News Today

To revive the kampong spirit, HDB has to put its ear to the ground and scrutinise its own heart
Good neighbourliness used to be a hallmark of flat-living. In my childhood home, a block of two-room flats, almost every unit housed three generations, with families numbering six or more. Everybody knew everybody.It was a tight squeeze physically, but the openness,... [Read more]

More market volatility likely ahead of Fed meeting
VOLATILITY'S the buzzword this week as money managers and investors alike try to make sense of the huge array of economic data and corporate earnings due out in the next few trading sessions.While stocks, led by banking and property issues, generally... [Read more]

Asia Quickly
LAW TO TARGET 'AH LONG' CLIENTS?KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians who try to borrow money from loan sharks would be prosecuted under proposals floated by police, who are cracking down on illegal money-lending.The director of the federal Commercial Crime Department, Datuk Ramli Yusuf,... [Read more]

Natsteel's net profit jumps 89% to $132m
NATSTEEL yesterday posted an 89 per cent rise in full-year net income to $132.1 million, boosted by higher one-time gains.These gains shot up to $83 million, from $32.4 million in 2005, after the disposal of its financial assets and gains from... [Read more]

Woods and Mickelson survive, but Els sinks in round one
MARANA (ARIZONA) - TIGER Woods and Phil Mickelson are safe, at least for another day.But Ernie Els said goodbye to the Accenture Matchplay Championship with another first-round loss.It is one down and five to go for Woods, who had little trouble... [Read more]

Nurses' pay to go up by 3-7 per cent this month
PUBLIC-SECTOR nurses and other health-care professionals will take home fatter pay cheques starting this month. Nurses' salaries will go up by 3 to 7 per cent, while allied health professionals such as medical social workers and physiotherapists will receive increments of... [Read more]

Porto the real test for Chelsea
LISBON - CHELSEA'S recent revival faces its first real test today, when the English champions take on their Portuguese counterparts, FC Porto, in the Champions League. The English club's manager, Jose Mourinho, has likened the match to a final. He said:... [Read more]

Going the extra mile
PAYA Lebar Airport hit a space crunch not long after its opening in 1955. Mr Bernard Chan, now CAAS assistant director for estate management, remembers well the flights that took Muslim pilgrims to Mecca. Going on the haj was a red-letter... [Read more]

Contracts for shipping sector firms steam ahead
TRADING of covered warrants issued on companies in the shipping sector is steaming ahead of that for their counterparts in other sectors.In the past trading week, turnover for shipping sector warrants cruised past that for traditionally more popular sectors such as... [Read more]

FJ Benjamin's earnings nearly treble to $10.7m
BOOSTED by healthy sales of its clothing and timepieces, fashion retailer FJ Benjamin Holdings' second-quarter net profit nearly trebled to $10.7 million. The sterling results propelled its net profit for the half-year ended Dec 31 to $13.8 million, 35 per cent... [Read more]

Singaporean jailed in JB for illegal entry returns home
SHE'S back. The Singaporean woman jailed for entering Malaysia with her passport unstamped has been released and deported. Malaysian immigration officers told The Straits Times they released Miss Cai Hui Si late on Tuesday night. Earlier, it had seemed that an... [Read more]