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Select’s editorial team works independently to review financial products and write articles we think our readers will find useful. We earn a commission from affiliate partners on many offers, but not all offers on Select are from affiliate partners. Below, Select details what two things homebuyers need to be monitoring closely, plus what you can do in the meantime to prepare yourself financially for scoring a new home. However, rising interest rates have not made it easy for homebuyers, as they've increased substantially since early 2022. If you're in the market to buy a home this summer, you may be able to lock in a slightly lower price as well as a lower interest rate by watching two key factors keenly. After many months of soaring home prices, the real estate market finally seems to ...

LONDON: President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday (May 26) that he was glad some foreign companies had left Russia because home-grown businesses could take their place, and he warned the West that Moscow would still find ways to acquire advanced technology and luxury goods. Putin has cast the invasion of Ukraine as a turning point in Russian history: A revolt by Moscow against the United States, which he says has humiliated Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union. Ukraine says it is fighting for its survival. Besides the death and horror of war, the conflict and the West's attempt to isolate Russia as punishment have crimped global economic growth and triggered a wave of inflation as the prices of grain, cooking oil, fertiliser and energy soar. Since the war, a host of major fore...

SINGAPORE: Changi Airport’s Terminal 4 is set to reopen in September this year, announced Changi Airport Group (CAG) on Friday (Jun 10). Operations at Terminal 4 were suspended in May 2020 due to the steep decline in air travel caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. A month earlier, Terminal 2’s operations were similarly suspended to allow for upgrading works. The southern wing of the Terminal 2 departure hall is also set to reopen in October this year. This will enable Changi Airport to meet the full recovery of pre-COVID passenger traffic in the northern winter season beginning Oct 30, said CAG. "The growth that we've experienced in the last two to three months has been far greater than what we had anticipated ... although we had prepared for the possibility that the recovery will be quite...

DOHA: TotalEnergies chief Patrick Pouyanne hailed a deal to expand production in the world's biggest natural gas field in Qatar but told AFP on Sunday (Jun 12) that more projects are needed and consumers will still have to "turn down the heating" to ease the growing price crisis. The chairman and chief executive of the French multinational that is one of the world's most powerful energy companies said putting two billion dollars into a joint venture with Qatar Energy was the company's response to doubts expressed after it ended investment in Russia. The deal for a 6.25-per cent stake in the North Field East project was announced Sunday barely two months after TotalEnergies said it would pump no more money into Russia where it has huge natural gas interests. Pouyanne, who has headed Tota...

Select’s editorial team works independently to review financial products and write articles we think our readers will find useful. We earn a commission from affiliate partners on many offers, but not all offers on Select are from affiliate partners. Subscribe to the Select Newsletter! Our best selections in your inbox. Shopping recommendations that help upgrade your life, delivered weekly. Sign-up here. How to talk to your kids about investing John Boroff, VP of youth investing at Fidelity, has one overall general tip when it comes to talking to your kids about investing: don't wait. "There are a lot of reasons to talk about money, but the most important thing is to get started," he says. And there's good reason to do so. The more you and your family talk about money, the more likely yo...

:Oil rose by more than 2 per cent on Friday supported by tight supply, although crude was heading for a second weekly fall on concern that rising interest rates could push the world economy into recession. Brent crude was up $2.78, or 2.5 per cent, at $112.83 a barrel by 12:10 p.m. EDT (1610 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $3.02, or 2.9 per cent, to $107.29. "There Fed was talking very hawkish which was undermining the oil rally, but sentiment is changing a little especially on strong economic data," said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital LLC in New York. U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday the central bank's focus on curbing inflation was "unconditional", adding to fears about more interest rate hikes that have weighed on financial...

BANGKOK :A pact between Thailand and Vietnam to raise rice prices would be "impossible", a top Thai industry official said on Monday, amplifying opposition to a government-proposed plan for a rice cartel and questions over its viability. Thailand's government said on Friday it planned with Vietnam to create a pact between the world's second- and third-largest rice exporters to boost their bargaining power and help mitigate rising production costs. Vietnam has yet to confirm such a plan was being discussed. Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary president of Thailand's Rice Exporters Association, said his body had not been consulted, and the idea was poorly thought out. "Thailand and Vietnam are not the largest exporters, combined it's less than India and would have buyers turn to competitors,"...

LONDON — European markets closed slightly higher on Friday, bringing an end to a volatile week as global stocks reacted to policy tightening from major central banks. The European blue chip index closed Thursday's session down 2.5% amid a global stock sell-off, as aggressive interest rate hikes enacted by central banks to rein in surging inflation fueled fears of a recession. Shares across the continent are down more than 4% on the week. Finland's Nokian Tyres jumped over 10% after raising its net sales guidance for 2022. In terms of individual share price movement, ABN Amro surged more than 5.6% after Bloomberg reported that France's BNP Paribas is interested in acquiring the Dutch bank. The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally ended 0.1% higher, with tech stocks up 1.4% to lead gains...

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese returns from laying a wreath at Indonesia's National Heroes Cemetery on June 6, 2022 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Albanese made his first trip to Indonesia promising to strengthen ties during two days of diplomatic and business meetings. Ed Wray | Getty Images Long before Australia's new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made his first bilateral visit to Jakarta, Indonesia's trust in Australia was already slipping. According to Lowy Institute's first poll on Indonesia in a decade, Indonesians' trust in Australia had slipped 20 points in 10 years — from 75% in 2011 to 55% last year. Indonesians have also grown distrustful of most major powers, including the U.S. and China, according to the Australian think tank's survey of 3,000 Indonesians late last year...

SINGAPORE: Malaysia has partially lifted a chicken export ban, allowing poultry importers in Singapore to resume bringing in live kampung and black chickens from Tuesday (Jun 14). In a letter from the Department of Veterinary Services of Malaysia seen by CNA, the authorities said that exports of live kampung and black chicken will be allowed again, following a Cabinet decision on Jun 8. The letter also said that exports of poultry products such as nuggets or hotdogs will be allowed to resume. However, the ban on commercial broiler chicken - the larger birds that make up the bulk of the chickens Singapore usually imports from Malaysia - remains. The letter did not specify the quantity of live kampung and black chickens that will be available for export. Malaysia imposed a ban on chicken...