News Today

Tampines v Home pre-season cracker
TWO Sundays ago, they were the toast of Singapore after being crowned Asean champions. But, for national-team stalwarts S. Subramani, Lionel Lewis, Noh Alam Shah and Indra Sahdan Daud, it is back to domestic action. All four should feature when Tampines... [Read more]

GST hike: How it will benefit the poor
A WEEK before it is due to detail the impending hike in the goods and services tax (GST), the Government has reiterated the rationale for the move.Second Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam also tackled the question of why the changes were being... [Read more]

Female seminary students in Pakistan sit-in
ISLAMABAD - VEILED in burqas and armed with canes, scores of female seminary students have occupied a children's library in the Pakistani capital to protest against government plans to demolish mosques and madrasahs built without official permission. The unusual protest has... [Read more]

Carbon offsetting becoming good business
PARIS - HUNTING for a present for a pair of environmentally-sensitive newlyweds? Try this: a 'just married' voucher worth a few hundred dollars in carbon offsets. Smaller than a toaster but more meaningful, this piece of paper will compensate for about... [Read more]

Foreign influx: Mind and check the social divide
SOME years back, I was mistaken for a prostitute from China.I was sitting at a Geylang coffee shop frequented by the working ladies with their lilting charm, when someone asked me for my fee.While the episode makes for a good yarn... [Read more]

Ghosts and lollipops for 'chair-ity'
GHOULS and gingerbread men helped raise $7,500 for charity. They were featured among the creations of 150 youths from 10 schools for the 100 Chairs project to raise funds for the Singapore Children's Society. Three Nanyang Technological University mass communication students... [Read more]

Donors pledge $12b in aid to Lebanon
PARIS - SAUDI Arabia, the United States, France and other donors pledged about US$7.6 billion (S$12 billion) in aid to Lebanon yesterday to bolster the Western-backed government in Beirut and help the country recover from war. The pledges poured in during... [Read more]

Factory output grows 5.1% despite slide in electronics
FACTORIES ended last year with a well-worn story - slumping output in the electronics sector dragged down Singapore's overall manufacturing output last month. Industrial production managed growth of 5.1 per cent in December despite the third consecutive month of decline in... [Read more]

Two leaders of Poso militant group nabbed
JAKARTA - TWO leaders of a local Islamic militant group that terrorised the Central Sulawesi province of Poso and had links to the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) have been arrested.The two were arrested after a shootout that left one of them injured,... [Read more]

S'pore 'puzzled' by report on extradition deal
SINGAPORE is a 'little puzzled' by a Jakarta Post report which said that Indonesia and Singapore had moved closer to signing an extradition treaty.The report on Tuesday quoted Indonesia's chief negotiator Arif Havas Oegroseno as saying the two countries had agreed... [Read more]

Study proves misuse of antibiotics and superbug link
PARIS - MEDICAL experts have long assumed that misuse of antibiotics breeds drug-resistant superbugs, but a study released yesterday has finally provided smoking-gun proof as to how this occurs. Bacterial diseases that were once easy to treat, such as tuberculosis, gonorrhoea,... [Read more]

Aberdeen Asset names head of corporate governance

ABERDEEN Asset Management has appointed a head of corporate governance - likely the first such post among fund managers in Singapore.

It believes the extra focus on governance that Mr Peter Taylor will bring can deliver higher returns to investors through better-quality investing on a long-term basis.

Managing director Hugh Young said the firm always practises corporate governance principles when investing, but 'we need more focus and we want to build up our expertise in this area'.

For fund managers, corporate governance does not just mean assessing the quality of the target company, but is also about being a responsible investor.

Many fund managers which hold significant stakes in firms do not attend meetings or cast votes on related issues, so giving companies a free hand to do as they please.

Forming a corporate governance unit or appointing a specific person is already common among pension funds in Britain and the United States. Except for Japan and South Korea, however, the idea has yet to make much headway in Asia.

Mr Taylor, who joined Aberdeen last month, told The Straits Times that one of his roles will be evaluating the corporate governance of companies the fund might invest in as well as assessing the governance of its existing investments. This decision will affect whether Aberdeen increases or sells down its investment.

Another role will mean continuing to be an active participant at shareholder meetings, something Aberdeen is known for.

A third focus - which is likely to be less common - will mean Aberdeen taking a stand on a particular issue where it disagrees with the company. Aberdeen will then take up the issue for discussion with the company.

Such disagreements will be in the contentious area of remuneration or takeover offers which disadvantage minorities.

'When something does happen and requires more involvement, then there is someone to lead the effort,' said Mr Taylor, who will also manage funds to ensure he keeps abreast of the fund managing role.

