News Today

Sirens to be sounded today
SIRENS will sound islandwide today at 12.05pm, as part of Total Defence Day.The exercise also serves to familiarise people with the Public Warning System (PWS) and the three emergency signals.When the sound is heard, people can tune in immediately to any... [Read more]

People on the move
SIMON CHEONG IS NEW REDAS CHIEF SIMON CHEONG: Elected president of the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore (Redas). He is also the chairman of SC Global Developments. Mr Chia Ngiang Hong, group general manager of City Developments, was named Redas'... [Read more]

Robust sales for Microsoft despite Vista delays
NEW YORK - MICROSOFT reported robust sales for its latest quarter and a profit that slightly surpassed Wall Street estimates, but its financial results were muddled by the late arrival of important new products.Sales rose 6 per cent in the quarter... [Read more]

Fabregas apologises to Hughes
FRANCESC Fabregas has apologised for infuriating Mark Hughes about Blackburn's style of play. Manager Hughes was stunned when Fabregas, 19, took a verbal swipe at him after Arsenal's 0-0 FA Cup draw at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, reported The Sun. Hughes... [Read more]

'Doomsday seed vault' to be built in North Pole
OSLO - PLANS for an Arctic 'doomsday repository' aimed at providing mankind with food in case of a global catastrophe have been unveiled. The top-security vault, to be carved into the permafrost of a mountain near the North Pole, will preserve... [Read more]

Sports World
ENGLAND TRIUMPHSYDNEY: England ended a run of nine straight losses to Australia with a 92-run win in a tri-series one-day cricket international yesterday.That kept alive their chances of leap-frogging New Zealand into the best-of-three finals.Ed Joyce belted 107 to help England... [Read more]

Pick leaders on merit, not cultural affiliation
IN HIS letter, 'Flip side of foreign students topping exams' (ST, Feb 13), Mr Quek York Tong lists his fears about an influx of foreigners into Singapore.I disagree with the xenophobic tenor and support the effort of integrating and assimilating foreigners... [Read more]

Disappointment after disappointment over CPF money
I called the Central Provident Fund on Jan 26 to enquire on my father's withdrawal of the balance from his retirement account. The operator checked his account and confirmed that he qualified for the withdrawal. She also informed us that if... [Read more]

Fund managers selling more Sing$ offshore unit trusts
THE next time you buy a unit trust in Singapore, don't be surprised to find that it is registered in an offshore location such as Luxembourg or Dublin, instead of Singapore. In the months ahead, most new unit trusts are likely... [Read more]

Putin ally promoted to first DPM post
MOSCOW - MR SERGEI IVANOV has long been a right-hand man to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and now the defence chief takes a step closer to replacing him with his appointment as first deputy prime minister. Mr Putin said on Thursday... [Read more]

Horse bites man at children's zoo
ON SUNDAY, a father carrying his year-old son in his arms was bitten by a horse in the Children's World Animal Land section at the Singapore Zoo.Mr Karl Verhulst, 39, said: 'It stretched over the 1.3m-tall barrier and in a flash... [Read more]