Singapore morning news for October 23

Asean competitiveness: Singapore leads, Philippines galloping (Infographics)
The latest global competitiveness rankings by the World Economic Forum (WEF) showed encouraging trends among Asean nations, with Singapore leading the way and the Philippines showing the greatest improvement from last year.
— AEC News Today

Singapore is eighth biggest recipient of FDIs in H1 with deals worth $48.23b
Singapore clinched foreign direct investments (FDI) worth $48.23b (US$35b) in H1 2018, pushing Southeast Asia’s FDI inflows by 18% to $100.59b (US$73b), the Investment Trends Monitor published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) revealed.
— Singapore Business Review

HDB’s annual deficit grows by 44 per cent to $1.7b
More new flats were sold and more existing flats underwent upgrading, contributing partly to a 44.4 per cent spike in the Housing Board’s (HDB) net deficit in the last financial year.
— Straits Times

Asian stocks gain after Chinese assurances over slowdown
Shares rose in Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.
— AP News

Singapore’s inequality debate reignited after charity criticism
A recent report on the wealth gap in various countries has led to renewed debater in Singapore, where a government famous for minimal welfare spending has sought to address what has long been a sensitive issue.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

NEA to do stock-take of social enterprise hawker centres, will take action against errant players
Amid an ongoing furore over charges imposed at social enterprise hawker centres, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor has tasked the National Environment Agency (NEA) to conduct a stock-take of the social enterprise model.
— TodayOnline

Oil prices rise on looming Iran sanctions
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices rose on Monday as markets were expected to tighten once US sanctions against Iran’s crude exports are implemented next month.
— Manila Bulletin

CPF Board CEO is PAP Minister and NTUC sec-gen Ng Chee Meng’s younger brother
Several Singaporeans are highlighting that Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board’s chief executive, Ng Chee Peng, is ruling party politician Ng Chee Meng’s younger brother, on social media today.
— The Independent

Uber to appeal Singapore’s competition ruling on Grab deal
Uber Technologies Inc has decided to appeal a decision by the Singapore competition regulator that its merger with regional rival Grab violated the city-state’s competition laws, the firm said on Monday.
— Bangkok Post

Singapore’s Rajah Says More `Bankable’ Infrastructure Projects Needed (video)
Indranee Rajah, Singapore’s second minister for finance, says the island nation, as a financial hub, sees a role for itself in helping to mobilize capital for infrastructure. Rajah also discusses trade disoutes with Haslinda Amin on “Bloomberg Markets: Asia.”
— Bloomberg

Singapore embraces smart homes in heated Jadescape take-up
For a one-bedroom unit worth $838,000, buyers will get to have an integrated sink and dishwasher that could help slash washing time by 50%, amongst its many smart home features.
— Singapore Business Review

Car-Free Sunday to stretch over 3 days
The Car-Free Sunday event will stretch over three days this month to allow more to experience parts of the city centre unclogged by traffic, with Singapore’s first Car-Free Weekend event.
— Straits Times

Tackling inequality: Social attitudes just as important as government policies, says PM Lee
Successful or wealthy Singaporeans “owe respect and gratitude” to their fellow citizens, and they have a “responsibility to contribute back something” to the society and the system which enabled them to do well, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as he noted the importance of social attitudes in addressing inequality.
— TodayOnline

S’pore must help all to get good start: PM
Singapore has a meritocratic system, but it has to ensure a level playing field and help everyone get to a good starting point so that they can succeed regardless of family background, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
— Straits Times

Grab to launch a trial of its courier service in eastern Singapore
From Tuesday (Oct 23), consumers in certain districts will be able to deliver parcels and items using GrabExpress, as the ride-hailing firm goes for a stake in the last-mile logistics segment in Singapore.
— TodayOnline

Singapore FinTech Festival attracts US$12 bil of capital for Asean enterprises
The 380 participating investors who enrolled for the Singapore FinTech Festival’s deal-making platform, MATCH, are planning to invest US$6.2 billion ($8.5 billion) in Asean enterprises next year, and an additional US$6 billion over the subsequent two years, announced the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
— The Edge

Joint op busts Internet love scam syndicate
A syndicate involved in almost $20 million worth of Internet love scams has been crippled in a joint international operation involving officers from Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong.
— Straits Times

Grab charges ahead even as it gears up for Go-Jek entry
Singapore-headquartered ride-hailing firm Grab may be synonymous with transport services, but the five-year-old business is steering its way towards bigger things, starting with food.
— Straits Times

SingPass launches new app for e-services
Users can now log in using their fingerprint, facial recognition or a six digit passcode.
Local and overseas SingPass users can now download a new mobile app which will let them access and perform government transactions on the go, an announcement revealed.
— Singapore Business Review

