Wednesday #sgroundup: Singapore developer profit margins fall significantly: study

By Yahoo! Singapore

By Yahoo! Singapore | What's buzzing? – 

Here are today's top trending stories:

Developer profit margins fall significantly: study

 
Profit margins of new leasehold condominium launches in 2014 have fallen by more than 50 per cent from 2013 and 2012, according to a Knight Frank study reported in the media. In 2012, developers posted an average minimum margin of 14.4 per cent, while the average maximum margin stood at 22.2 per cent.

By 2013, the margins were between 15.6 per cent and 22.5 per cent, but this year the margins have fallen to 5.0 per cent and 10.3 per cent.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/developer-profit-margins-fall-significantly-study-041946293--sector.html

Switzerland, Singapore, US top economic rankings

Helicopters fly past with a Singapore flag during Singapore's 49th National Day Parade at the floating platform …
The United States' competitiveness among global economies has risen to the No. 3 spot behind Switzerland and Singapore in rankings published annually by the World Economic Forum.

In its survey released Wednesday, the Forum said the US — the world's largest economy — moved up two spots from fifth position last year, thanks to improvements in its financial markets and public institutions.

Six European countries dominated the top 10: Switzerland, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Aside from the US, the remaining three slots were Asian: Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/switzerland-singapore-us-top-economic-rankings-100837085.html

Obama says beheading videos won't intimidate US

An image grab taken from a video released by the Islamic State and identified by private terrorism monitor SITE …
President Barack Obama said Wednesday that the United States will not be intimidated by Islamic State militants after the beheading of a second American journalist and will build a coalition to "degrade and destroy" the group.

Obama still did not give a timeline for deciding on a strategy to go after the extremist group's operations in Syria. "It'll take time to roll them back," the president said at a news conference during a visit to Europe.

Obama's comments came after he said the United States had verified the authenticity of a video released Tuesday showing the beheading of freelance reporter Steven Sotloff, two weeks after journalist James Foley was similarly killed.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/us-says-sotloff-beheading-video-authentic-083130265--politics.html

Dethroned Myanmar beauty queen and pageant officials tussle over tiara

Former Miss Myanmar stripped of her beauty pageant title.
South Korean organisers of the Miss Asia Pacific World pageant threatened to call in the police on Wednesday in their row with dethroned Myanmar beauty queen May Myat Noe, demanding she return a gem-studded tiara from her home country.

Pageant founder Choi Youn accused May Myat Noe of absconding with the tiara, which media have said is worth $100,000 and which she won in South Korea in May, becoming Myanmar's first international beauty queen.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/dethroned-myanmar-beauty-queen-pageant-officials-tussle-over-083308050.html

LADIES′ CODE′s EunB passes away in tragic car accident with Kwon Rise and Sojung in critical condition

LADIES′ CODE′s EunB Passes Away in Tragic Car Accident with Kwon Rise and Sojung in Critical Condition.
LADIES′ CODE EunB has passed away in a car accident this morning (3 September). Two of her bandmates are in critical condition.

https://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/news/ladies-code-s-eunb-passes-away-in-tragic-003118553.html

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/wednesday--sgroundup--singapore-developer-profit-margins-fall-significantly--study-103249056.html

Wednesday #sgroundup: Singapore developer profit margins fall significantly: study

By Yahoo! Singapore

By Yahoo! Singapore | What's buzzing? – 

Here are today's top trending stories:

Developer profit margins fall significantly: study

 
Profit margins of new leasehold condominium launches in 2014 have fallen by more than 50 per cent from 2013 and 2012, according to a Knight Frank study reported in the media. In 2012, developers posted an average minimum margin of 14.4 per cent, while the average maximum margin stood at 22.2 per cent.

By 2013, the margins were between 15.6 per cent and 22.5 per cent, but this year the margins have fallen to 5.0 per cent and 10.3 per cent.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/developer-profit-margins-fall-significantly-study-041946293--sector.html

Switzerland, Singapore, US top economic rankings

Helicopters fly past with a Singapore flag during Singapore's 49th National Day Parade at the floating platform …
The United States' competitiveness among global economies has risen to the No. 3 spot behind Switzerland and Singapore in rankings published annually by the World Economic Forum.

In its survey released Wednesday, the Forum said the US — the world's largest economy — moved up two spots from fifth position last year, thanks to improvements in its financial markets and public institutions.

Six European countries dominated the top 10: Switzerland, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Aside from the US, the remaining three slots were Asian: Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/switzerland-singapore-us-top-economic-rankings-100837085.html

Obama says beheading videos won't intimidate US

An image grab taken from a video released by the Islamic State and identified by private terrorism monitor SITE …
President Barack Obama said Wednesday that the United States will not be intimidated by Islamic State militants after the beheading of a second American journalist and will build a coalition to "degrade and destroy" the group.

