Singapore
- World News
Increasing number of Singaporeans think racism is an important issue
The percentage of Singaporeans who think racism in their country is an important issue is growing. While 46.3% thought it was important in 2016, that number has risen to 56.2%. Channel News Asia and the Institute of Policy Studies reported these statistics after surveying more than 2,000 Singapore residents aged 21 and above. CNA says the survey questioned accurate numbers…
- World News
Singapore to end pandemic-era restrictions, embrace ‘living with covid’ strategy
Singapore is set to end most of its Covid-19 restrictions starting next Tuesday, March 29, as the country shifts from a pandemic to an endemic state of mind — learning to live with Covid, instead of trying to eliminate it. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the significant policy changes in a national address on Thursday… “Our fight against COVID-19…
- World News
Thailand is the 61st happiest country in the world
On a list of 146 countries on the World Happiness Index, Thailand ranks at 61. Finland was ranked the happiest country, while Afghanistan was ranked least happy. Finland has been ranked the happiest country in the world for five years in a row. An editor of the World Happiness Report said after the Covid-19 pandemic, all three acts labeled “acts…
- Thailand News
Singapore and Thailand to discuss cruise trips to Phuket
Cruise trips from Singapore to Phuket are in the works, with plans to offer the trip to fully vaccinated tourists starting in the third quarter of 2022. Thailand’s Department of Disease Control will hold talks with Singapore authorities to negotiate requirements for travellers, which may include proof of a rapid antigen test, or ATK, taken within 24 hours before departure as…
- World News
Expat numbers in Singapore now at lowest level since 2010
Data from Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower shows that the number of expat, white-collar workers, in the city state is the lowest it’s been in a decade. The number of Employment Pass holders, a work permit issued to foreign professionals earning at least S$4,500 (over 110,000 Thai baht) a month, fell 9% to 161,700 in the year ended December 2021. This…
- World News
Singapore urges China to use its influence effectively to end Russian war on Ukraine
Singapore’s Minister for Foreign Affairs has called on China to do everything possible to persuade Russia to end the war on Ukraine. Vivian Balakrishnan referred to China’s “enormous influence” in a Bloomberg interview, saying the decisions made by the Xi Jinping government in the coming weeks will decide the future of the global economy. “The big issue now is what…
- World News
Singapore wants to attract highly skilled expats
Singapore has devised a new system to identify unusually high talent, or ‘super skills’ in expats. The system is points-based, and scores factors including education, skills, and how expats’ nationalities contribute to diversity in their company. It is set to start in September. Singapore’s Manpower Minister said business chambers and companies have welcomed the scheduled points system. He told Bloomberg Television the…
- World News
Asia News Today | Shares in Asia-Pacific decline & oil prices to surge
Shares in Asia-Pacific have declined in today’s trade as oil prices continue to surge, with the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war continuing to weigh heavily on investor sentiment. The Hang Seng led losses across the region, dropping more than 4% at one point before a small bounce back. Shares of HSBC plummeted 6%. China’s Shanghai composite shed 1.42% and the Shenzhen composite…
- World News
In the absence of Chinese tourists, TAT pins its hopes on short-haul markets
With the Chinese market showing no signs of a revival any time soon, the Tourism Authority of Thailand is turning to the neighbours. According to a Bangkok Post report, the TAT says it plans to attract 1.5 million tourists from Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Australia. Thanet Phetsuwan says if travel restrictions are eased in Southeast Asia, Thailand should be…
- World News
Asia News Today | Japanese government “on alert” for local provocations, here comes 6G”
The Japanese government says it’s on alert for any provocations in East Asia… specifically from China, Russia and North Korea. In addition to North Korea’s launch of a ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan last Sunday, military exercises conducted by China and Russia are becoming more active in the waters and airspace around Japan over the past 3 months,…
- World News
Asia News Today | Asian countries start ramping up pressure on Russia