This is unlike some firms which keep investing separate from corporate governance.

Mr Jamie Allen, secretary-general of the Asian Corporate Governance Association (ACGA), said: 'Traditionally, fund managers have not put a lot of emphasis on corporate governance in Asia.'

One factor could be that some funds invest in many stocks, making it time-consuming to analyse the level of corporate governance for all of them.

Another possible reason is that Asia forms only a small proportion of some fund managers' portfolios.

In a recent AGCA survey of investors in Asia, only eight out of the 22 fund managers who responded had a specific corporate governance unit. Practically none was Asia-based.

Mr Allen said: 'Hopefully, other fund managers will follow Aberdeen's example.'

sushyan@sph.com.sg

News Today

Climate change report to fuel debate on global warming
WHAT IT IS THE Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will release its report, said to be the most complete overview of climate change, in Paris on Friday. The draft report, prepared by some 2,500 scientists, is expected to warn of... [Read more]

MediShield basic coverage continues in any upgrade
IN THE letter, 'Should man upgrade his medical insurance?' (ST, Jan 20), Ms Nelly Yanty asked if someone who had a medical condition should upgrade to a different Shield plan. For all Medisave-approved integrated Shield plans, there are two components. The... [Read more]

TT Int'l pays $13.5m for Novena's furniture arm
HOME-GROWN TT International, which owns and distributes consumer electronics products under the Akira brand, has bought Novena Holdings' core furniture arm for $13.5 million. It plans to incorporate the business into its existing consumer electronics retail stores in Singapore and Indonesia... [Read more]

11 passengers hurt in HK train fire
HONG KONG - A SHORT-CIRCUITED transformer on a train exploded inside Hong Kong's West Rail tunnel and started a blaze on Wednesday morning. Eleven commuters were injured and hospitalised while some 1,100 had to be evacuated from the smoke-filled tunnel following... [Read more]

Charity listings
CHARITY BAZAAR Discover decorative knick-knacks and gift ideas from the 200 booths at this bazaar organised by The Concept Markets, a start-up enterprise by two Singapore Management University (SMU) graduates. All proceeds will go to the Society for the Physically Disabled... [Read more]

CitySpring listing to raise up to $315m
CITYSPRING Infrastructure Trust, Singapore's biggest initial public offering (IPO) so far this year, could raise up to $315 million. The Temasek-backed entity launched its IPO yesterday with a projected tax-free distribution yield of between 6.7 per cent and 7.7 per cent,... [Read more]

CapitaLand, DBS issues hog limelight
IN A week where CapitaLand and DBS Bank announced results that surpassed expectations, warrants on the two counters hogged the most active list. The property developer reported a 35.6 per cent jump in full-year net profit to $1.02 billion last Wednesday.... [Read more]

Kirkland still seething over Henry's taunt
LONDON - WIGAN goalkeeper Chris Kirkland was still fuming about his treatment by Arsenal captain Thierry Henry long after his side lost 1-2 on Sunday.Henry had taunted Kirkland after he conceded an own goal.Although the pair exchanged a handshake at the... [Read more]

Jail term cut on appeal for 'Stone Age man'
A COURT case that had all the trappings of a Korean television drama closed with a slightly happier ending for its male protagonist yesterday, when his sentence was reduced on appeal. South Korean student Lim Young Rak was originally given an... [Read more]

Airline high-handed and of no help to my sick niece
My niece who is studying in England took a flight on KLM back to Singapore on Jan 13. She had a confirmed flight back to England on Jan 22 (KL838) at 11.15pm. Two days before her departure, she fell ill and... [Read more]

Cold War foes meet as defence chiefs
WHEN US Defence Secretary Robert Gates shook hands in Seville with his Russian counterpart Sergei Ivanov, it was a Cold War reunion of sorts.As a Soviet analyst, Mr Gates rose to the top of the Central Intelligence Agency during the Cold... [Read more]

ST Aerospace wins $208m aircraft conversion deal

SINGAPORE Technologies Aerospace (ST Aerospace) has clinched a landmark US$136 million (S$208 million) deal to convert Boeing 767-300 passenger jets to cargo planes.

The work will be done by ST Aerospace's subsidiary ST Aviation Services Company (Sasco) at its Paya Lebar facility.

Sasco is the first company picked by the American aircraft manufacturer to convert the B767-300 mid-sized plane.

The first five converted aircraft will be delivered to Japan's All Nippon Airways.

At the signing ceremony yesterday, Mr Marco Cavazzoni, Boeing's vice-president of freighter conversions, and ST Aerospace president Tay Kok Khiang said both companies have enjoyed a long and excellent partnership.

Mr Cavazzoni said: 'I am confident that ST Aerospace will continue to support Boeing in delivering a converted freighter that is economical to maintain and operate.'

