The Business Times, 19 December 2009

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Microfilm: NL30339
Total Pages: 46
1 46 The Business Times
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  • Title Section
    Lock icon Masthead
    17 1 weekend THE BUSINESS TIMES www.businesstimes.com.sg DECEMBER 19-20, 2009 Ssl.oo MICA(P) 124/08/2009 Sf!i A SINGAPORE PRESS HOLDINGS PUBLICATION
    17 words
  • Article, Illustration
    Lock icon Padding up pay to absorb bonus bullet
    728 1  -  Anna Teo International banks are fattening base salaries to get around bonus caps By anna@sph.com.sg Singapore REDUCED bonuses but bumped-up base salaries, by as much as 100 per cent or more. That's what some investment bankers here can expect in their 2010 payslips
    AP  -  728 words
  • Article
    Lock icon BA wins a breather – but left gasping for time
    690 1 BA wins a breather but left gasping for time Bloomberg, Reuters Chaos averted for now. Question is: can airline cut staff before the union strikes again? London BRITISH Airways pic chief executive officer Willie Walsh, who won a court ruling on Thursday to thwart a planned holiday-sea-son strike, may have
    Bloomberg, Reuters  -  690 words
  • Page 1 Advertisements
  • Page 1 Miscellaneous
    • Miscellaneous
      Lock icon Page 1 Miscellaneous Column 1
      173 1 the raffles conversation l'8?^ CEOS'HAWKER GUIDE WEALTH L 3M'S CHAIRMAN CEO 1 r's'l SoUP anc' 1 'ieac' Investment principles k BUCKLEY 8-9 tli\i^H bee hoon LlO-11 or myths? 30-31 MISSION POSSIBLE A David in Copenhagen Global Initiatives CEO Tony Gourlay pulls off a dinner dialogue on the Business for the
      173 words
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  • TOP STORIES
    • MARKETS
      • Article
        Lock icon STOCKS
        47 2 KL COMP 1,266.97 -2.06 NIKKEI 225 10,142.05 -21.75 HANG SENG 21,175.88 -171.75 SET 715.68 -0.13 JAKARTA 2,509.58 -12.97 MANILA 3,016.99 -31.16 KOSPI 1,647.04 -0.80 SHENZHEN B 583.30 -20.84 MUMBAI IND 16,719.83 -174.42 12 nnnn EDT Chnngrp 12 noon EDT Change DOW 10,301.99 -6.27 NASDAQ 2,195.14 +15.09
        47 words
      • Article
        Lock icon PRIME RATES
        29 2 SINGAPORE 538 MALAYSIA 5.55 HONG KONG 5.00 INDONESIA 15.767 TAIWAN 4.696 JAPAN 1.475 KOREA 933 BRITAIN 050 US 3.25 CANADA 2.25 SWITZERLAND 0.52 INDIA 11.75 ■Source: Bloomberg
        – Bloomberg  -  29 words
      • Article
        Lock icon FOREX
        48 2 US$ s$ US$' 1.401 'US$i /s$ lerfi 1 1.619 2.268 EURO 'us: 1.439 2.015 Foreign currency per US$ S$ YEN 89.90 64.20 RM 3.438 2.454 HK$ 7.757 5.538 BAHT 33.23 23.72 RUPIAH 9,475 6,764 RENMINBI 6.828 4.875 INDIAN RUPEE 46.82 33.43 A$ 1.125 0.803 NZ$ 1.405 1.003
        48 words
    • Article
      Lock icon David goes to Copenhagen
      475 2  -  Joyce Hooi CLIMATE CONFERENCE A small voice from Singapore tries to get heard amid the din By joyceh@sph.com.sg Singapore TONY Gourlay attempted the impossible at Copenhagen, earlier this week he tried to get everyone in one room to agree on something. The CEO of Singa-pore-based Global
      475 words
    • Article
      Lock icon National colours against a green backdrop
      693 2  -  Chuang Peck Ming COMMENTARY By peckming@sph.com.sg Copenhagen ONE wants to come across as a man of action, the other a man of honour. They are the two most-watched leaders here at the United Nations' Climate Change Summit Conference, where an unprecedented gathering of world
      693 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon X'mas comes early for retailers
      494 4  -  Nisha Ramchandani Sales gather pace in sharp turnaround from last year; newer malls on Orchard Road attract plenty of customers By nishar@sph.com.sg Singapore RETAILERS are upbeat that sales will continue to gather momentum into the holiday season, in tandem with the recovering economy. "Early communications
      494 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Zero not enough as BOJ targets deflation
      758 6  -  Anthony Rowley Central bank trying to keep price changes in positive territory in Japan By btworld@sph.com.sg Tokyo THE Bank of Japan (BOJ) yesterday signalled its resolve to take a tougher line in fighting deflation by changing its definition of what constitutes an acceptable
      AFP  -  758 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Families come out tops in Asia in recession: survey
      514 6 Reuters Singapore EVERY recession has a silver lining, with a survey showing a majority of Asians believe their families are the most important part of their lives as the global economic turmoil puts more careers in jeopardy. In the poll of
      Reuters  -  514 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon The minister's partying, it says right here on Facebook
      724 7  -  Lee U-Wen Foreign Minister George Yeo and Malaysian Premier Najib find new ways to reach out By leeuwen@sph.com.sg Singapore "GEORGE Yeo is going to zoukin and zoukout this evening." That was the status update on the Singapore foreign minister's Facebook fan
      FILE PHOTO  -  724 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Tan Kee Yong named PM's Secretary
      95 7 TAN Kee Yong has been appointed Secretary to the Prime Minister and Secretary to the Cabinet from Dec 28, taking over from Lav Wah Ming. Mr Tan has served in various capacities in the government. He was previously deputy secretary (services) at the Ministry
      95 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Two cheers for DBS – or should it be three?
