News Today

How about extra 30 mins of concessional fare?
RECENTLY, it was reported that the evening bus-lane hours, currently from 4.30 pm to 7pm, would be revised. This was to keep up with workers' changing commuting pattern. As a retiree, I notice that the MRT passenger volume is actually not... [Read more]

In-form Lefty relishes returning to Riviera
PEBBLE BEACH (CALIFORNIA) - FOR all the fuss over Tiger Woods taking another week off, perhaps this week's Nissan Open should consider this possibility: It still might have the hottest player in golf at Riviera. True, one victory by Phil Mickelson... [Read more]

India's Hindalco to buy US aluminium firm for $9b
MUMBAI - INDIA'S largest aluminium producer, Hindalco Industries, announced yesterday it was buying the United States-based firm Novelis for US$6 billion (S$9.2 billion). The latest big-bucks foreign takeover by an Indian firm follows Tata Steel's £7 billion (S$21 billion) buyout last... [Read more]

Budget is fair and has something for everyone: PM
PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong has described this year's Budget as a fair package, carefully balanced to provide something for everyone. Emphasis was given to helping the lower-income group and elderly, but the Government also had to be fair to everyone,... [Read more]

Genting still being quizzed on tie-up with Stanley Ho
SINGAPORE'S casino regulators have confirmed that they are continuing to seek 'clarification' from the Genting group over its links with Macau casino mogul Stanley Ho. The 84-year-old has been associated with the Chinese underworld, although nothing has ever been proven against... [Read more]

Ongoing review to help grow CPF nest egg
A STUDY to help Singaporeans earn higher returns on their Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings and enlarge their retirement nest egg is still ongoing, said Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen. One issue to grapple with is how much risk Singaporeans are... [Read more]

Champions League
TodayCeltic v AC MilanLille v Manchester United Live, Ch23, tomorrow, 3.30amPSV Eindhoven v Arsenal Real Madrid v Bayern Munich Live, Ch24, tomorrow, 3.30amTomorrowBarcelona v Liverpool Live, Ch23, Thursday, 3.30amFC Porto v Chelsea Live, Ch24, Thursday, 3.30amInter Milan v Valencia Roma v... [Read more]

First post-Budget webchat to be held
SINGAPOREANS will be able to sound off about tomorrow's Budget in a special online webchat on Friday. If you have a gripe, a question or glowing praise, you can share it all with your fellow Singaporeans and a special panel that... [Read more]

Sri Lanka peace plan scuttled by defections
COLOMBO - A GROUP of Sri Lankan opposition lawmakers defected yesterday, effectively scuttling a landmark peace deal aimed at ending decades of separatist violence on the island, officials said. Eighteen members of the right-wing United National Party (UNP) formally joined the... [Read more]

Jol worried about Spurs' form, not job
LONDON - TOTTENHAM manager Martin Jol is adamant he is under no pressure after their defeat by Sheffield United on Saturday.But he is concerned about his side's lack of form.Spurs threw away an early lead against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane,... [Read more]

US Airways may raise Delta bid
PHILADELPHIA - US AIRWAYS Group may raise its hostile takeover offer for Delta Air Lines by US$1 billion (S$1.54 billion) under certain conditions to win support from Delta creditors, according to a report in the electronic edition of The Wall Street... [Read more]

Cricket Shorts

FRIDAY MATCHES MAY COST BRITAIN DEARLY

LONDON: The World Cup, due to start on Tuesday and last almost two months, could hit Britain's economic productivity by £270 million (S$810 million).

'Two of England's matches, against New Zealand on March 16 and against Pakistan on March 30, are on Friday afternoons and will be very tempting to those who feel inclined to stay on in the pub after lunch,' said a study by the Centre for Economics and Business Research.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE



WORLD CUP TROPHY DAMAGED

MUMBAI: The World Cup trophy, which was kept on display in India by one of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) global sponsors, has been damaged, organisers said yesterday.

The silverware has been sent to the ICC's base in Dubai.

'The lower gold ring of the trophy was detached from the wooden base when we received the trophy from the ICC,' a statement from the organisers said.

'The ICC policy does not allow anyone except the official trophy-makers to repair or polish the trophy.'