Since the firm entered the passenger-to-cargo conversion business 15 years ago, ST Aerospace has completed close to 100 makeovers.

Neither ST Aerospace nor Boeing would reveal the total number of B-767 planes that the Singapore company will work on over the 10-year term of the contact.

The outlook for the passenger-to-cargo conversion business is positive.

By 2025, 2,990 aircraft will be added to freighter fleets around the world, with three out of four of those planes being converted from passenger jets, according to industry estimates.

ST Aerospace said the Boeing contract is not expected to have any material impact on its net assets per share or earnings per share this financial year.

News Today

Getting into the game
AFTER five years of lacklustre performance, China's stock market is now red-hot. Following a wave of government reforms aimed at reviving investor interest, China's main stock exchange, the Shanghai Composite Index, leapt 130 per cent last year, becoming one of the... [Read more]

Experts tip corporate tax to be cut to 18% in one go
TAX experts are putting their money on a hefty two percentage point cut in corporate tax, from 20 per cent to 18 per cent, in Thursday's Budget. And they are tipping that it will be done in one clean cut -... [Read more]

HK to attract big spenders
HONG KONG is hoping to draw big spenders to boost its tourism revenue this year, tourism chief Selina Chow said yesterday.Tourist arrivals may rise to 26.4 million this year, up 4.6 per cent from the last, she told media and industry... [Read more]

TV times
BASKETBALL: NBA: Cleveland v Miami (Live, Ch24, 9am). NCAA: Duke v Virginia (Live, Ch23, 10am). CRICKET: C'wealth Bank Series, 10th ODI: Australia v England Live, Ch95, 11.15am). GOLF: Dubai Desert Classic: Day 2 (Live, Ch21, 5.30pm). FBR Open: Day 2 (Live,... [Read more]

Inappropriate time slots for prime-time trailers
I am a regular viewer of Ch5 and I am bothered by some of the commercials and shows aired by the channel. Being the premier English channel in Singapore, I expect MediaCorp to be more in tune with the larger English-speaking... [Read more]

Cold War foes meet as defence chiefs
WHEN US Defence Secretary Robert Gates shook hands in Seville with his Russian counterpart Sergei Ivanov, it was a Cold War reunion of sorts.As a Soviet analyst, Mr Gates rose to the top of the Central Intelligence Agency during the Cold... [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]

Expect heavy rain, floods over Chinese New Year
IT COULD be a wet Chinese New Year - and one that comes with flash floods at that. The weatherman has warned that high tides of 3.1m, along with heavy afternoon rain, can be expected from Feb 18 through 21.Flash floods... [Read more]

Recall Beckham? Experts can't agree
BY LEONARD LIM - DAVID Beckham's sizzling form in Spain has caused ripples in England. The big question: Should England coach Steve McClaren, who dropped the player said to be the world's best crosser last year, welcome him back to the... [Read more]

Why demolish perfectly livable old apartments? New isn't necessarily better
In the craze to sell older condos en bloc, has anyone stopped to consider the consequences of demolishing perfectly livable old apartments and replacing them with new developments? Many expatriates who come to Singapore want to spend their housing budgets on... [Read more]

Trams one more option for public transport here
ASIDE from buses and trains, electric trams could be an additional mode of public transport here. French company Alstom Transport, one of the world's biggest makers of trams and high-speed trains, and also the supplier of the driver-less North-East Line (NEL)... [Read more]

News Today

Nations offer $3.5m in flood aid to Indonesia
JAKARTA - INDONESIA has received offers of foreign aid totalling more than S$3.5 million to help it cope with floods that hit Jakarta and its surrounding areas in the past week. But, despite widespread complaints from flood victims about the lack... [Read more]

Road closures this weekend
IT IS that time of the year for the Chinese New Year countdown celebrations. The following roads will be closed to traffic from 5pm on Saturday to 3am on Sunday for the festivities and bazaar: New Bridge Road between Upper Cross... [Read more]

Tonight's News Articles
O'Neal's back but Miami still loseINDIANAPOLIS - DANNY Granger and the Indiana Pacers did not feel bad about spoiling Shaquille O'Neal's return.Granger scored 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Pacers beat the Miami Heat... [Read more]

EU firms lose $40b to China's barriers, says study
BRUSSELS - EUROPEAN Union firms are denied business opportunities in China worth at least 20 billion euros (S$40.3 billion) a year because of non-tariff trade barriers, a study published by the European Commission says.The survey, conducted by consultants for the EU... [Read more]