      564 7  - Two cheers for DBS or should it be three? Chew Xiang SATURDAY SOAPBOX By xchew@sph.com.sg Singapore BANKERS are doing God's work, Lloyd Blankfein, chief executive of Goldman Sachs, said last month. Just in time for Christmas, DBS Bank is clutching that creed to heart and not for the first time.
      564 words
  • Page 2 Miscellaneous
    • Miscellaneous
      Lock icon Page 2 Miscellaneous Column 1
      61 2 NEWS LIVING Top Stories 2-7 Shopping L 2-7 Raffles Conversation 8-9 Gadgets UW Week in Review 10 CEOs' Hawker Guide LlO-11 Companies 11-13 Design Ll2-13 From The Desk Of 14 Wellness t!4^s- it- Sport Ll6 Smgapore k-^ L w Letter From Abroad 18 World 19-22 Stocks Stats 23-27 Perspective 28-29
      61 words
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  • Page 5 Advertisements
    • Advertisement
      Lock icon Page 5 Advertisements Column 1
      90 5 -L-4-^"" —IT M •!9pjl 91^ihI 9&^^llI Al IPj k■ L^'"Tlli^l Id 41 I PAT^I 1 IMI l^ —L J r i r Itheyearl Legacy 2.5GT Sedan from $116,500 best value Legacy 2.0 i Sedan from $88,000 award ■■■•■■■■-"■;■»'.>;■■■ ■/"■.">■' '">-*^: Matnrlma& \-JU SUBARU HUB 19 LDRONG 8 TOA PAY OH,
      90 words
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  • THE RAFFLES CONVERSATION
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon True to form
      2137 8  -  Joyce Hooi EORGE Buckley is, for a brief moment, in a very painful place. He might be sitting in 3M's Yishun plant now with an economy on the mend as a cheery backdrop, but for the purpose of this conversation, he has been brought back to 3M
      YEN MENG JIIN  -  2,137 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Raffles
      73 8 Hotels Resorts The Raffles Conversation is brought to you through a special arrangement with Raffles Hotels Resorts. Raffles Hotels Resorts epitomizes enchanting experiences, embodying global sophistication and residential charm. Each is exclusive, intimate with a distinctive sense of place, imbued with heartfelt service that is intuitive and unobtrusive "like
      73 words
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  • WEEK IN REVIEW/WEEK AHEAD
    • THIS WEEK
      • Article
        Lock icon Private equity crisis
        51 9 may turn into a rout THE next few years could see at least 20 per cent of the largest lev-eraged-buyout private equity firms go out of business. The casualty list could even hit 40 per cent as investment dollars dries up in the Western and Middle East
        51 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Economist, Nobel Prize winner Samuelson dies
        32 9 PAUL Samuelson, Nobel Prize-win-ning economist and author of the best-selling economics textbook in history, died on Sunday at his home in Belmont, Massachusetts. He was 94.
        32 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Fed's rate policy could spark next financial crisis
        58 9 THE Federal Reserve may cause another crisis by botching the withdrawal of liquidity from the US economy, Morgan Stanley Asia chairman Stephen Roach said. The Fed is the "weak link" among central banks and may fail to tighten monetary policy in time
        58 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Abu Dhabi throws US$10b lifeline, Dubai grabs it
        44 9 ABU Dhabi announced on Monday that it would not let the Dubai sink in its financial quagmire. It pledged help in the form of a US$lO billion emergency fund to help Dubai World meet its obligations.
        44 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Citigroup set to repay US$20b TARP money
        68 9 CITIGROUP Inc is nearing an accord that would let the bank repay its US$2O billion of bailout funds and escape government pay limits. CEO Vikram Pandit is pressing for an exit from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to avoid being the only large
        BLOOMBERG  -  68 words
      • Article
        Lock icon African nations calm storm after half-day walkout
        51 9 AFRICAN nations agreed to resume UN climate talks here on Monday after a half-day walkout, accusing rich countries of trying to kill the existing Kyoto Protocol. The protest took place ahead of a summit of 110 leaders to back a UN global warming
        51 words
      • Article
        Lock icon S'pore's next port of call may be rising in the west
        41 9 TUAS View Extension looks set to become the country's next major port development. The Maritime and Port Authority is scheduled to start soil investigation and seismic surveys there anytime now.
        41 words
      • Article
        Lock icon No more 3-year telco contracts, fixed penalties
        47 9 THE government has imposed new guidelines to weed out the practice of lengthy subscriber contracts and fixed early-termination charges. The longest tenure for all new fixed line, mobile and broadband contracts must be under 24 months, down from 36 currently.
        47 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Japan sticking to 44t yen cap on 2010 bond issues
        65 9 JAPAN will stick to a self-imposed cap on new bond issues next year as it tries to alleviate growing worries about its rapidly rising debt. The formal commitment in pre-budget guidance to around 44 trillion yen (Ss69o billion) came af-
        65 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Banner year for good class bungalows
        46 9 THE Good Class Bungalow market has seen nearly 100 transactions worth a total of $1.6 billion in the first 11 months of this year. This is almost double the 51 deals valued at $827 million for all of last year.
        46 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Retail sector expected to hold up in 2010
        50 9 THE retail sector-the most resilient part of the property market in 2009 should hold up in 2010 as well. And analysts expect prime retail rents to end 2009 down 3-6 per cent a much smaller drop than that predicted a year ago.
        50 words
      • Article
        Lock icon It's payback time with AIA set for HK listing
        36 9 TROUBLED insurance giant American International Group is listing its Asian life assurance unit on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The IPO is expected to raise US$lO-20 billion.