REUTERS

News Today

S'pore developer pumps $248m into Philippines
IN MANILA - BUSINESS park developer Ascendas is demonstrating its confidence in the Philippines as a location for business and investments. It will be injecting a total of $248 million into two separate projects here, it revealed yesterday. The first involves... [Read more]

Google gains again beat analyst forecasts
SAN FRANCISCO - GOOGLE'S fourth-quarter profit nearly tripled as the online search engine leader once again sprinted past analyst expectations, but the breathtaking growth was still not enough for investors.Google said on Wednesday that it earned US$1.03 billion (S$1.58 billion), or... [Read more]

Plans for new fund-raising moves to keep relief work going
WITH or without an executive president, Youth Challenge is going ahead with events on its calendar - including lunches for some elderly folk to celebrate the Chinese New Year.The events are scheduled for Jan 27 and Feb 14 - with the... [Read more]

Contest draws youths to total defence
A FEW months ago, 15-year-old Thakshayeni Skanthakumar thought that the Total Defence campaign was only about military stuff - soldiers, tanks and the like. But now she speaks animatedly about how it teaches Singaporeans of 'all races to come together as... [Read more]

Final push to seal deal with N. Korea
BEIJING - ENVOYS to six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons programme will hold a final day of negotiations today, US chief negotiator Christopher Hill announced last night. Mr Hill, the US Assistant Secretary of State, said the talks had snagged... [Read more]

Man plunges 16 floors and lives
A MAN crashed through a double-paned window in a Minneapolis hotel and plummeted 16 floors - but survived when he was caught by a roof overhang.Mr Joshua Hanson, 29, was taken to a hospital. Police and fire officials said he had... [Read more]

Lefty weathers conditions to share lead
PEBBLE BEACH (CALIFORNIA) - THE conditions were the toughest 'Lefty' Phil Mickelson had faced in eight months. It was a day of survival, when it was important to keep the ball in play and keep the big numbers off the scorecard.... [Read more]

Case file
CHARGED WITH MAID ABUSEA 47-YEAR-OLD Malaysian woman was charged yesterday with six counts of abusing her Filipino maid. Over a five-month period between October 2005 and February last year, Aw Ai Haw allegedly used objects such as a metal spatula, a... [Read more]

Staff to be more attentive when giving out info
We refer to the letter by Ms Liew Chuen Li (Online forum, Feb 13).We have contacted Ms Liew and apologised for the service lapse that she and her mother experienced.Upon receiving feedback from Ms Liew, we successfully turned on her mio... [Read more]

Could a wedding break the Gandhi-Bachchan ice?
IF THE Gandhis are the dominant clan in Indian politics, there is little doubt who calls the shots in Mumbai, headquarters of the nation's film world: The Bachchans are the first family of glamour. The city pauses when Amitabh Bachchan, India's... [Read more]

Passion crime brewed under Nasa's radar
HOUSTON - ASTRONAUT Lisa Nowak's attack on a rival for the affections of a fellow astronaut has sent shockwaves through a tight-knit Nasa community accustomed to crew members becoming role models, not a party to love triangles. Flight engineer Nowak was... [Read more]

'Perfect Roma' blow Lyon away to qualify for last eight

LYON - THE last time Roma advanced to the last eight of the European Cup, they went all the way to the final in 1984.

They will be dreaming of a repeat, after Tuesday's shock 2-0 win at Lyon. The win put them into the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

'The team were perfect, and showed a maturity which they have not displayed over the past few years,' said their coach Luciano Spalletti.

Roma are in the competition only because of the fallout from the Serie A match-fixing scandal last season.

Lyon, who had not lost any of their 18 previous home games in the tournament, fell behind after 22 minutes.

Roma's captain Francesco Totti powered in a header from Max Tonetto's cross.

Brazilian Mancini's spectacular goal doubled the lead a minute before the interval.

Collecting the ball on the left, he mesmerised defender Anthony Reveillere with a series of quick stepovers, slipped past and shot powerfully into the top corner.

They then defended tightly under sustained pressure in typical Italian fashion to prevent Lyon reaching the last eight for the fourth straight year.

The teams drew 0-0 at Rome's Stadio Olimpico in the first leg two weeks ago.

'It hurts, but Roma were the better team tonight,' said coach Gerard Houllier, who is set to guide Lyon to their sixth straight domestic title, a first in European football.

'Our two problems were that we were not dangerous enough up front and we were not as strong as you have to be on an occasion like this. It was simply not our night.'

The principal architect of Lyon's misfiring attack was Sidney Govou. He missed three goal-scoring opportunities.

The sorry night for Lyon was summed up when Brazilian striker Fred elbowed Roma's Christian Chivu and left him with a bloody face. Fred was fortunate to be allowed to stay on the pitch.