New innovation & internationalisation programme launched by UOB for SMEs
SINGAPORE (Oct 22): United Overseas Bank (UOB) has launched an innovation and internationalisation programme to provide financial support and cross-border opportunities to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
— The Edge

More women opting for caesarean births here
More women here are opting to deliver their baby via a caesarean section rather than the natural way, in line with a rising trend globally.
— Straits Times

Who’s more optimistic about global trade? Surprisingly, it’s emerging markets
BUSINESS professionals in developing countries are surprisingly more optimistic about the global trade outlook than those in the developed world, a Bloomberg survey found.
— Business Times

Shipment delays rile backers of KIN wallet project; NUS offers help
Creators of the coin-sorting wallet received more than S$250,000 from the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter, but have struggled to deliver customers’ orders.
— ChannelNewsAsia

Fleshing out Singapore’s bid for Unesco recognition of hawker culture
A 14-member committee has been set up to oversee and guide Singapore’s effort to nominate its hawker culture for Unesco’s list of intangible cultural heritage.
— Straits Times

Singapore to play investment broker in Asia infrastructure push
(Oct 22): Singapore plans to spur investment in much-needed infrastructure in Southeast Asia by helping to structure projects to make them more “bankable,” a senior official said.
— The Edge

Grab to launch beta trial of GrabExpress in Singapore
GRAB will launch in Singapore on Tuesday a beta trial of GrabExpress, its on-demand door-to-door delivery and courier service, to serve the growing demand for instant delivery of parcels.
— Business Times

China, Asean navies kick off inaugural maritime field exercise
Eight ships kicked off the first Asean-China Maritime Field Training Exercise in Zhanjiang in China’s southern Guangdong province yesterday.
— Straits Times

UOB fully digitises applications for all consumer banking products
SINGAPORE (Oct 22): United Overseas Bank (UOB) has successfully digitised application processes for all its consumer banking product offerings.
These range from deposit accounts to credit and debit cards, to personal loans and secured loans
— The Edge

Grab won’t fight CCCS ruling and will pay fine
Apps firm Grab has decided not to appeal against an anti-competitive penalty, and will pay the $6.42 million fine imposed by the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) last month.
— Straits Times

Deliveroo launches online portal for restaurant delivery data
Deliveroo rolled out an online portal which will provide data and insights on how restaurants’ delivery services perform, an announcement revealed.
— Singapore Business Review

Analysts have SGX at ‘buy’ on higher daily securities volume and derivatives sales: Update
SINGAPORE (Oct 22): Analysts are maintaining their “buy” calls on Singapore Exchange to reflect its growing derivatives business and revised dividend policy
SGX’s 1Q19 earnings of $91 million was up 1% y-o-y, representing 24% of FY19F which RHB Research deems as coming in line with expectations.
— The Edge

‘Super long’ e-scooter impounded by LTA, found to be overweight
SINGAPORE – A long e-scooter seen on the road over the weekend has been impounded by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).
— Straits Times

Uber to appeal competition watchdog decision on Grab deal
SINGAPORE (Oct 22): Uber Technologies Inc has decided to appeal a decision by the Singapore competition regulator that its merger with regional rival Grab violated the city-state’s competition laws, the firm said on Monday.
— The Edge

Study says CPF needs to improve in these two areas
Singapore continues to lead Asia’s pension schemes for the tenth consecutive year, according to the Global Pension Index by Melbourne Mercer. It sealed continuous improvement in its index score of 70.4 from 69.4 in 2017 due to improvements in the sustainability sub-index.
— Singapore Business Review

Business professionals believe global system of trade can be restored: Survey
While trade tensions between the US and China are raising concerns about the implications for the global economy, business professionals around the world are optimistic about global trade, according to a survey published on Monday (Oct 22).
— ChannelNewsAsia

UOB digitalises all its consumer banking product applications
UOB revealed that it will digitalise all application processes for its consumer banking products, in what it claims is the first such move in Singapore. These will include deposit accounts, credit and debit cards, personal loans, and secured loans such as car and home loans.
— Singapore Business Review

Feature photo Ghetto Singapore/ National Archives of Singapore

This week’s Singapore morning news feature photo acknowledges World Day for Audiovisual Heritage, October 27.

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 October 23 added by Maria Mirasol Rasonable on October 23, 2018
View all posts by Maria Mirasol Rasonable →

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Maria Mirasol Rasonable

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Maria Mirasol Rasonable graduated with a Bachelors Degree in journalism from Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines.

She previously covered police rounds for Philippine Daily Inquirer as a trainee before becoming editorial staff at Gospel Komiks under the Communication Foundation for Asia (CFA-MG), Santa Mesa, Manila where she wrote lifestyle and trending fashion and styles articles.