        36 words
      • Article
        Lock icon SGX keeping 'Prime watch' on ex-CEO
        50 9 THE Singapore Exchange said on Thursday that it reserves the right to deny former chief executive Hsieh Fu Hua shares that it awarded him just before he left if he engages in activity that conflicts with SGX's interests within a year of his departure.
        50 words
      • Article
        Lock icon KL unveils ambitious plan to revamp govt
        44 9 Malaysia unveiled some grand plans on Thursday as part of its so-called government transformation programme, which includes open tenders for all government projects and the transparent disclosure of all details of government procurement awards and privatisation contracts.
        44 words
  • Page 9 Miscellaneous
    • Miscellaneous
      Lock icon Page 9 Miscellaneous Column 1
      229 9 CRYPTIC CROSSWORD 11 In verdict, umpire's given BWM^ H^H^HB HHHH r h f HI showing worth in r9 p i- European institute (7) That's puzzling (6) 25~~^—^ yesterday's solution I *****11 1 1 1 1 1 1 Across: 1 Pathos, 4 Observed, 9 notes by Old instrument Reeled, 10 Doctrine,
      229 words
    • Miscellaneous
      Lock icon Page 9 Miscellaneous Column 2
      97 9 NEXT WEEK Dec 21-25,2009 US DATA Dec 22 GDPQ3 Existing home sales Nov Dec 23 Personal income Nov Personal spending Nov New home sales Nov Dec 24 Initial claims 12/19 Durable goods orders Nov SINGAPORE DATA Dec 23 Consumer price index Nov Dec 24 Index of industrial production Nov EVENTS
      97 words
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  • COMPANIES
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Oriental Century loses acting CEO Lei Hua
      468 10  -  Jamie Lee The board cites a 'difference in opinion' between Mr Lei and the directors on the sale of its Chinese units By Singapore leejamie@sph.com.sg ORIENTAL Century which had its trading suspended after its chief executive officer (CEO) admitted to faking the accounts
      FILE PHOTO  -  468 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Macquarie Int'l sells its MEIF stake
      310 10  -  Emilyn Yap By Singapore emilyny@sph.com.sg MACQUARIE International Infrastructure Fund (MIIF) has sold its remaining 1.8 per cent interest in Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund (MEIF) to several investors for $50.4 million. The divestment will generate an internal rate of return of about 4.6 per cent
      310 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Chartered to be delisted on Dec 29
      231 10  -  Winston Chai By Singapore winstonc@sph.com.sg ABU Dhabi state fund Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC) has officially completed its acquisition of Chartered Semiconductor and the homegrown chipmaker will be delisted from the Singapore main board on Dec 29. In a joint statement released yesterday,
      231 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Hock Lian Seng IPO 6 times subscribed
      299 10  -  Jermaine Ng By Singapore ngshjer@sph.com.sg WITH subscription of about six times, Singa-pore-based civil engineering group Hock Lian Seng Holdings (HLS) said yesterday its initial public offering has received strong support from investors. Last Friday, the company said it would offer 110 million new
      299 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Wilmar sells PureCircle stake to Olam
      372 11  -  Chew Xiang It makes a £6.5 m profit from the sale, representing a 19.6% return in 6 months By xchew@sph.com.sg Singapore PALM oil giant Wilmar International has sold its stake in sweetener producer PureCircle to joint-venture partner Olam International for a substantial profit. "This
      372 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon ST Engg renews US Air deal
      277 11  -  Jermaine Ng By ngshjer@sph.com.sg Singapore ST Engineering, through aerospace arm ST Aerospace, has renewed a maintenance contract with US Airways worth US$6O million over three years. The deal, which will start next month, will primarily cover heavy maintenance visits (HMVs) for the airline's fleet
      AFP  -  277 words
    • Business briefing
      • Article
        Lock icon Yanlord unit acquires Chengdu site
        88 11 YANLORD Group said that two of its units have jointly acquired a prime residential development site in China with a total planned gross floor area of about 390,658 square metres in Panchenggang, Jinjiang District, Chengdu, for 1.96 billion yuan (*****.6 million). The group also signed
        88 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Guangzhao collects 8.1m yuan
        58 11 GUANGZHAO Industrial Forest Biotechnology Group said that of its trade receivables totalling 20.2 million yuan (Ss4.l million) as at Dec 31 2008, a total of 8.1 million yuan has been collected to date. The group is in the process of collecting the remaining trade receivables related
        58 words
      • Article
        Lock icon BH unit wins engineering contract
        55 11 BH Global Marine said that wholly owned subsidiary BH Marine Offshore Engineering Pte Ltd has signed an engineering and installation contract with Twins Engineering Hardware. The value of the contract is expected to be more than $20 million. Expected commencement and delivery date is January
        55 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon All eyes on US$ as STI just inches up this week
      536 12  -  R Sivanithy STOCKS sivan@sph.com.sg Senior correspondent A FIRMING of the US dollar that sparked "carry trade" concerns was the main feature of the week just past, outweighing any boost to stocks that might have come from Wednesday's US Federal