Obama still did not give a timeline for deciding on a strategy to go after the extremist group's operations in Syria. "It'll take time to roll them back," the president said at a news conference during a visit to Europe.

Obama's comments came after he said the United States had verified the authenticity of a video released Tuesday showing the beheading of freelance reporter Steven Sotloff, two weeks after journalist James Foley was similarly killed.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/us-says-sotloff-beheading-video-authentic-083130265--politics.html

Dethroned Myanmar beauty queen and pageant officials tussle over tiara

Former Miss Myanmar stripped of her beauty pageant title.
South Korean organisers of the Miss Asia Pacific World pageant threatened to call in the police on Wednesday in their row with dethroned Myanmar beauty queen May Myat Noe, demanding she return a gem-studded tiara from her home country.

Pageant founder Choi Youn accused May Myat Noe of absconding with the tiara, which media have said is worth $100,000 and which she won in South Korea in May, becoming Myanmar's first international beauty queen.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/dethroned-myanmar-beauty-queen-pageant-officials-tussle-over-083308050.html

LADIES′ CODE′s EunB passes away in tragic car accident with Kwon Rise and Sojung in critical condition

LADIES′ CODE′s EunB Passes Away in Tragic Car Accident with Kwon Rise and Sojung in Critical Condition.
LADIES′ CODE EunB has passed away in a car accident this morning (3 September). Two of her bandmates are in critical condition.

https://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/news/ladies-code-s-eunb-passes-away-in-tragic-003118553.html

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/wednesday--sgroundup--singapore-developer-profit-margins-fall-significantly--study-103249056.html

Tuesday #sgroundup: McAfee study reveals 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have been cyberbullied

By Yahoo! Singapore

By Yahoo! Singapore | What's buzzing? – 

Here are Tuesday's top trending stories:

McAfee study reveals 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have been cyberbullied

Bullying is fast becoming rampant, especially in the virtual world of technology where keyboard warriors thrive. …

McAfee (Part of Intel Security) has announced that 1 in 3 Singaporean teens have had experience with cyberbullying. This group includes witnessing cyberbullying (61%), having been cyberbullied (28%) or were the cyber-bully themselves (29%). This means that 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have either been the bully or have been bullied themselves.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/mcafee-study-reveals-1-9-080021979.html

Japanese researchers develop 30-minute Ebola test

A woman walks past a slogan painted on a wall reading Ebola; in Monrovia, Liberia, on August 31, 2014

Japanese researchers said Tuesday they had developed a new method to detect the presence of the Ebola virus in 30 minutes, with technology that could allow doctors to quickly diagnose infection.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/japanese-researchers-develop-30-minute-ebola-test-061658143.html

Anti-China group nabbed for planned Manila attacks

A Philippines police bomb disposal unit expert inspects an abondoned suitcase at the departure area of the terminal …

Philippine authorities said Tuesday that they arrested three men linked to a group that was planning to set off firebombs at Manila's international airport and a major mall in the city to protest the government's alleged "soft" stance in its territorial dispute with China. The military, however, downplayed the planned attacks, saying the men were just seeking attention.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/anti-china-group-nabbed-attempted-firebombing-041404902.html

9 steps a Japanese man took to 16 surrogate babies

File photo shows a newborn baby taking the finger of his mother after delivery in a French hospital in September …
Police say Japanese businessman Mitsutoki Shigeta followed nine key steps on his path to fathering 16 surrogate babies in Thailand, born starting in June 2013. It's unclear whether he went through all of the steps for every baby; four are in Cambodia and the rest remain in Thailand.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/9-steps-japanese-man-took-16-surrogate-babies-074532452.html

Dethroned Myanmar beauty queen blasts pageant boss

Former Miss Myanmar stripped of her beauty pageant title.

A dethroned beauty queen from Myanmar said Tuesday she won't return her bejeweled US$100,000 crown until pageant organizers apologise for calling her a liar and a thief.

May Myat Noe — the 2014 Miss Asia Pacific World winner — told a news conference that she had done nothing wrong to cause her to be dethroned.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/dethroned-myanmar-beauty-queen-blasts-pageant-boss-060841667.html

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/tuesday--sgroundup--mcafee-study-reveals-1-in-9-singaporean-teens-have-been-cyberbullied-094649510.html

Tuesday #sgroundup: McAfee study reveals 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have been cyberbullied

By Yahoo! Singapore

By Yahoo! Singapore | What's buzzing? – 

Here are Tuesday's top trending stories:

McAfee study reveals 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have been cyberbullied

Bullying is fast becoming rampant, especially in the virtual world of technology where keyboard warriors thrive. …

McAfee (Part of Intel Security) has announced that 1 in 3 Singaporean teens have had experience with cyberbullying. This group includes witnessing cyberbullying (61%), having been cyberbullied (28%) or were the cyber-bully themselves (29%). This means that 1 in 9 Singaporean teens have either been the bully or have been bullied themselves.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/mcafee-study-reveals-1-9-080021979.html

