World

BEIJING :China's factory and retail sectors faltered in August with output and sales growth hitting one-year lows as fresh coronavirus outbreaks and supply disruptions threatened the country's impressive economic recovery. Industrial production rose 5.3per cent in August from a year earlier, narrowing from an increase of 6.4per cent in July and marking the weakest pace since July 2020, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Wednesday. Output growth missed the 5.8per cent increase tipped by analysts. Consumer spending also took a big hit from rising local COVID-19 cases and floods with sales rising only 2.5per cent in August from a year ago, much lower than the forecast 7.0per cent rise and the slowest clip since August last year. "Economic growth slowed in August as consu...

SINGAPORE: While members of the public will naturally be concerned about the recent rise in the number of COVID-19 community cases, the situation “is not unexpected” given the easing of earlier strict restrictions imposed under Phase 2 (Heightened Alert), said the Health Ministry’s (MOH) director of medical services Kenneth Mak on Friday (Sep 3). Associate Professor Mak, who was speaking at the COVID-19 multi-ministerial task force press conference, also said there has not been a significant surge in cases requiring intensive care. Singapore reported 216 new locally transmitted COVID-19 infections as of noon on Friday, including 109 with no links to previous cases. “The increase in the number of cases will naturally raise concerns among members of the public who are concerned that the C...

NAVAL STATION GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba: Three prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention centre are expected to get their first day in court after being held for 18 years in connection with the deadly 2002 Bali nightclub bombings and other plots in Southeast Asia. Indonesian prisoner Encep Nurjaman, known as Hambali, and two Malaysians are to be arraigned on Monday (Aug 30) before a military commission on charges that include murder, conspiracy and terrorism. It is merely the first step in what could be a long legal journey for a case that involves evidence tainted by CIA torture, the same issue that is largely responsible for causing other war crimes cases to languish for years at Guantanamo. The hearing also comes as the Biden administration says it intends to close the detention center, wh...

:A resurgent Australia upset South Africa for the second time in a week, storming to an impressive bonus-point 30-17 victory in Brisbane on Saturday to help strip the world champions of their number one ranking. The Wallabies' win left the All Blacks needing a 15-point victory over Argentina to grab top spot, and Ian Foster's men duly delivered in a 36-13 defeat of Argentina in the late match of the double-header at Lang Park. [L1N2QK05U] The All Blacks' fourth successive win in the competition knocked out Australia and Argentina, while South Africa will need to capture big bonus-point wins over the New Zealanders in the last two matches to deny them the silverware. Australia and Argentina's remaining clashes will be dead rubbers but Wallabies fans will be pleased with the improvement s...

Hundreds of thousands of people may be infected annually each year in China and Southeast Asia by animals carrying coronaviruses related to the one that causes COVID-19, according to a study emphasizing the ongoing pandemic threat from spillover events. An average of 400,000 such infections occur annually, most going unrecognized because they cause mild or no symptoms and aren’t easily transmitted between people, researchers with the EcoHealth Alliance and Singapore’s Duke-NUS Medical School said in a study released Thursday before peer review and publication. Still, each spillover represents an opportunity for viral adaptation that could lead to a an outbreak similar to that seen with COVID-19. The question of where and how the virus that causes the disease emerged has become particular...

SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke about a range of issues in his National Day Rally speeches on Sunday (Aug 29). Read the provided translation of his Malay speech in full: COVID-19 It has been almost two years since COVID-19 affected our lives. Despite the challenges, the strength of our collective spirit shone through. Many activities and celebrations were affected because of COVID-19. Mosque attendance and Hari Raya visits had to be restricted. For the second year in a row, Korban rituals at the mosques and Haj could not be carried out. I am grateful for the community’s cooperation and forbearance. I also thank the Malay/Muslim community and mosque leaders, as well as asatizah, led by the Mufti, for showing leadership, and persuading the community to be vaccinated. No...

Beijing city is considering taking Didi Global under state control and has proposed that government-run firms invest in the Chinese ride-hailing company, Bloomberg News reported. The central thrust of the Beijing city government's proposal is to regain control over one of its largest corporations, and particularly the data it holds, Friday's (Sep 3) Bloomberg report said. Under the preliminary proposal, some Beijing-based companies including Shouqi Group, part of the state-owned Beijing Tourism Group, would acquire a stake in Didi, Bloomberg reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter. Other scenarios being considered include the consortium taking a nominal share accompanied by a so-called "golden share" with veto power and a board seat, it added. Didi, Beijing city g...

SINGAPORE : Southeast Asian used-car marketplace Carsome Group said it has raised US$170 million in a funding round from investors including Taiwanese chipmaker MediaTek, cementing its position as Malaysia's largest tech unicorn, valued at US$1.3 billion. The valuation comes as Southeast Asian startups are attracting strong interest from regional and global funds, driven by robust growth rates, as investors take bets on post-pandemic plays. https://www.reuters.com/world/the-great-reboot/southeast-asia-tech-dealmaking-booms-investors-place-post-covid-bets-2021-08-27 "The most important thing we are trying to tackle is the distrust that's associated with the used-car industry," said Carsome's co-founder and chief executive, Eric Cheng, adding that consumers were becoming more open to buyin...

IPOH: In a sprawling oil palm plantation in the Malaysian state of Perak, watermelon seedlings are sprouting from freshly ploughed earth between palm saplings while rented cows graze in overgrown areas of the estate. A coronavirus pandemic-induced labour crunch has forced managers of the 2,000-hectare estate in Slim River to find creative ways to upkeep their fields, even as prices of the world's most consumed edible oil are near record highs. "It is easier to pull out your own teeth than to get new workers now," said estate manager Ravi, who gave his first name only. "I can't find the workers to maintain the fields." Malaysia, the world's second-largest producer of palm oil, is facing a perfect storm of production headwinds that will likely drag global stocks to their lowest level in f...

Kamala Harris in March 2021. The U.S. has a defense partnership with Singapore and is the largest foreign direct investor there. And the U.S. has growing trade with Vietnam, which opposes China's vast territorial claims in the South China Sea. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images SINGAPORE — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected on Sunday to start her official visit to Southeast Asia — a region where China's economic and political influence has grown in recent years. Harris is scheduled to arrive in Singapore on Sunday, before heading to Vietnam on Tuesday and departing the region on Thursday. President Joe Biden has made it a priority to bolster U.S. standing in Asia, and strengthening ties with Southeast Asian countries is an important part of Washington's goal to keep China's ambiti...