ASSOCIATED PRESS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

News Today

Bush and Congress draw battle lines over trade
WASHINGTON - TRADE is emerging as a hot-button issue in the United States. With five months left before the President's all-important trade negotiating authority ends, Mr George W. Bush and a Democrat-controlled Congress are engaged in an intense public debate. The... [Read more]

Ma close to indictment in funds scandal
TAIPEI - PROSECUTORS could be close to indicting opposition Kuomintang (KMT) chairman Ma Ying-jeou as they wrap up a probe into his alleged mishandling of government funds.An indictment could complicate Mr Ma's plans to run for president as the KMT candidate... [Read more]

Shorter lead time for GST hike may cost more for firms
THE bad news: Singapore firms may have to pay more to implement the latest hike in the goods and services tax (GST) given the shorter deadline than for the last rise. The good news: Many firms have already started gearing up... [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]

Passport unstamped? See me, says Johor MB
JOHOR BARU - JOHOR Menteri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman has urged Singaporeans who say their passports were left unstamped by immigration officials when they entered Johor to come forward and lodge reports.Malay daily Utusan Malaysia reported yesterday that Datuk Abdul Ghani... [Read more]

Drug-eluting stents - benefits outweigh the risks
THE first stent, a tiny metal scaffold used to hold the artery walls in position, was used in 1986 to prevent arteries from collapsing after they have been unblocked. But one in four patients with these bare-metal stents found their arteries... [Read more]

Blowing hot and cold
WASHINGTON - UNITED States President George W. Bush and Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have sparred - albeit separately on American television - as both sought to defuse speculation about an impending military confrontation between the two countries. Mr Bush dismissed talk... [Read more]

Conceived in the 1970s, the Singapore Girl is tired and totally behind the times
SINGAPORE would not be what it is today if the Government and the people had not implemented and maintained change from time to time. With each change that was introduced, be it in the political, economic, legal, social or cultural sector,... [Read more]

She got into RJC without sitting for O-level exams
WHILE her friends fret about their O-level results and whether they can stay on in the top junior colleges, national swimmer Ruth Ho, who is in Raffles JC, is one relaxed girl. The 17-year-old graduate from the Singapore Sports School did... [Read more]

Cycling their hearts out for charity
TODAY, 54 men and women will be cycling from Malacca to Singapore to raise at least $25,000 for Club Rainbow. The 'Hearts on Wheels' volunteers, whose ages range from 16 to 64, will depart from Malacca town this morning and stop... [Read more]

China's role as go-between no longer crucial
BEIJING - THE current six-nation negotiations on North Korea's nuclear programme are in effect just 'two-party talks' as Washington and Pyongyang have already sewn up a deal, according to analysts. Should the present round of six-party talks produce a watershed agreement... [Read more]

News Today

It's showtime when Grossman's angry
MIAMI - SUPER Bowl XLI is a classic match-up of the Peyton Manning-led Colts scoring machine and a Bears defence that has long been the pride of Chicago gridiron fans. It is also time for Rex Grossman to make his critics... [Read more]

Philippines' anti-terror plan: 'Clear, hold and develop' Jolo
JOLO - A SMALL group of islands in the southernmost Philippines is providing the ideal conditions for testing a counter-terrorist strategy known as 'clear, hold and develop'. Around 5,000 Philippine marines and soldiers, supported by the US Special Forces, are clearing... [Read more]

What it should have been
In our report, 'Asean Music Festival in S'pore' yesterday, it was stated wrongly that the five-day event at the Hard Rock Cafe Singapore will coincide with the Asean Tourism Forum, which will be held in Singapore from Jan 29 next year.In... [Read more]

'Golden Pig' baby boom expected in parts of Asia
BEIJING - A BABY boom is about to hit parts of Asia, as couples try to ensure their newborns get a happy, wealthy life by starting off in the Year of the Pig.This Chinese New Year, which begins on Sunday, is... [Read more]

Barisan coasts to victory in Pahang by-election
KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA'S ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition retained a key state seat in a by-election yesterday, a victory seen as an early indication of support for Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi's government ahead of a general election.BN's Abdul Aziz Kiram,... [Read more]

Wage doubling unlikely for Filipino maids here, say agents
A RECOMMENDATION by the Philippine government to set the monthly salary of Filipino maids overseas at US$400 (S$613) from March 1 is unlikely to have any impact in Singapore, maid agents here said. They generally make between $330 and $350 a... [Read more]