Japanese researchers develop 30-minute Ebola test

A woman walks past a slogan painted on a wall reading Ebola; in Monrovia, Liberia, on August 31, 2014

Japanese researchers said Tuesday they had developed a new method to detect the presence of the Ebola virus in 30 minutes, with technology that could allow doctors to quickly diagnose infection.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/japanese-researchers-develop-30-minute-ebola-test-061658143.html

Anti-China group nabbed for planned Manila attacks

A Philippines police bomb disposal unit expert inspects an abondoned suitcase at the departure area of the terminal …

Philippine authorities said Tuesday that they arrested three men linked to a group that was planning to set off firebombs at Manila's international airport and a major mall in the city to protest the government's alleged "soft" stance in its territorial dispute with China. The military, however, downplayed the planned attacks, saying the men were just seeking attention.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/anti-china-group-nabbed-attempted-firebombing-041404902.html

9 steps a Japanese man took to 16 surrogate babies

File photo shows a newborn baby taking the finger of his mother after delivery in a French hospital in September …
Police say Japanese businessman Mitsutoki Shigeta followed nine key steps on his path to fathering 16 surrogate babies in Thailand, born starting in June 2013. It's unclear whether he went through all of the steps for every baby; four are in Cambodia and the rest remain in Thailand.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/9-steps-japanese-man-took-16-surrogate-babies-074532452.html

Dethroned Myanmar beauty queen blasts pageant boss

Former Miss Myanmar stripped of her beauty pageant title.

A dethroned beauty queen from Myanmar said Tuesday she won't return her bejeweled US$100,000 crown until pageant organizers apologise for calling her a liar and a thief.

May Myat Noe — the 2014 Miss Asia Pacific World winner — told a news conference that she had done nothing wrong to cause her to be dethroned.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/dethroned-myanmar-beauty-queen-blasts-pageant-boss-060841667.html

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/tuesday--sgroundup--mcafee-study-reveals-1-in-9-singaporean-teens-have-been-cyberbullied-094649510.html

Singapore’s curious snow globe of Hong Lim Park

By Kirsten Han | SingaporeScene – 

COMMENT

Kirsten Han is a Singaporean blogger, journalist and filmmaker. She is also involved in the We Believe in Second Chances campaign for the abolishment of the death penalty. A social media junkie, she tweets at @kixes. The views expressed are her own.

The crowd at the latest #ReturnOurCPF protest in Hong Lim Park over the weekend didn't have many good things to say about the government. They were suspicious and angry, and all-too-ready to cheer the anti-PAP rhetoric coming from the speakers.

Such protests used to be unheard of in Singapore, but are becoming more and more common. As this article points out, the number of events – often protests or rallies – held in Hong Lim Park has been increasing year on year.

The article goes on to wonder if Singapore is facing any real threat of civil unrest, or whether the government should be worried. Devadas Krishnadas, the managing director of a risk consultancy, rightly points out that peaceful protests to date have been organised in accordance with the law. A government spokesperson also highlighted Speakers' Corner in Hong Lim Park as having become "more vibrant, used for a variety of purposes and provides an avenue for citizens to air their views on various issues openly and responsibly", and something that the "government will continue to encourage".

I've been to Hong Lim Park more than enough times to know that it has become one of the focal points of civil society in Singapore. There are things that can be said to crowds there that will probably not be said anywhere else in the country. That's the beauty of the space. It's also a big problem for Singaporeans.

The sad truth (hard truth?) of the matter is that Hong Lim Park is like a snow globe, stuck in the middle of a busy city that has no real time for it. Once in awhile something happens, and the snow globe is shaken: the scene turned upside down, glitter everywhere. Then, as time passes, the debris settles and everything returns to what it was before, nothing changed.

This is probably why the government is happy to "encourage" the development of activities in Hong Lim Park.

There are now many protests in Singapore, but they can't be compared to the civil disobedience one might see in other countries: they're either shunted off to the lovely-but-easily-forgettable Hong Lim Park, or require organisers to jump through hoops for police permits. Examples include how two anti-racism events have had different responses from the police and how the Pink Run in support of LBGT rights in Singapore was not allowed to go ahead unless it moved to Hong Lim Park.

All this leads Singaporean activists to some difficult questions: how can we continue to safely push the boundaries? How much of a difference are we really making? Or are we simply constructing an illusion of participatory democracy?

So is there a threat of civil unrest and instability in Singapore? Hardly. Things are changing, that's for sure, but there are still many ways in which civil society has to mature and grow before we can start talking about anything more than tweaks in the system.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/singaporescene/singapore-s-curious-snow-globe-of-hong-lim-park-150130452.html

Monday #sgroundup: Street maps of yesteryears now available to public

By Yahoo! Singapore

By Yahoo! Singapore | What's buzzing? – 

Here are today's top trending stories in case you missed them.

