News Today

Local index falls as trading slows ahead of long weekend
WHEN traders have the prospect of a long weekend in front of them, not even a pro-business Budget can keep them on the job. Skipping out early was the game plan yesterday and the market showed the indifference with volume dipping... [Read more]

I feared for my family, says Mikel
LONDON - CHELSEA midfielder John Obi Mikel has revealed why he defied manager Jose Mourinho and played for his country last Tuesday. It was because the Nigerian feared for his family's safety back home. Mourinho wanted Mikel to pull out of... [Read more]

Smaller deficit of $690m expected
THE Government is likely to rack up a smaller spending deficit as it scales back on one-off handouts and raises the goods and services tax (GST). It expects to be in the red to the tune of $690 million for the... [Read more]

Ex-detainee Ho Toon Chin dies in London
FORMER political detainee Ho Toon Chin died in London on Tuesday from a stroke. He was 70.Mr Ho was a manager in a small media company, said his undergraduate son Hehao, 21, yesterday, declining to disclose its name.He had a stroke... [Read more]

UN agency to regain control of N. Korea work
NEW YORK - THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has authorised its office in North Korea to take back control of its work from Pyongyang and cease hard currency payments to local staff and suppliers.The move followed fears that the North... [Read more]

Homestays next to bring communities closer together?
IT BEGAN with visits to religious institutions. Then came Mandarin classes for the Malay-Muslim community. Now, a task force that is promoting greater interaction between communities is looking at homestay programmes. Details have yet to be worked out, but Senior Minister... [Read more]

Indian firms finding match with Western partners
NEW DELHI - A FLURRY of big-ticket cross-border acquisitions involving Indian companies over the past fortnight may amount to more than the US$29 billion (S$44 billion) that the deals were worth. Britain's Vodafone said on Sunday that it had offered US$11... [Read more]

No arms race for Beijing, says general
BEIJING - CHINA'S military development is no threat to other nations and it will never join an arms race, a top-ranking Chinese army official said in an interview published yesterday. The comments by Lieutenant-General Zhang Qinsheng, Deputy Chief of General Staff... [Read more]

Quick News
THREE ENVOYS TO EUROPE NAMEDSINGAPORE appointed three new ambassadors to Europe yesterday.Chairman of JTC Corporation Soo Kok Leng has been appointed Singapore's next ambassador to Austria.Businessman and former member of parliament Tan Soo Khoon is Singapore's next ambassador to the Czech... [Read more]

Thailand may reopen old airport for domestic flights
BANGKOK - THAILAND'S Transport Ministry wants the country's old airport at Don Muang reopened for domestic flights while repairs are carried out at Suvarnabhumi International Airport. The move will be recommended to the Cabinet on Feb 6, Transport Minister Thira Haocharoen... [Read more]

Go for these in future Budgets...
IT IS truly a 'Wow Budget 2007' as it sets a new direction for the future. It shows the Government has listened and taken concrete steps to address concerns over the widening income gap and rising cost of living affecting the... [Read more]