Taking no chances
PHOTO: XINHUA Safety comes first for these men as they don masks while clearing up a chemical spill from a truck in Shangyu city, in eastern China's Zhejiang province. The truck was carrying more than 400 barrels of acetyl hydroperoxide when... [Read more]

Will Lions and fans incur Thai wrath?
I READ with concern the news that Thais burned an effigy of a Singapore leader outside the Republic's Embassy, in yet another protest following the diplomatic spat between the two countries. As our national soccer players are travelling to Bangkok this... [Read more]

Singapore beat Thais after 30 years
A 30-YEAR-OLD winless streak finally came to an end at the National Stadium last night. In front of 55,000 screaming fans - the second time in four days that the stadium was sold out - Singapore beat Thailand 2-1 to carry... [Read more]

News in Headlines
Tao Li and Kendrick not included in exclusive groupSINGAPORE swimmer Tao Li splashed her way to gold in the women's 50 metres butterfly at last month's Asian Games.But, come next year's Beijing Olympics, she is unlikely to make a similar impact,... [Read more]

'Education for all' law hurting migrant kids
SHANGHAI - IT SEEMED like an ordinary day earlier this month at the Jianying Hope School for migrant children in Shanghai.Fidgety students were settling down in their modest classrooms as their teachers prepared for the day's lessons.Then the policemen arrived. At... [Read more]

Fans watch game 'live' all over Singapore
TUCKED away in a sleepy corner in Bedok North, the normally serene Geylang United clubhouse was a cacophony of noise last night. Some 50 fans turned up at a live screening to root for Singapore in the second-leg final against Thailand... [Read more]

Has Capello coached his last Real game?
MADRID - REAL Madrid have denied radio reports that their manager Fabio Capello has resigned.But the Spanish media yesterday prophesied that last night's Champions League match with Bayern Munich was his swansong. Miguel Angel Arroyo, the spokesman for the club's board... [Read more]

News Today

Fatal crash: Fine, ban for motorist
A MOTORIST who caused the death of an 86-year-old pedestrian was yesterday fined $6,000 and banned from driving for five years.Indonesian Bernard Nasmi, 57, was driving along the extreme right lane of Woodlands Avenue 3 when he failed to keep a... [Read more]

Buyer beware
World of electrical & electronic goods 99 No. of cases filed (January to December 2006)Top complaints1. Defective goods2. MisrepresentationCASE STUDYA consumer purchased a digital audio player from a retail outlet. But within three days of his purchase, he discovered that the... [Read more]

One nation, two ways to mark Chinese New Year
BEIJING - CHINESE New Year usually begins with a little bloodletting for the Miao family in rural Inner Mongolia, one of the remotest parts of north-east China. On the eve of the holiday, a pig and several live chickens from their... [Read more]

HDB rental flats for deserving tenants
THE Housing Board is aware of the concerns of the elderly and the poor. So it is willing to exercise leniency on a case-by-case basis when it comes to rental flats. But on a policy level, it has to be strict... [Read more]

Shanghai ex-party boss to go on trial
SHANGHAI - FORMER Shanghai leader Chen Liangyu will go on trial for his alleged role in a multi million-dollar graft scandal, a senior court official said in comments published yesterday.The deputy chief of Shanghai's Higher People's Court, Ms Liu Hua, did... [Read more]

Israel's scandal-hit police chief quits
ISRAEL'S police commander has resigned after a government commission said he ignored ties between senior officers and underworld figures. The commission said that he had failed to ensure a thorough investigation into the 1999 killing of a suspected crime boss. The... [Read more]

Jakarta deluge
JAKARTA - IT DOESN'T rain, but it pours. Indonesians have been hit by yet another disaster even as they reel from the effects of a triple whammy in the past month. It was only on Thursday that Indonesian President Susilo Bambang... [Read more]

Bangalore crippled by strike over access to river water
BANGALORE - INDIA'S technology hub Bangalore was crippled yesterday by a general strike that shut businesses and emptied streets as activists protested against a court verdict over access to river water. The general strike in the southern state of Karnataka, of... [Read more]

S'pore-Laos ties stronger: PM Lee
SINGAPORE'S ties with Laos have strengthened at all levels over the years, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said at a dinner in honour of Laos Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh. 'People-to-people exchanges and cross- cultural interactions have strengthened. A growing number of... [Read more]

New taste of egg-vertising
TOKYO - WHAT came first: the chicken or the egg? In a new twist to the age-old conundrum, a Japanese firm is betting that - in shopping baskets at least - the chicken or rather chicken noodles will follow the egg... [Read more]

Foreigners to be enlisted in terror fight
A NEW front is being opened in the fight against terror and crime here as the authorities enlist the help of foreigners, working and living among the population, in their security efforts.For a start, the Jurong police division is reaching out... [Read more]