      536 words
    • Article
      Lock icon TOP 20 ACTIVES
      112 12 IDR 142,647 0.5 0.0 0.( ifflesEdu 53,278 36.5 -2.0 -5.; ientins SP 50,744 117 0.0 0.( 'ins Li 35,685 64.5 1.0 1.( Jan Joo 33,247 0.0 0.( Solden 33,125 485 -1.5 -3( 24; !70 256 1.0 0." :hina XLX 21,166 65 2.0 3.; IOL 20, !45 159
      112 words
    • Article
      Lock icon TOP GAINERS
      52 12 BY CENTS UP CLOSE :h .0912 1164 68.0 6.2 :h 1160 60.0 5.5 JSH 1740 30.8 1.3 Jardine C&C 2602 26.0 1.0 ir Euroi 10US$ 1247 21.0 1.2 341 15.0 4.6 DBXTS&P Short 10US$ 5478 12.6 0.2 :h DBeCW*****2 48 9.5 24.7 NOL 159 7.0 4.6 SMRT 189
      52 words
    • Article
      Lock icon TOP LOSERS
      60 12 BY CENTS CLOSEDOWN BXT Nif 10US$ ***** -281.3 -1.8 GLD 10US$ ***** -253.3 -1.6 DBXT FTChina25 10US$ 2975 -112.0 -2.6 DBXT FTVietnam 10US$ 3956 -92.4 -1.6 DBXTMSKorea 10US$ 4508 -46.2 -0.7 STXPO 100 1378 -30.0 -2.1 Asia Pac Brew 1190 -26.0 -2.1 or Emerg kts 1 957 -23.8
      60 words
    • Article
      Lock icon STI STOCKS
      103 12 :apitaLand 4.110 -0.040 ]apitaMall 1.730 -0.030 :if 'Dev 11.600 +0.600 1.570 :osco Corp 1.070 IBS Grp 14.800 -0.080 :&N 4.080 -0.080 ientin: SP 1.170 iolden A; ;ri 0.485 -0.015 IK Land 4.700 -0.140 IMH 28.860 -0.140 ISH 17.400 +0.220 lardine C&C 26.020 +0.260 Corp 8.160 -0.110 IOL 1.590
      103 words
    • Article
      Lock icon $2.10 a share offer for Jurong Cement
      279 12 HOLCIM Investments Singapore, which owns 55 per cent of Jurong Cement limited (JCL), is making a voluntary unconditional cash offer for all JCL shares that it does not already own or agreed to acquire. The offer is pitched at $2.10 a share. Privatising
      279 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Funds flow face testing year ahead
      490 12 Bloomberg Singapore EMERGING-MARKET equity fund inflows slowed in the week to Dec 16, with 2010 poised to be a more "testing year" amid waning stimulus measures worldwide, according to EPFR Global. Net inflows of U*****.4 million added to more than US$75 billion in developing-na-tion
      Bloomberg  -  490 words
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  • Page 11 Advertisements
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      Lock icon Page 11 Advertisements Column 1
      4 11 91.3 Commercial fesn3* 3com
      4 words
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      Lock icon Page 11 Advertisements Column 2
      312 11 IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPANIES ACT, CAP. 50 AND IN THE MATTER OF ÜBIX BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PTE. LTD. (In Voluntary Liquidation) (Company Registration No. *****15S6D) NOTICE OF RESOLUTION At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the members of ÜBIX BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PTE. LTD. duly convened and held at 3791 Jalan
      312 words
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  • FROM THE DESK OF
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Sticking to the good borrowers
      876 13  -  Jeanette Wong In a crisis, many banks, foreign or local, become reluctant to increase their risk exposures unless if s to existing companies that they know well FROM THE DESK OF Group executive, Institutional Banking Group, DBS Bank because they were worried about the availability
      876 words
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  • SINGAPORE
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon All eyes on H1 2010 industrial land sales programme
      547 14  -  Emilyn Yap Market sentiment has improved; developers showing much greater appetite for state industrial land than they were last year By emilyny@sph.com.sg INTENSE bidding for state industrial sites in the past few months has market watchers paying close attention to the
      URA,BTcalculations  -  547 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon PM Lee meets Iran, Maldives leaders
      144 14  -  Chuang Peck Ming By Copenhagen peckming@sph.com.sg Copenhagen PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong met Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the sidelines of the Copenhagen climate conference on Thursday. The two leaders noted that Singapore and Iran enjoy "amiable ties" and agreed to take steps to
      DESMOND WEE^HE STRAITS TIMES  -  144 words
    • Article
      Lock icon HLF offers new loan packages for HDB flat buyers
      251 14 HDB flat buyers can look forward to new loan packages from Hong Leong Finance (HLF). It is offering variable rates at 1.33 per cent per annum for the first year, or a two-year fixed rate from 1.63 per cent per annum,
      251 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon More than $3.6 billion paid under Jobs Credit scheme
      299 15  -  Uma Shankari More than 100,000 employers will receive $900 m by Dec 24 By shankari@sph.com.sg THE government has paid out more than $3.6 billion under the Jobs Credit scheme after the fourth payment, it said yesterday. More than 100,000 employers, with
      FILE PHOTO  -  299 words
    • Article
      Lock icon $20m VC fund wins foreign backing
      217 15 Extream gets support from Georgieff Capital and ART Texas Capital SINGAPORE-BASED venture capital (VC) firm Extream Ventures has secured commitments from Georgieff Capital (Germany) and ART Texas Capital (US) for Extream Venture Fund I a $20 million fund to support emerging technologies in Singapore.
