Singapore morning news for June 13

Economists trim Singapore’s 2019 growth forecast to 2.1%
TRADE protectionism remains the top growth risk cited by private-sector economists, who have further trimmed their 2019 forecast for Singapore to 2.1 per cent, in the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) quarterly survey of professional forecasters, released on Wednesday.
— The Business Times

Retail slump continues in April, sales down 1.8%
SINGAPORE retail sales were down 1.8 per cent year on year in April, deepening from March’s 1 per cent fall and worse than economists’ expectations of a 0.2 per cent decline.
— The Business Times

Starfresh bottled drinking water from Malaysia recalled after bacteria detected: SFA
A brand of bottled drinking water imported from Malaysia has been recalled in Singapore due to the presence of environmental bacteria detected in the product, the Singapore Food Agency said on Wednesday (Jun 12).
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

Foreign workers who change firms risk not getting official letters
About three months after Mr Deb Nath Dipangar, 34, arrived in Singapore from Bangladesh to begin a job as a construction worker, he found a better offer – potentially paying more than the $468 a month he was receiving then.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

NSF looked scared at mention of ‘kolam’ ritual, says rota mate
Where others saw a smile on Corporal Kok Yuen Chin’s face, his rota mate and fellow full-time national serviceman (NSF) Mohamed Rabik Atham Ansari, 22, saw fear.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

S’pore ratifies global pact on workplace safety and health
Singapore has adopted an international agreement which commits the Republic to creating, implementing and periodically reviewing a national policy on workplace safety and health, in consultation with employers and workers.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

More legal protection for sex workers and foreign labourers?
To safeguard the vulnerable, tougher penalties were recently introduced against abusers of five categories of people. Experts and worker advocates see merit in the move and suggest additional areas for consideration.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Bottled water recalled after bacteria found in samples
The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has ordered a recall of Starfresh bottled drinking water yesterday after bacteria were found in samples of the product.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Grab eyes Singapore banking licence
Ride-hailing firm Grab is said to be exploring a move into banking, as Singapore regulators consider allowing online-only banks.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Economists cut Singapore growth forecast to 2.1% from 2.5%
June 13, 2019 5:00 AMThe trade war between the world’s largest economies is taking its toll and private sector economists are now less bullish about Singapore’s growth prospects than they were three months back.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

How S’pore can aid sustainable growth in Asia
Singapore can contribute to sustainable growth in Asia by helping to strengthen the region’s resilience to natural disasters, said Acting Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat yesterday.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Fellow SCDF NSF says Kok Yuen Chin gave a ‘scared smile’, resisted being taken to well for ‘kolam’ ritual
Corporal (CPL) Kok Yuen Chin, the full-time national serviceman (NSF) who drowned on May 13 last year at Tuas View Fire Station, had given a scared smile and resisted as he was being lifted to be carried to the well, a fellow NSF said in court on Wednesday (Jun 12).
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

Singapore FinTech Festival to combine with SWITCH event
THE Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Enterprise Singapore and the National Research Foundation (NRF) will marry deeptech and fintech this year by combining Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) with the Singapore Week of Innovation and TeCHnology (SWITCH).
— The Business Times

Better Buy: Singtel vs. StarHub
Do shares of Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SGX: Z74) or StarHub Ltd (SGX: CC3) give you better bang for your buck? Find out here.
— The Motley Fool

Singapore looking to grow its sustainable finance sector: Heng
OVER S$6 billion worth of green bonds have been issued in Singapore so far, with plans to grow the sustainable finance sector even further, said Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Heng Swee Keat on Wednesday.
— The Business Times

Suspended stocks on SGX hit highest level in three years
SINCE last November, five more companies have made their way into the Singapore Exchange’s most unloved list of stocks – that is, those suspended from trading for 12 months or longer.
— The Business Times

Summons issued after camera catches smoker at HDB corridor
A Bedok resident has been told to provide details of a person smoking at the corridor of his unit, after a thermal camera installed by the National Environment Agency (NEA) caught the smoker on several occasions.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Higher closure rate for criminal cases in State Courts in 2018
Last year saw 303,487 criminal cases filed in the State Courts, an increase of nearly 7,500 cases compared with the previous year.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Personal data breach: Grab beefs up data protection
Grab Singapore said yesterday it takes data protection and users’ privacy very seriously, pointing to steps taken after it detected the unauthorised disclosures by its ride-hailing firm GrabCar on Dec 17, 2017.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

New health centre caters to workers in aviation sector
Aviation workers can now visit a new health centre that has been set up to keep them flying high.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Man jailed for evading taxi fare, punching elderly cab driver and helping overstayers
A Singaporean man was jailed on Wednesday (Jun 12) after refusing to pay his taxi fare, punching an elderly cab driver and helping to harbour overstayers.
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

Activist claims Law Minister’s sympathy for gay couple who were assaulted is “little more than opportunistic political BS”
Activist Kirsten Han has hit out at Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, calling a recent Facebook post he published expressing sympathy for a gay couple who were assaulted in the UK “little more than opportunistic political BS”. Last week, two women were attacked by homophobic …
— The Independent

The most expensive HDB flats by neighbourhood – June 2019
by ValueChampion How much do the most expensive HDB flats cost around Singapore? We set out to compare the top list prices in each neighbourhood. While the public housing system in Singapore has helped many families achieve the goal of homeownership, prices have continued to rise over the years. …
— The Online Citizen