Asia-Pacific market have risen today as investors navigated the changing situation in Russia and Ukraine.Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.4%. The S&P 200 in Australia was up 1.2%. In South Korea markets are closed for a holiday today. Chinese tech giant Baidu is also expected to announce its fourth-quarter results today…. pundits are expecting a softer Q4 than expected.China’s official manufacturing…
- World News
Vietnam resumes flights to 20 countries, prepares to welcome international tourists in March
Vietnam has reopened air routes to 20 countries and regions in an effort to resume socio-economic activities – compared to 28 in the 2019 winter flight schedule pre-pandemic – a transport official says. The Vietnam Ministry of Transport says the resumed routes included those to Australia, Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, the Vietnam…
- World News
Asia News Today | Indonesia’s hotel quarantine scams
Indonesia’s Tourism Ministry say authorities are cracking down on hotel quarantine scams, who he claims are allegedly perpetrated by organised groups, against foreign travellers. He’s already coined the groups the “quarantine mafia”. Police have been following up allegations of numerous reported scams in hotel quarantine across Jakarta. The scam involves travellers being told at the end of their hotel quarantine…
- World News
Moderna to set up subsidiaries in Taiwan, Hong Kong and SE Asia to dispense mRNA vaccines
Moderna Inc., the US biotech company and maker of the popular mRNA covid vaccine, announced on Tuesday its plan to set up four subsidiaries in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan to support the delivery of its vaccines across East and Southeast Asia. The Taiwan-based subsidiary is expected to be established by year’s end, and would bolster the existing medical…
- World News
Singapore’s Formula 1 Grand Prix takes steps to reduce carbon footprint this year
Organisers of Singapore’s Formula 1 Grand Prix are taking steps to reduce the event’s carbon footprint. One step is using sustainable fuels to replace fossil fuels as part of their sustainability goals in the upcoming night race at Marina Bay Sands this September. The tournament is reportedly developing its own 100% “sustainable” fuel, including components derived from carbon capture, municipal…
- World News
Singapore’s LGBT content ban slammed after gay kiss caught in news broadcast
In a Singaporean news broadcast on the Winter Olympics, it wasn’t the coverage that got the attention of viewers, it was what was happening in the background at the Beijing bar. Behind the Channel News Asia correspondent were two men passionately kissing, a taboo for Singaporeans where broadcasting laws prohibit LGBT content and homosexual relationships between men are illegal. Although…
- World News
Indonesia tightens restrictions as Covid-19 cases rise in the capital
As the spread of the Omicron variant in Indonesia has led to a spike in cases in Jakarta, officials are tightening restrictions in the capital, Bali, Bandung in West Java, and Yogyakarta in Central Java. Reports initially said foreign tourists would be barred from entering Jakarta, but the transport minister released a statement today saying that tourists with the proper…
- World News
Bali to reopen fully vaccinated travellers starting tomorrow, quarantine required
The island of Bali is reopening to fully vaccinated visitors from all countries starting tomorrow. Travellers who are vaccinated against Covid-19 must quarantine for five to seven days, according to Senior Minister Luhut Pandjaitan. The popular tourist destination in Indonesia had initially reopened in mid-October, but only to those travelling from certain countries, including China, New Zealand, and Japan. And even though…
- Property
Chinese buyers dominated Thailand real estate market in 2021
The acting director of the Real Estate Information Centre (REIC), Wichai Wirattaphan, has stated that Chinese nationals accounted for nearly 60 percent of condominium purchases in Thailand in the first nine months of 2021. The statistics released by the REIC show that foreigners from the following five nations were the top investors of properties in Thailand: China, Vanuatu, United States,…
- World News
Regional low-cost carriers expand routes in Southeast Asia as travel slowly resumes
International flights in the Southeast Asia region continue to resume, with low-cost carriers expanding their routes as countries re-open. According to a TTR Weekly report, the Singapore Airlines subsidiary, Scoot, is resuming the Singapore – Ho Chi Minh route, with 4 round-trip flights a week. A twice-weekly service connecting Singapore and Hanoi is planned from February 22. Last week, Vietnam…
- World News