      217 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Speak Good English message spreads to sign makers
      299 15 ENCOURAGED by the success of the recent "Fix That Sign" contest, the Speak Good English Movement has expanded the initiative to include local sign makers to spread the message of and teach good English. The contest, which spanned three months, was jointly
      299 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Sluggish rents for past 3 quarters: DTZ
      779 16  -  Kalpana Rashiwala Average monthly rental value of luxury apartments down nearly 40% at $4.65 psf in Q2-Q4 this year By kalpana@sph.com.sg RESIDENTIAL rents have stagnated in the past three quarters across the board in Singapore for luxury apartments, other prime district apartments as
      3TZ  -  779 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Retail property in Asia Pacific outshines other sectors
      402 16  -  Uma Shankari By shankari@sph.com.sg RETAIL property in Asia Pacific continues to outshine other sectors as rents grow, showed a new report by DTZ. Retail rents have performed well with growth of around 3 per cent per year since 2004 without any significant
      402 words
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  • LETTER FROM ABROAD WITH ASCOTT
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Good old camaraderie
      895 17  -  Wong Kin Wei IT is my second year in Oxford and fifth year in the UK, where I have now spent one-fifth of my life. A common misconception about the English is that they are smug, especially in the workplace. But my 11 months here with a
      895 words
  • Page 17 Advertisements
    • Advertisement
      Lock icon Page 17 Advertisements Column 1
      144 17 DEFINING GLOBAL LIVING IN EUROPE JwHtHT Iff^!'l From the spacious exclusivity and refinement of Ascott to the pampering France Belgium < Wafl touches for the family at Somerset, or the vibrancy of independent city-living Aix-en-Provence 'Brussels I* i= at Citadines, there is an Ascott International serviced residence designed to Bordeaux
      144 words
    • Advertisement
      Lock icon Page 17 Advertisements Column 2
      18 17 THE ASCOTT GROUP A Member of Capita Land This series is brought to you by The Ascott Group
      18 words
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  • WORLD
    • Article
      Lock icon New climate draft scraps end-2010 deadline for binding accord
      623 18 Bloomberg, AP, Reuters Tensions between China and US rising; impasse over finance for developing nations Copenhagen A NEW draft for a climate deal in Copenhagen has dropped a reference to an end-2010 deadline for reaching a legally binding treaty that had
      Bloomberg,; AP,; Reuters  -  623 words
    • Briefing
      • Article
        Lock icon Deutsche Bank staff to share burden of UK tax: boss
        80 18 AFP it Global staff at Deutsche Bank will share the burden of a 50 per cent British tax on bonuses, chairman Josef Ackermann was quoted as saying yesterday. "We will clearly globalise it," Mr Ackermann told the Financial Times. "If
        AFP  -  80 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Yuan should be 'third pillar' of global system: Joseph Yam
        105 18 Bloomberg Hong Kong's former central bank chief Joseph Yam said that the yuan can become the "third pillar" of the global monetary system as deteriorating public finances erode confidence in the dollar and the euro. "Large budget deficits and public
        Bloomberg  -  105 words
      • Article
        Lock icon Ryanair says it will not buy 200 Boeing jets
        89 18 AP in Budget carrier Ryanair pic has stopped discussions to buy as many as 200 new Boeing 737-800 aircraft after being unable to extract concessions from the manufacturer. Ryanair chief executive officer Michael O'Leary said pricing for the aircraft which were
        AP  -  89 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Jetstar, AirAsia in talks on cost-saving JV
      294 18 Reuters Discussions still at a preliminary stage; nothing agreed yet Sydney TWO of Asia's major low-cost airlines, Malaysia's Air Asia and Qantas Airways-owned Jetstar, are in talks to form a joint venture, in a sign budget carriers are under pressure to drive costs
      Reuters  -  294 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon No early correction for global markets
      258 18 Reuters New York GLOBAL markets have rallied "too much, too soon, too fast" this year but a correction will not happen right away, leading economist Nouriel Roubini said on Thursday. He said that a cheap US dollar will still encourage investors to seek higher-yielding
      Reuters  -  258 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Banks to set aside more capital by 2012: panel
      373 20 Hong Kong. NYT The move will provide greater protection against downturns, international financial regulators say Paris BANKS would have to set aside more capital by the end of 2012 to provide greater protection against downturns, under proposals released on Thursday by
      Hong Kong. NYT  -  373 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Citi faces uphill battle to win back its freedom
      573 20 Reuters New York CITIGROUP'S Vikram Pandit endured a brutal capital raising episode this week in an effort to win the bank's freedom from close government oversight, but the bank's CEO may have won less than he hoped. In a blow to
      Reuters; AP  -  573 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Chinese banks hide 'pool of credit risk': Fitch
      303 20 AFP Beijing Chinese banks are creating a "growing pool of hidden credit risk" through financial moves that shift loans off balance sheets to comply with government capital requirements, Fitch Ratings warned yesterday. The ratings agency said in a report that the practice
      AFP  -  303 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Bernanke gets nod for second term
      274 21 NYT Washington THE Senate Banking Committee voted on Thursday to approve the nomination of Ben Bernanke for a second four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve. The 16-7 vote, which came after flashes of populist anger erupted amid a sluggish and uneven economic
      NYT  -  274 words
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Money's in merchandising
      513 21 Reuters Record labels are focusing on a new revenue stream as music sales drop New York RAVAGED by dwindling music sales and rampant piracy, major music companies are bulking up expertise in an area of the business that they used to ignore: T-shirts, baseball caps and other
      Reuters; BLOOMBERG  -  513 words
    • Article
      Lock icon Aussie govt, Telstra move closer to broadband deal
      256 21 Reuters Wellington THE Australian government has struck a preliminary agreement with dominant telecoms firm Telstra Corp Ltd over its role in a US$37 billion plan to create a nationwide, high-speed broadband network. The former state-owned monopoly has been locked in talks with
      Reuters  -  256 words
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  • SGX
    • Article
      Lock icon Transaction date: Dec 18
      8812 22 SZ-wks Tel ligh Low Code Company Last Sale Vol Day Last Quote C000) High Low Buyer Seller Div GrYld Net C'vr P/E M Cap Smil 8 3 3148 8Telecom 1.5 2.5 5834 A-Sonic 14 16 5000 ABR Hldgs 5.5 5.5 1938 AEI Corp I 1 1100
      8,812 words
    • Article
      Lock icon SGX CATALIST
      1560 25 High Low Code Company Sale ('000) High Low Buyer Seller C'vr P/E Smil 0 5 1181 s AA Grp IS 12 8538 t APStrategic 0.5 1501 s Advanced System '.5 3.5 3480 t Adventus !0 8.5 3518 t Afor 2.5 2 1524 t Alantac 1 4 7814 t
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      Lock icon SECURITIES TRADING SCOREBOARD
      47 25 Up Down Unch 4 9 5 Up Down Unch 0 0 0 Up Down Unch 4 9 5 lulti Ind lanui Fact :unni .ommerce ■inance .onst ruction lotel 5ts" >ervices >as/ fateF ;ure larr Active counters with no volume for todai are not included
      47 words
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      Lock icon SECURITIES TRADING TURNOVER
      35 25 MAIN SDQ TOTAL MAIN SDQ TOTAI lulti Ind 19,836 19,836 52,772 52,772 TarTUl l~acturiri) .ommerce -inance lotel ists >ervices led 'ater linini iiiarr Sing foreign stocks. Value calculated using Monday's exchange rates.