3 Risks Which May Slow Haw Par Corporation Ltd’s Strong Growth
Haw Par Corporation (SGX: H02) has demonstrated steady growth over the last few years. Here are a few risks which may derail that.
— The Motley Fool

3 Things Investors Should Know About Singapore Market Stock Buybacks In May
Here are three things investors should know about Singapore stock buybacks in May.
— The Motley Fool

Children’s Society honours volunteers and donors
Amid an eventful career in the education sector – including a previous post as chief executive of self-help group Mendaki – Madam Rashidah Abdul Rasip has been volunteering with the Singapore Children’s Society (SCS) for 12 years.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

People could be ingesting 5g of plastic a week
Fancy a pinch of plastic with that shellfish dish?
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

MBS drops $10m debt lawsuit against Aussie high roller
Marina Bay Sands (MBS) has dropped a $10 million lawsuit against Australian-Chinese high roller Wang Zhi Cai, ending a pursuit from Singapore to Sydney over an alleged five-year debt.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Quest for food safety goes down to DNA level
Just like the genetic databases used by police to nab offenders who leave their DNA at the crime scene, experts in food-borne diseases are setting up a global data bank to help them identify, track and treat outbreaks fast.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Study aims for no-drug way to cure some hepatitis B patients
A new study by researchers at the National University Hospital (NUH) is aiming to cure hepatitis B patients who have low amounts of the virus by taking them off their medications and monitoring them closely.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

First-time offender fined $2k for lighting sparklers
He bought a bundle of whistling fire sparklers and lit them at a Housing Board estate near Upper Aljunied Road, alarming residents nearby.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

CPF Board fails in bid to claim alleged arrears from country club
The High Court rejected a bid by the Central Provident Fund Board to recover nearly $417,000 in alleged arrears of CPF contributions over 85 months for a gym instructor who worked at the now-defunct Jurong Country Club (JCC).
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Genting Singapore spreads bets, targets Osaka IR bid
Genting Singapore has joined the race to secure a hotly contested gaming licence at the proposed Osaka Integrated Resort (IR), as part of its diversification strategy for long-term growth.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Older workers value flexi-work too: Poll
Work-life balance is not just a millennial aspiration, according to a survey by the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (Tafep) and The Straits Times, which showed that older workers also value flexible work arrangements and would consider leaving …
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

NTUC Fairprice criticised for inconveniencing elderly shoppers by mismatching items and prices on shelves
NTUC Fairprice, a supermarket chain linked to the labour movement, has been criticised for potentially inconveniencing elderly shoppers by placing the wrong items near prices for products that are not on the same shelves. In a post published on NTUC Fairprice’s social media page, Facebook …
— The Independent

Man gets jail, caning for blackmailing men after posing as woman or transsexual online
A man extorted thousands of dollars from multiple male victims after posing as a woman, transsexual person or pre-operation she-male online and gaining the victims’ nude photos.
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

Netizen whacks SingPost for yet another delivery failure
In a Facebook post yesterday, netizen Jonathan Ong griped about how Singapore Post, commonly known as SingPost, allegedly left a note for a failed delivery attempt, despite Ong being at home during the time of delivery. Ong wrote, “Received a small note from Singapore Post about a failed attempt …
— The Independent

Did you know that organic veggies are grown in Singapore using recycled Nespresso coffee pods?
Under the capsule coffee maker’s One Pod At A Time sustainability campaign, coffee grounds are being recycled into compost at local urban vertical farm Sky Greens, to grow vegetables you can buy at supermarkets.
— Channel NewsAsia (very annoying popups)

Man used naked photos of victims to extort $6,000
Posing as a woman, full-time national serviceman Ramlan Abu advertised sexual services online and used his victims’ naked photographs to extort a total of $6,000 from them.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Office Expo Asia to address staff wellness, workspace design
More companies are paying attention to employees’ work environment, as research shows that the right workspace can promote the health and well-being of staff, in addition to boosting productivity and levels of engagement.
— Straits Times (annoying popups)

Feature photo AEC News Today Digital

This week’s Singapore morning news feature photo acknowledges World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, June 15.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Singapore morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Singapore news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Singapore morning news for June 13 added by John Le Fevre on June 13, 2019
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John Le Fevre

Thailand editor at AEC News Today

John is an Australian national with more than 40 years experience as a journalist, photographer, videographer, and copy editor.

He has spent extensive periods of time working in Africa and throughout Southeast Asia, with stints in the Middle East, the USA, and England.

He has covered major world events including Operation Desert Shield/ Storm, the 1991 pillage in Zaire, the 1994 Rwanda genocide, the 1999 East Timor independence unrest, the 2004 Asian tsunami, and the 2009, 2010, and 2014 Bangkok political protests.

In 1995 he was a Walkley Award finalist, the highest awards in Australian journalism, for his coverage of the 1995 Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola outbreak.

Prior to AEC News Today he was the deputy editor and Thailand and Greater Mekong Sub-region editor for The Establishment Post, predecessor of Asean Today.

In the mid-80s and early 90s he owned JLF Promotions, the largest above and below the line marketing and PR firm servicing the high-technology industry in Australia. It was sold in 1995.