Singapore Morning News For August 9

Singapore leads the world in broadband speeds while the UK and USA trail behind
Singapore is well ahead of the pack with the fastest average (mean) download speed of 55.13Mbps, according to a report from cable.co.uk that ranks 189 countries.
— ZDNet

Singapore’s economy to grow by ‘around 2.5%’ this year: PM Lee
THE government expects Singapore’s economy to grow by around 2.5 per cent this year, which would be higher than last year’s growth of 2 per cent.
— The Business Times

A third of S$150m Public Sector Construction Productivity Fund committed to projects: BCA
Those tapping on the fund include the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, and Nanyang Technological University.
— Channel NewsAsia (video)

Spike in crime: Singapore police investigate toothpicks found in bus seat
A 60-year-old Singaporean man is under investigation for inserting toothpicks into a seat on a public bus, a suspected case of “mischief” that could put him behind bars for up to two years.
— The Guardian

National Day message: PM Lee highlights 3 longer-term issues Singapore has to focus on
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Tuesday (Aug 8) highlighted three longer-term issues for Singapore, even as the country grapples with present challenges such as terrorism and international trade becoming more insular.
— Channel NewsAsia

The eagle, the lion and the dragon: Singapore’s future in the age of Trump
Caught between an ascendent China and an increasingly unreliable United States, Singapore’s diplomatic future is at the heart of a debate on who really calls the shots in Asia.
— CNN

S’pore ‘yet to reach physical limits’ for development
Singapore has yet to reach its physical limits where development is concerned, said Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong yesterday.
— The Straits Times (paywall)

Device at Tuas Checkpoint is not a fuel tank scanner: ICA
A device photographed at Tuas Checkpoint is not a fuel tank scanner but a prototype of an automated passenger in-car clearance system, said the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) on Tuesday (Aug 8).
— Channel NewsAsia

Hong Kong and Singapore have much to gain from cooperation
Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s long-overdue visit to Singapore has highlighted the mutual benefits of learning from each other
— South China Morning Post

ASEAN’s biggest challenge is to stay united: Tommy Koh
As the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) marks its 50th anniversary this year, the biggest challenge for the regional group moving forward will be for it to stay united, said Singapore’s Ambassador-at-Large Tommy Koh.
— Channel NewsAsia (video)

Labour movement supports Halimah Yacob’s presidential bid
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) has thrown its support behind former Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob in her bid to be Singapore’s next President.
— Channel NewsAsia

Singapore is the best city in the world to work in a startup: Study
It’s cool to work in a startup, and cooler still, is when it’s located in a place with the most welcoming factors for the job hunter.
— Asia One

Singapore: Logistics major GLP to delist from SGX post privatisation deal
GLP, a global provider of modern logistics facilities, plans to delist from the Singapore Exchange (SGX) following a privatisation deal led by Nesta Investment Holdings.
— DealStreetAsia

Singapore Reits chalk up average total return of 17.6% year-to-date
THE average total return of all 31 of Singapore’s real estate investment trusts (Reits) with property assets in addition to the six stapled trusts was 17.6 per cent for the year to Aug 4.
— The Business Times

IIT-M start-up bags $1 million order from Singapore firm
A start-up born at the IIT-Madras Incubation Cell has bagged a million dollar order from a Singapore-based company to transfer technology used by its first two products. The key focus of the technologies is clinical training using virtual patients so that actual treatment becomes safer.
— The Time Of India

More ‘generalist’ doctors needed for Singapore, say med school deans
Singapore needs more doctors who are “generalists” rather than specialists, say the deans of the three medical schools here.
— The Straits Times (paywall)

Spirit of Singapore is to look to the future
When Singapore became independent, this spot was open sea. But looking out from the shore, our founding leaders didn’t just see water and the constraints of geography. They imagined a bustling commercial, residential and lifestyle hub, a vibrant new downtown for the city.
— The Straits Times (paywall)

Beijing leaning on Singapore over S China Sea row
China is worried it could face fresh criticism over its actions in the South China Sea when Singapore becomes chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year, and is putting pressure on the city-state to make sure that doesn’t happen, according to people familiar with the situation.
— Gulf Times

Singapore in the eyes of local photographers
To celebrate National Day, 5 local photographers were tasked, using an iPhone camera, to interpret what National Day means to each of them.
— Stuff

Assessment of Singapore’s Aviation Industry 2017 – Research and Markets
The “Assessment of Singapore’s Aviation Industry 2017” report has been added to Research and Markets’ offering.
— Business Wire

Feature photo Marco Verch
Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Singapore morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Singapore news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Singapore Morning News For August 9 added by Leakhena Khat on August 9, 2017
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Leakhena Khat

Leakhena is a junior journalist at AEC News Today who is also currently studying International Relations, which she finds adds perspective to her work reporting on the Asean Community.

“I love what I am doing so much as it gives me a lot of great experience and provides challenges to my mind.