      35 words
    • Article
      Lock icon STOCK PRICES LEGEND:
      137 25 Straits Times Index Stocks; s Catalist Non-Sponsored; t Catalist; N Net or Tax-exempted dividend; ct Conditional Trdg xd ex-dividend cd cum dividend; cri cum right issue cbi cum bonus issue; xri ex-right issue; xbi ex-bonus issue xall ex-all; cdxa cum dividend ex-all co cum offer cdca cum
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      Lock icon BT SHARE INFORMATION SERVICE
      815 25 SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDER/DIRECTOR TRANSACTIONS For week beginning Dec 14 Trans Date Substantial Shareholder/ Director Buy Sell Conv No of Shares '000 Price Per Shr$ Before ('000) After (TOO) itock "hip Eng Seng Corp 16-Dec-09 Citadel Kensington :hip Eng Seng Corp 16-Dec-09 CHL :hip Eng Seng Corp 16-Dec-09
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  • Page 22 Advertisements
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      39 22 J tlJr *yj^S. M ctii B >Jfsl ?|l>k m\m» 'V II m II hv ftl |TA| I h fA| BB &|4 k^H jr/^J^^f ff~^vß^yV Ik^wl H I 111 '■kvi ViV P A^^B I J I II |U Bt^'. llSiittiiiiiikl
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  • MARKETS
    • STOCK MARKETS
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Straits Times Index
        20 26 YTD change: +59.10% 52-week high: 2,827.91 on Dec 17,2009 52-week low: 1,455.47 on March 10,2009 Source: Bloomberg
        :: Bloomberg  -  20 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Hang Seng Index
        19 26 YTD change:+47.lB% 52-week high: 23,099.50 on Nov 18,2009 52-week low: 11,344.50 on March 9,2009 Source: :Bloomberg
        :Bloomberg  -  19 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Dow Jones Industrial Average
        25 26 YTD change:+l7.4s% 52-week high: 10,516.70 on Dec 4,2009 52-week low: 6,469.95 on March 6,2009 (Chart shows Thursday's index closing) Source: Bloomberg
        : Bloomberg  -  25 words
      • Article
        Lock icon MORGAN STANLEY CAPITAL INT'L INDICES
        367 26 In local curr In S$ In US? dy yr dy yr dy yr Index Change Change Change Change Change Change Dec 17 World Index Preliminai 815.9 -1.0 20.4 -1.0 21.3 -1.7 24.5 tEAFE Preliminai 766.2 -1.0 18.0 -1.6 21.9 -2.3 25.2 Euroi Preliminai 1098.0 -1.3
        367 words
      • Article
        Lock icon INTERBANK CURRENCY RATES
        152 26 Dec ?8§ Against S$ Currencies Bid Offer S$/US$ to one unit of foreign currency: Australian dollar 1.2441 1.2465 Against US? Bid 0.8888 Offer 0.8893 Canadian dollar 1.3105 1.3129 0.9362 0.9367 Euro 2.0133 2.0169 1.4384 1.4389 NZ dollar 0.9952 0.9980 0.7110 0.7120 Sterlini 2.2660 2.2701 1.6189 1.6195 US
        152 words
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        Lock icon Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite
        21 26 YTD change: +71.02% 52-week high: 3,478.01 on Aug 4,2009 52-week low: 1,814.75 on Dec 31,2008 Source: Bloomberg
        : Bloomberg  -  21 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Nikkei 225
        18 26 YTD change:+l4.4B% 52-week high: 10,767.00 on Aug 31,2009 52-week low: 7,021.28 on March 10,2009 Source: ■Bloomberg
        ■Bloomberg  -  18 words
      • Article
        Lock icon LIFFE
        75 26 Dec J7|| COCOA (£/tonne) Close Prev Hi! ILow MariO 2304 2309 2337/2286 May 10 2322 2326 2350/2305 Jul 10 2298 2297 2327/2287 Sep 10 2274 2272 2300/2260 COFFEE (US$/tonne) Close Pev High/Low Jan 10 1348 1373 1380/1345 MariO 1386 1406 1412/1382 May 10 1417 1435 1440/1415 SUGAR (US tonne)
        75 words
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        Lock icon CHICAGO BOT
        92 26 Dec ;7| SOYBEANS (5,000 bu min; USc/60 Ib bushels) Close Previous High/Low Jan 10 1022.*****9.*****3.*****5.50 Mar 10 1030.*****7.*****1.*****3.50 May 10 1036.*****3.*****6.*****0.00 Jul 10 1041.*****7.*****9.*****5.75 SOYBEAN/OIL (60,000 lbs; usq/lb) Close Previous High/Low Jan 10 38.64 40.33 40.38 38.45 Mar 10 39.05 40.75 40.80 38.88 May 10 39.41 41.10 41.05
        92 words
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        Lock icon OIL
        75 26 Dec J7| CRUDE USS/barrel (FOB origin) Close Change Brent blend (1-Mth F) WTI (Near Mth) Dubai (1-Mth F) Tapis blend Minas 72.61 -2.07 72.58 -0.10 72.75 -0.33 77.60 1.70 75.20 0.15 PRODUCT USS/barrel (FOB Spore) Close Change Naphtha Jet Kerosene 75.90 unch 81.65 0.80 USS/barrel Opec Oil Basket Price
        75 words
      • Article
        Lock icon METALS
        69 26 Dec 7s| GOLD (US$/oz) Dec 17 Dec 18 Hong Kong 1128.*****9.10 Dec 16 Dec 17 London 1137.*****1.50 1138.*****2.50 Source: Thomson Reuters SILVER Selling Buying Passbook 1 oz 24.43 24.20 Source: UOB PLATINUM Lon (US$/oz) Dec 17 Close Previous PM Fix 1432.00 unav AM Fix 1441.*****8.00 Source: Thomson Reuters PLATINUM
        69 words
      • Article
        Lock icon PALM OIL
        63 26 Dec ;7| lelivery 4onth Opening Range Sett Price Av Price Low Vol Done Open Position Ian 10 reb 10 \/lar 10 \pr 10 rotal o/p 2580 2593 I 2600 2609 p: ***** contracts 2556 2580 2554 2604 2620 2590 2620 2628 2598 2613 2628 2602 Turnover: ***** lots