Samsung removes ad in Singapore of drag queen hugging Muslim mother
Following the outcry from socially conservative groups, South Korean electronics giant Samsung has withdrawn its online advertisement in Singapore that portrayed a hijab-wearing Muslim mom hugging her drag queen son. The ad from Samsung’s “Listen to Your Heart” promotion was allegedly accused of advertising homosexuality and transgenderism by promoting wearable devices like noise-cancelling headphones and smartwatches that apparently highlighted the…
- World News
Indonesia to launch travel bubble with Singapore, entry to islands Batam, Bintan
A travel bubble is in the works between Singapore and Indonesia’s resort islands of Batam and Bintan. The Covid-19 situation at both islands in the archipelago is now under control and officials are moving forward with plans for a safe travel corridor, according to Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto during a virtual press conference today. “The government is pushing…
- World News
Malaysia resumes Vaccinated Travel Lane ticket sales for air, land travel to Singapore
Malaysia’s health ministry announced today that ticket sales for air and land travel under a Vaccinated Travel Lane programme (VTL) with Singapore, which had been cancelled until yesterday due to Omicron concerns, have resumed. Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said that the resumption of VTL follows a risk assessment of the current Covid-19 situation in both countries. However, ticket sales will…
- World News
Singapore crowned most “Instagrammable” place in the world – Big 7 Travel
If you’re in Singapore, get out your camera. The Southeast Asian country was just named the most “Instagrammable” place in the world by the England-based publication Big 7 Travel. The publication noted its annual hashtag tally, which is now in its fourth year, that Singapore has many photographable spots “from the renowned Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay to…
- World News
More than 5,000 Singapore students aged 5 to 6 signed up for vaccinations
A representative from the Early Childhood Development Agency told Singapore media The Straits Times that more than 5,000 children from age 5 to 6 have been registered for their Covid-19 vaccines yesterday. The report followed the announcement by Singapore’s Education Minister Chan Chun Sing that about 80,000 students or more than one-third of the Primary 1 to 6 cohorts had…
- World News
Couple stranded in Singapore for 18 months rescued by New Zealand navy
A couple stranded in Singapore for 18 months due to their health and dwindling finances, which had made it difficult for them to survive in the most expensive country in Asia, were rescued by the New Zealand navy during a rare merciful mission last year. Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, the pair were unable to fly to New Zealand, claiming…
- World News
US CDC’s travel advisory changed to “level 4” after Covid situation considered “unknown”
The US’s CDC may have stirred another controversy, at least for Singapore, following its declaration of the Southeast Asian country as an “unknown” threat level, advising Americans not to travel to the country. The travel advisory is now at a level 4: Do not travel. But the “unknown” parked concern and reports say Singapore was in talks with the US…
- World News
Vietnam resumes five international flight destinations including the US
Vietnam’s Civil Aviation Administration has approved the resumption of five international flights among nine to Cambodia, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, and the US starting from January 1, following the agreements with authorities to implement the government’s plan earlier this month. Vietnam Airlines, with four flights per week to Cambodia, will be the first international flight on January 5, with Vietjet Air…
- World News
Singapore lifts travel ban for 10 African countries
Singapore eased restrictions for 10 African countries which were initially considered to be high risk for the Omicron variant and travellers from those nations, or who have been to those countries 14 days before travelling can now enter or transit through the Republic. Botswana, Eswatini, Ghana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, and Zimbabwe are now classified by the…
- World News
Singapore cancels its quarantine-free VTL programme for 1 month
Much like Thailand has ceased its Test & Go programme that allows vaccinated travellers to enter the country without quarantine aside from waiting for an RT-PCR test result, Singapore is putting their quarantine-free travel plan on hold as well. The government of Singapore says they are taking action to try to avoid the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19…