Street maps of yesteryears now available to public

A general view of Singapore. Thousands of letters and publications are kept in the Rare Materials Collection (RMC) …

Redhill Close is currently missing Block 4 as it was reportedly demolished many years ago to make way for a road. Hawkins Road near Sembawang used to host Vietnamese refugees in the 1970s. More recently in 2005, the old National Library Building had to be torn down to build the Fort Canning Tunnel.

These places no longer exist but if you are hoping to look them up on a map and identify where they used to be, you might be in luck. For the first time, 23 editions of historical street maps dating from 1954 to 2009 will be available to the public, as downloadable as images, from today.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/street-maps-yesteryears-now-available-public-021526961--sector.html

Five-room flats will not qualify for Lease Buyback Scheme

Flats in Singapore (File picture)

The Lease Buyback Scheme (LBS) was not extended to bigger flats like five-room flats because the government does not want to see Singaporeans living in homes bigger than what they really need, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday and reported in the media.

He added homeowners of such units already have many other options such as renting out rooms and right sizing their homes which they can consider first.

https://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/five-room-flats-not-qualify-lease-buyback-scheme-014226816--sector.html

Thai PM stacks cabinet with soldiers

Thai Army Chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha smiles during the military anniversary of the 21st Infantry Regiment in Chonburi …

Thailand's coup leader and newly appointed premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha on Sunday received royal endorsement for a cabinet stacked with soldiers, as the military extended its reach into the kingdom's politics.

Nearly a third of the 32-strong cabinet are senior military officers. Among them are Prayut's close allies and key players in the recent years of political turbulence, including generals involved in the bloody 2010 crackdown on "Red Shirt" activists.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/thai-pm-stacks-cabinet-soldiers-134935017.html

Search for survivors after six die in Paris building explosion

Firefighters and rescue workers inspect the site where a four-storey residential building collapsed following a …

Rescue workers searched throughout the night for two people missing after an explosion ripped through an apartment building outside Paris, killing six and reducing half a residential block to rubble.

Among the victims were a 10-year-old boy and a mother and two children aged 14 and 18.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/four-dead-paris-suburb-building-explosion-200657186.html

Apparent Hollywood hack attack nabs stars' nude pix

Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence at the "X-Men: Days Of Future Past" world premiere in …

Nude photos purportedly showing many top stars, including Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence and pop star Rihanna, bounced around social media, in an apparent massive hacking leak, US media reported.

"It's so weird and hard how people take your privacy away from you," Lawrence said in a tweet on Sunday.

The actress' agent, meanwhile, vowed to take legal action.

https://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/news/apparent-hollywood-hack-attack-nabs-stars-nude-pix-013137311.html

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/monday--sgroundup--street-maps-of-yesteryears-now-available-to-public-092605724.html

Play a part in assimilating: PM Lee, Khaw to new Singapore citizens

By Jeanette Tan | Yahoo Newsroom – 

Join community activities and reach out to others who have newly arrived in Singapore, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan to new citizens on Saturday.
 
Speaking at separate national citizenship ceremonies held on Saturday morning and afternoon, both encouraged the newly-minted citizens to serve the community with other Singaporeans and called on residents to invite the new arrivals to community events and for meals at their homes.
 
Lee welcomed some 150 new citizens in Ang Mo Kio and Sengkang West constituencies, while Khaw awarded citizenship certificates to 194 new citizens in Sembawang, including 32 families who applied for citizenship together.
 
Acknowledging that changing citizenship is a big decision, the prime minister said it is certainly more than doing a cost-benefit analysis on a spreadsheet. "(It is in) committing your heart — what identity do you adopt? What values will you make your own? Where will your loyalty lie?" he added.
 
Meanwhile, Khaw said the state of affairs in Singapore is "truly extraordinary" given the many racial and religious conflicts that are occurring around the world now.
 
"We must treasure it, and it requires every one of us to continue to preserve what is important to us: social harmony, mutual respect for one another and graciousness when sharing the common spaces," he said.
 
Khaw also encouraged new citizens, being better-able to understand the challenges of adjusting to a new environment, to reach out to other newly-arrived residents in Singapore.
 
Singapore's population grew 1.6 per cent between 2012 and 2013 to 5.4 million, while its citizen population moved up by just over 26,000 or 0.7 per cent over the same period to 3.8 million, according to figures from the Department of Statistics.
 
Its population density has risen from 7,529 to 7,540 per sq.km in 2013, a pain point for many who have complained in recent years of overcrowding in public spaces and competition for jobs and housing.

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/play-a-part-in-assimilating--pm-lee--khaw-to-new-singapore-citizens-014112028.html