.
Thursday, March 10, 2016
BMW
German carmaker BMW's full-year operating profit beat analyst estimates thanks to healthy sales of high-margin sports utility vehicles but proposed a lower-than-expected dividend.
Water Shortage in Thailand
Thailand is facing its worst water shortage in two decades, government officials said on Wednesday, with water rationing being imposed in some provinces and hotels told to minimise their laundry loads.
World Bank and China
Global merchandise import growth slowed to 1.7 per cent in 2015 as China's slower growth path and difficulties in commodity exporting countries reduced trade volumes, a World Bank report showed on Wednesday.
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
COE 09 March 2016
The COE for Category A (cars up to 1,600cc and 130bhp) rose from S$43,000 in February's second bidding exercise to S$45,000 on Wednesday, while the premium for cars above 1,600cc (Category B) edged up from S$46,970 to S$47,604.
Meanwhile, the COE for the open category increased from S$45,009 to S$48,002, while that of goods vehicles and buses was up from S$45,001 to S$48,890.
The COE premium for motorcycles was slightly higher, increasing from S$6,353 to S$6,503.
Private Investment in EU
An increase in investment and higher domestic spending helped propel the euro-area to its 11th successive quarter of growth even as net trade suffered amid a slowdown in China and other emerging markets.
Global Economic Slide
The International Monetary Fund strengthened its call for concerted action to forestall a global economic slide on Tuesday, warning of the increasing risks of policy inertia.
ViewQwest
The race for greater fibre broadband speeds in Singapore is about to heat up, as ViewQwest on Tuesday launched a 10Gbps fibre broadband service for homes, for S$218 a month.
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Wages in Saudi Arabia
Foreign governments are pressing authorities and executives in Saudi Arabia to ensure that local construction firms make delayed salary payments to thousands of workers, a sign of pressure on the kingdom's economy due to low oil prices.
SingTel
Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) has ranked first in 4G coverage and peak speeds in Singapore, according to the findings of two surveys by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA).
Jobs in New York
New York announced Monday that the city's employment figures had risen to a record 4.29 million jobs with 249,000 jobs added since progressive Democrat Bill de Blasio became mayor two years ago.
Monday, March 7, 2016
CI Capital
Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris will finalize the acquisition of CI Capital Holding this month to create Egypt's second-biggest investment bank.
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton scored an overwhelming win over Bernie Sanders in Louisiana's delegate-rich primary that lets her maintain a solid lead for the Democratic nomination even as the Vermont senator won caucuses in Kansas and Nebraska.
Donald Trump
Donald Trump and Ted Cruz got a split decision from Republican voters in four states on Saturday that didn't dramatically change the nomination race but did expose unrest among party conservatives who want an alternative to the celebrity real estate mogul as their presidential nominee.
Sunday, March 6, 2016
Migrants in EU
EU president Donald Tusk struck an unusually upbeat note on the migrant crisis Friday as Turkey raised the possibility of taking back non-Syrian asylum seekers.
USA Airbase on Okinawa
The Japanese government said on Friday it had accepted a court-mediated settlement plan to halt construction work related to the relocation of a US airbase on Okinawa and resume talks with local authorities who want the base off the island.
Ben Carson
After a string of defeats, Ben Carson officially announced Friday at CPAC that he's ending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Samsonite and Tumi
Samsonite International SA, the world's largest branded-luggage maker, agreed to buy luxury baggage maker Tumi Holdings Inc for about US$1.8 billion in its biggest acquisition since selling shares to the public five years ago.
Tiger Airways
Singapore Airlines' (SIA) general offer for the shares in Tiger Airways that it did not already own closes on Friday, and Singapore's national carrier will take full control of the budget airline, SIA said in a media release.
Kirchhofer
Swiss luxury watch and jewellery retailer Kirchhofer is up for sale, three sources close to the matter told Reuters.
Friday, March 4, 2016
Merging of Secondary Schools in 2017 and 2018
To merge from January 2017
Balestier Hill and Beatty Secondary, with the school located at Beatty Secondary
Henderson and Bukit Merah Secondary, with the school located at Bukit Merah Secondary
MacPherson Secondary and Broadrick Secondary, with the school located at Broadrick Secondary
North View and Northland Secondary, with the school located at Northland Secondary
Pioneer and Boon Lay Secondary, with the school located at Boon Lay Secondary
Siglap and Coral Secondary, with the school located at Coral Secondary
Si Ling and Marsiling Secondary, with the school located at Marsiling Secondary
To merge from January 2018
Bedok North and Damai Secondary, with the school located at Damai Secondary
Bishan Park and Peirce Secondary, with the school located at Pierce Secondary
Chong Boon and Yio Chu Kang Secondary, with the school located at Yio Chu Kang Secondary
Greenview and Loyang Secondary, with the school located at Loyang Secondary
MOE said the final names of the merged schools have yet to be decided and the final school locations were chosen mainly based on their proximity to public transport, the quality of the buildings and facilities.
Google's Self-Driving Car Team
Google's self-driving car team is expanding and hiring more people with automotive industry expertise, underscoring the company's determination to move the division past the experimental stage.
Airbus A350-8000
Airbus is seeking airline support for a new 400-seat jetliner provisionally dubbed the A350-8000 as competition escalates with Boeing over the world's largest two-engined jets, airline and aviation industry sources said.
UOB and OurCrowd
United Overseas Bank (UOB) on Thursday announced a strategic partnership with global equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd.
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Private Sector Jobs in USA
US private employers added 214,000 jobs in February, above economists' expectations, a report by a payrolls processor showed on Wednesday.
MyRepublic
MyRepublic Ltd, bidding to become Singapore's fourth mobile-phone carrier, says its lower costs mean it can start with a small subscriber base and still be profitable within three years of winning a license.
Foreign-Worker Levies in Singapore
Singapore may abandon increases in foreign-worker levies altogether, given worsening economic conditions and calls for greater responsiveness to businesses, a report from Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Wednesday.
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Nobel Peace Prize Nominations
A record 376 nominations have been submitted for this year's Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Institute said Tuesday, a secret list believed to include such diverse figures as Donald Trump, Edward Snowden and the pope.
Singapore Office Vacancies
Vacancies at Singapore's gleaming office towers are nearing their highest level in almost a decade, with construction of the city-state's tallest building - GuocoLand Ltd's 64-floor block in the financial district - wrapping up just as the economy slows.
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
IBM and Resilient Systems
IBM Security plans to acquire private cyber security firm Resilient Systems, the computing giant said Monday, as part of a move to expand its role in the incident response market.
Yahoo Inc
Yahoo Inc estimated that a plan to cut jobs and other restructuring moves would result in pretax charges of US$64 million to US$78 million, mostly in the first quarter of 2016.
Mahathir and UMNO
Former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad said he is quitting the party he led for more than two decades, increasing the stakes in his months long campaign to oust Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Monday, February 29, 2016
Gulf Cooperation Council
Gulf Cooperation Council countries may struggle to refinance US$94 billion of debt in the next two years as the region faces slowing growth, rising rates and rating downgrades, according to HSBC Holdings Plc.
Super Tuesday
Hillary Clinton scored a resounding victory against Bernie Sanders in Saturday's Democratic primary in South Carolina, seizing momentum ahead of the most important day of the nomination race: next week's "Super Tuesday" showdown.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)