BANGKOK (WASHINGTON POST) – When Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, an 18-year-old Saudi woman, landed in Thailand last Saturday (Jan 5), she became a prisoner. Rather than allowing her to fly to Australia and seek asylum, Thai officials detained her in a hotel and prepared to send her back to the Middle East. But then, just two […]
LONDON (Reuters) – The euro and commodity-linked currencies rose on Wednesday as optimism over U.S.-China trade negotiations improved investor sentiment and encouraged some selling of the dollar. Expectations of more easing in China also supported markets, with Asian shares rallying and European stocks rising at the open. Adam Cole, chief currencies strategist at RBC, said […]
MILAN (Reuters) – European shares rose on Wednesday driven by the export-oriented autos and tech sectors as optimism grew that the United States and China could avoid a full-blown trade war that would further brake a slowing global economy. The pan-European STOXX 600 benchmark broke a fresh three-week high, up 0.9 percent by 0951 GMT, […]
SINGAPORE – The number of dengue cases has increased over the past three weeks, with the first week of 2019 reporting 207 cases, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Wednesday (Jan 9). Last year, 3,285 cases of dengue were reported – almost 20 per cent more than in 2017. A contributing factor and key […]
SINGAPORE – A dishwasher allegedly duped a man of at least $130,000, claiming that the money was needed for a Mr Lee Kuan Yew. Tan Hwee Ngo, 69, allegedly committed the offences between 1999 and 2013. On the first day of Tan’s trial on Wednesday (Jan 9), Senior Investigation Officer (SIO) Manoj Kalwani testified that she […]
SINGAPORE – A 33-year-old motorcyclist was taken to hospital after an accident with a car on Tuesday (Jan 8). The police were alerted to the accident at the junction of Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 and Serangoon North Avenue 6 at 6pm on Tuesday. The motorcyclist, a male Singaporean, was conscious when he was taken […]
BANGKOK — A young Saudi woman who barricaded herself in a Bangkok airport hotel room to avoid deportation was granted refugee status Wednesday by the United Nations refugee agency, Australian officials said, clearing the way for an asylum request. The woman, Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun, 18, had said she feared her relatives would kill her if […]
They’re called Fukubukuro – and at the start of each New Year, thousands of people in Japan queue up for hours to get their hands on them. Fukubukuro – or lucky bags – are essentially mystery goodie bags that contain anything from clothes to food, depending on the store selling them. They started out as […]
SINGAPORE – Danish online retailer LuxStyle said on Wednesday (Jan 9) that there is nothing wrong with its order process, despite a fresh warning by Singapore’s consumer watchdog a day earlier against some of its practices. A spokesman for Digital Sourcing, which was previously known as LuxStyle, said in an e-mail statement to The Straits Times […]
TOKYO (Reuters) – Commodity-linked currencies such as the Australian dollar and the Canadian dollar rose on Wednesday, helped by a rise in oil prices and growing optimism that China and the United States may be inching toward a trade deal. News that the two sides had agreed to extend trade talks in Beijing for an […]