Why Trump’s exit from Syria is another lesson in trust for Asia

America has a history of broken promises in the region, so it’s likely the Koreas, Japan and Taiwan are watching his abrupt withdrawal from the war-torn nation closely

US paranoia is fuelling talk of war, not China’s ‘rise’

As China commemorates the 40th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations with the United States, the arrest of Meng Wanzhou – the CFO of one of China’s top technology companies, Huawei, by Canadian authorities on behalf of the US – appears to vindicate the Thucydides Trap thesis that the US and China may be locked into a path to war.

Collecting NRIC numbers and making copies of the identity card will be illegal from Sept 1, 2019

From Sept 1 next year, it will be illegal for organisations to collect, use or disclose NRIC numbers or make copies of the identity card, under stricter rules spelt out on Friday (Aug 31) by the Personal Data Protection Commission.

Far from a ‘debt trap’, China’s belt and road allows countries like Myanmar to leapfrog poverty

Andre Wheeler says Western critics overlook the holistic and long-term benefits that China’s multilateral infrastructure investment programme brings to countries like Myanmar. What’s more, they aren’t offering any alternatives

Singapore stands by its HSR and water pact obligations, says Vivian

Singapore yesterday reiterated that upholding international law and respecting the sanctity of international agreements is a tenet basic to its foreign policy.

Malaysia chose not to review water pact in 1987, says Vivian

KL didn't ask for revision then as it would have affected price of water sold to Johor

Singapore will honour 1962 Water Agreement, expects Malaysia to do the same

Singapore will fully honour the terms of the 1962 Water Agreement with Malaysia, including the price of water stipulated in it, and expects Malaysia also to do so, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Monday.

Singapore has spent S$250m on HSR project; to lay out S$40m more by December

Singapore has already spent more than S$250 million on the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project, and is likely to expend another S$40 million or so by year-end, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan revealed in Parliament on Monday.

Film explores the history and legacy of Chinese Exclusion Act, a racist stain on the American dream

More than a century before US President Donald Trump began blocking arrivals from the Middle East and Africa, the American immigration debate was already being forged in the crucible of Chinese exclusion.

Australian Jordan Lee Plant jailed, fined for assaulting two police officers

Why should China change its successful trade policies just to please the US, given America’s own history of violations?

Dani Rodrik says when crafting a global trading environment, it’s important to realise that all nations have different political and social settings, and so will not play by the same ‘rules’

Briton Benjamin John Holman given four weeks' jail for assault

Forget the trade war. China wants to win the computing arms race

As the US and China threaten to impose tariffs on goods from aluminum to wine, the two nations are waging a separate economic battle that could determine who owns the next wave of computing.

Hong Kong mulls over tax on unsold apartments to unlock supply

Financial Secretary says the levy would probably need to "have a particular target, and not apply across the board"

US national security strategy reflects flaw in Western thinking: an antagonistic worldview

Tian Feilong says America sees China and the rest of the world through a ‘friend or foe’ mentality that squanders opportunities for cooperation. Its wish to remake the world in its own image only promotes feelings of insecurity

Multitasking is a myth - it makes people more inefficient

"Work smarter not harder" is a common exhortation by CEOs. Another common directive is "to do more with less". But how? Simplistic slogans masquerade as management insights with worrying frequency. In business it's not the "what" but the "how" that often matters more.

How dealers woo buyers of Supercars

They use social media to keep the romance alive with long-time clients.

Declassified embassy files detail US support for Indonesia’s 1965-66 massacre of communists

Thousands of files from the US embassy in Jakarta made public after a declassification review that began under the Obama administration

SCMP

Kobe Steel faked quality data for more than 10 years

Kobe Steel Ltd falsified data on product quality and specifications longer than the 10 years that the company had previously stated, a source with knowledge of the matter said.

Japan's No.3 steelmaker is still trying to nail down the extent of the tampering, the source told Reuters, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The cheating went on for decades with the knowledge of plant and quality control managers, the Nikkei reported earlier, without identifying the source of the information.

The revelations have sent shockwaves through supply chains around the world and hammered Kobe shares, which fell to near five-year lows on Monday on worries about the financial and legal fallout of the cheating scandal.

Last week investors knocked about US$1.8 billion off the value of the company as successive revelations deepened the crisis.

The shares were trading nearly 6 per cent higher on Tuesday.

Kobe Steel Chief Executive Hiroya Kawasaki on Friday said about 500 companies had received its falsely certified products, more than double its earlier count.

No safety problems have surfaced as the Japanese steelmaker attempts to confirm the extent of the data tampering, but companies from operators of Japan's famous bullet trains to the world's biggest aircraft maker, Boeing Co, have become ensnared in the scandal.

17 October 2017

Reuters

Briton James Martin Anthony Rabl Radcliffe jailed for punching GrabCar driver twice

Not only did a senior recruitment consultant kick a car, causing a dent, he attacked the GrabCar driver who had asked him why he had done so.