Homestays next to bring communities closer together?
IT BEGAN with visits to religious institutions. Then came Mandarin classes for the Malay-Muslim community. Now, a task force that is promoting greater interaction between communities is looking at homestay programmes. Details have yet to be worked out, but Senior Minister... [Read more]

McClaren in Becks U-turn?
LONDON - SIX weeks ago, David Beckham was dismissed as a 31-year-old has-been bound for a cushy retirement job in America. Now, he has been resurrected as the man who could rescue England.Even coach Steve McClaren admits he has to consider... [Read more]

URA puts up site near Dhoby Ghaut station for sale
A SLIVER of land at Handy Road not much bigger than half a football pitch will further test the strength of the recovery of properties in the Orchard Road area. The 3,584 sq m site is next to Frasers Centrepoint's 8... [Read more]

S'porean puts his bet on Johor biofuel plant
SINCE August last year, a Singaporean-owned biodiesel plant in Johor has been making 4,000 to 5,000 tonnes of the green fuel a month.In the next six months or so, Vance Bioenergy's plant in Pasir Gudang will treble its output. 'We have... [Read more]

Enjoy the Chinese New Year shopping...
SOMEONE has 'received' a $1,000 hongbao ahead of Chinese New Year - and police would like to know who that pickpocket is. The victim, a festive shopper outside People's Park Complex, was about to pay a vendor at about 5pm on... [Read more]

News Today

Jakarta 'using sand ban to put pressure on S'pore'
JAKARTA - INDONESIA'S recent ban on land sand exports was a means by which it could apply pressure on Singapore to sign an extradition treaty, said a top Foreign Ministry official here.Mr Primo Alui Joelianto, the ministry's director-general for Asia, the... [Read more]

Fatal flip-over
PHOTO: AFP A tractor-trailer hangs down from a bridge pier after crashing into the side wall of the Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway and flipping over. The driver died after falling out of the vehicle onto the road. The accident took place yesterday.... [Read more]

Boy, 7, left in burning flat as family flees
A SEVEN-YEAR-OLD boy - mistakenly left behind in a burning flat by his panicked family - was saved in a dramatic rescue carried out by firefighters yesterday. Muhamed Arrifin's relatives realised he was still in the Yishun flat only when they... [Read more]

Who's who
James Lawton, chief sports writer and columnist for The Independent, an English dailyGordon Farquhar, BBC sports news correspondentBarry Whitbread, former Singapore coach and current Liverpool FC director of recruitmentRobert Alberts, Football Association of Malaysia technical directorSpencer Robinson, British-born sports writer based... [Read more]

Online heroes
THEY might not have capes and costumes, or any superhuman powers to speak of. Yet, the Internet's superheroes have been making their mark in cyberspace. >From cleaning defaced wiki entries to protecting little ones from online predators and smut, these online... [Read more]

Visiting Vice-PM
Vice-Prime Minister of Gabon Jean Ping calling on Deputy Prime Minister S. Jayakumar yesterday. They first met in 1994 when Professor Jayakumar was Foreign Minister. Mr Ping, who is also the Foreign Affairs Minister of the African nation, is here on... [Read more]

Cramming in for art's sake
PHOTO: XINHUAThese art students are oblivious to the crowded surroundings as they took part in entrance exams for art school in Nantong city in China's Jiangsu province. The test centre did not expect the huge numbers, forcing them to hold tests... [Read more]

Khaw wants housewives, young on MediShield
HOUSEWIVES and the young are two groups that Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan wants to see brought under MediShield, the national insurance scheme. About 200,000 housewives and 400,000 people under the age of 20 are not covered. It is not because... [Read more]

Philippines passes anti-terror Bill
MANILA - THE Philippine Congress has passed anti-terrorism legislation aimed at helping the government combat Al-Qaeda-linked militants.In a special session, the House of Representatives late on Monday approved a watered-down version of the Human Security Act passed by the Senate two... [Read more]

Mahathir out of hospital
FORMER Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad was discharged from hospital yesterday after being treated overnight for flu, his aide said. Tun Dr Mahathir, 81, said he was feeling better, according to his aide Sufi Yusoff. Details of his medical treatment were... [Read more]

What next, for Changi Airport to stay ahead?
IT HAS been a good 25 years and Changi Airport continues to soar. It comes up tops in worldwide airport surveys for check-in efficiency, a speedy immigration process and swift baggage retrieval, among other winning attributes. That Changi is so well... [Read more]