        63 words
      • Article
        Lock icon LONDON METALS
        71 26 Dec J7| Uumlnlum, 99.7? mrity (US$/tonne' Close Previous :ash 1 months lopper, Grade A 2181.50 2217.00 2239.75 2276.00 ;us$/tonne) lash J months ■ead (US$/tonne; 6826.00 6870.00 6997.00 7039.00 :ash 1 months 2327.25 2359.00 2377.50 2410.00 lid /tonne; lose ■revious Cash 3 months Tin (US$/tonne; *****.00 *****.00 *****.00 *****.00
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  • PERSPECTIVE
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon Alternative education
      992 27  -  Stephen Coates AFP Canadian John Hardy and his wife Cynthia have developed a unique eco-school on Bali, where an innovative curriculum brings the kids back to Earth By Badung, Indonesia ODAY'S young students, not the world leaders at UN climate talks in Copenhagen, will be the ones battling
      AFP |; AFP  -  992 words
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      Lock icon Trials of the US dollar
      971 27  -  William Pesek It was trading at 89.57 yen on Thursday, after reaching a 14-year low of 84.83 By ADD Benjamin Franklin's wink to the US dollar's list of humiliations. The 18th-century American statesman is perhaps best-known in Asia for gracing the front of ■the US$lOO
      AFP  -  971 words
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  • Wealth
    • WEALTH INVESTING
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        Lock icon Dollars and sense of investing
        1062 28 Are some long-held principles on the markets merely myths? Genevieve Cua looks into some of them r^^B HE depths of the financial crisis be- tween 2008 and 2009 called into question a number of investment principles that have been accepted almost as truisms until recently.
        STOCK.XCHNG  -  1,062 words
      • Article
        Lock icon BROKER'S TAKE
        473 28  -  JOYCE HOOI Singapore Airlines Buy Amßesearch Sdn Bhd Dec 17 Dec 18 close: $14.14 SINGAPORE Airlines (SIA) announced capacity adjustments to its route network yesterday. The capacity adjustments will involve establishment of new routes. Meanwhile destinations such as Mumbai, Colombo, Seoul, Delhi and Manchester will see frequency increase
        473 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon It's only a number
        1217 29  -  Ben Fok WEALTH INSIGHTS The real question is: After we hit a benchmark, what happens next? CEO, Grandtag Financial Consultancy (S) WHEN the Dow Jones Industrial Average broke 10,000 last month, it was telecast on financial news channels, showing traders tossing commemorative caps, cheering, clapping and
        AP  -  1,217 words
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        Lock icon Musings for the festive season
        1246 30  -  Teh Hooi Ling SHOW ME THE MONEY It's time we appreciate how lucky we are, and lend a helping hand to the less fortunate hooiling@sph.com.sg Senior correspondent IN the book Making Globalization Work, its author, Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, notes that peoples' views on
        REUTERS  -  1,246 words
    • WEALTH REAL ESTATE
      • Article
        Lock icon London luxury-home prices post big gain
        246 31 Bloomberg Edinburgh LONDON luxury-home prices posted the biggest gain in 19 months as many bankers were undeterred by government plans to tax their bonuses, Knight Frank LLP said. Values of houses and apartments costing more than £1 million (552.3 million) rose 6.1 per cent
        Bloomberg  -  246 words
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        Lock icon Shanghai property sizzles despite curbs
        1000 32 Bloomberg Analysts say that the reinstatement of a sales tax is a token measure that won't change the upward trend in prices Shanghai GLORIA Gu paid U*****,000 for an apartment near Shanghai's financial district so that her three-year-old son could attend one of the city's
        Bloomberg; BLOOMBERG  -  1,000 words
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  • Page 31 Advertisements
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      Lock icon Page 31 Advertisements Column 1
      528 31 PROJECTNAME/ PROP CONTRACT TENURE BUILT-IN/LAND PRICE PSF PROJECTNAME/ PROP CONTRACT TENURE BUILT-IN/LAND PRICE PSF STREETNAME TYPE DATE AREA*(SQFT) (S$'000) (Ss) STREETNAME TYPE DATE AREA*(SQFT) (S$'000) (Ss) District 1 District 15 NON-LANDED LANDED The Sail ©Marina Bay Apt 25/11/2009 99 861 1851 2150 Upp East Coast Rd 2-Ter 25/11/2009 FH 4474
      528 words
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  • Page 33 Advertisements
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      Lock icon Page 33 Advertisements Column 1
      26 33 Published and printed by Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Co. Regn. No. *****2868 E. A member of MCS Circulation Audit. Customer Service (Circulation): 6388-3838, circs@sph.com.sg, Fax 6746-1925.
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  • BT Living
    • Article, Illustration
      Lock icon IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS
      25 34 Last minute help, must-haves, "forever" gifts, present ideas for all types, and how to decorate PHOTO: ZSUZSANNAKILIAN.STOCK.XCHNG
      : ZSUZSANNAKILIAN.STOCK.XCHNG  -  25 words
    • SHOPPING
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
        1748 35  -  Melissa Lwee If you still haven't picked up a gift for the significant other, it's time to call the concierge By IT'S close to Christinas and your wife has been dropping strong hints about an original Paul Poiret but you have no
        1,748 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon wants/needs
        606 36 Forget the Zhu Zhu hamster that every child aged 10 to 100 is hankering for in the US. Grown-up fashionistas have their own list of 'must-have' Christmas gifts, too. Melissa Lwee checks hers twice. Fendi Selleria Peekaboo Made-to-Order Spotted on everyone from Blake lively to Sharon Stone, the Fendi
        606 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Present trends
        948 37  -  Audrey Phoon Nix the bath salts and towel sets. The difficult year has forced those celebrating Christmas to reassess priorities and be more creative with their gift-giving." THEY'RE making their lists and checking them not just twice, but again and again, re-reviewing gift ideas and narrowing down the
        LIEW WEYLIN  -  948 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon forever yours
        741 38  -  Amanda de Guzman Most of us like to think we have learned a thing or two from the tumult of 2009. Perhaps, we are more wary of flighty and fickle trends, both financial and fashionable. However, that vestigial, niggling desire to buy something bright and shiny during the
        741 words
    • GADGETS
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon LAPPING IT UP
        1059 39  -  Christopher Lim Intel's Core \1 CPU chip powers the most powerfu laptops ever made. I INY feather-weight laptops that fit in purses and can be toted I around all day are the rage now, but they can't edit videos or run the latest games. It's a simple
        1,059 words
    • CEOS' HAWKER GUIDE
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon A good catch
        1518 40  -  Audrey Phoon BT Weekend reels in the best fish soup and fish head bee hoon stalls in Singapore. IF THERE were a recipe that has emerged undiluted from the wave of health-conscious eating that has swept through the country in recent years, it would have to be
        : ARTHUR LEE, YEN MENG JIIN, AUDREY PHOON  -  1,518 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Batting for hawker fare
        596 40  -  Audrey Phoon Nelson Goh General manager Hin Leong Trading By IN between his day job as oil firm Hin Leong Trading's general manager and his voluntary post as president of the Singapore Baseball and Softball Association, Nelson Goh has precious little time to call his own.
        ARTHUR LEE  -  596 words
    • HOME & GARDEN
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon All decked out
        652 41  -  Amanda de Guzman While current trends in Christmas decor are anything but sombre, they are also anything but ostentatious and obvious. ITH the grey pall of the recession becoming more F of distant memory, there is much to celebrate this I holiday season. However, this doesn't mean
        652 words
    • WELLNESS
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon Health is wealth
        859 42  -  Cheah Ui-Hoon BTWeekend checks out some health-related gift ideas for that special someone in your life. THE massage chair is the ultimate wellness gift, so it's no wonder that Osim named its premier chair launched this year the uDream. For $9,588 to $9,888, it boasts a design
        859 words
    • SPORT
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon The good, the bad and the ugly
        1222 43  -  Lee U-Wen no holds barred leeuwen@sph.com.sg Acting Deputy Foreign Editor WHAT a year it has been in the world of sport, one that has been nothing short of breathtaking for sports fans everywhere. It was an arduous task in itself crunching down the
        'APA; jttyr  -  1,222 words
    • GOLF
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon play it forward
        769 44  -  Justine Moss If it's gifts for the golfer in your life you're after, there is a variety of products out there for novices or more seasoned players. We did the rounds, you do the math. Happy golf-shopping! These limited edition golf bag by Qgroove are the perfect
        769 words
    • MOTORING
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon TOP 10 FOR 2010
        1431 45 The new year will bring with it a whole slew of new cars. Some will be exquisite but expensive, while the others are going to be a bit more affordable. Samuel Ec looks at the more interesting examples from these two categories. Rolls-Royce Ghost At 5.4
        1,431 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon A merry warm Christmas
        343 46 They may be Europeans living and working in Singapore, but they don't need to 'cool down' at Christmas time. Samuel Ec finds out why two car bosses spend their year-end holidays in Asia IN 10 years of life in the region, Porsche Asia-Pacific managing director Christer
        YEN MENG JIIN  -  343 words
      • Article, Illustration
        Lock icon From Stuttgart to Singapore
        290 46 AROUND this time of the year, the only thing Wolfgang Huppenbauer misses is walking through the beautiful Christmas market in Stuttgart. The president and CEO of Daimler South-east Asia, which makes Mercedes-Benz and is based in Stuttgart, Germany, has been living in Asia for most of
        ARTHUR LEE  -  290 words
  • Page 34 Miscellaneous
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  • Page 42 Advertisements
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      1266 42 Wine^Cline withßTWeekend Chatterbox all-you-can-eat spread of over 30 soups, Fillet of Sea Perch. A wide variety of Dim Level 5, Meritus Mandarin Singapore dim sum, porridge and desserts all served Sum like Chicken and Mango Tart as well as 333 Orchard Road to your table, for a well worthy price
      1,266 words
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